The Super Bowl in Miami is upon us. There has been plenty of build-up in the media all week long and on Sunday we will finally know who the Super Bowl 54 champions are.
The Kansas City Chiefs will battle the San Francisco 49ers in the Hard Rock stadium fpr the honour of lifting the Vince Lombardi Trophy. It’s a match-up many are labeling as an outstanding offence against an equally brilliant defence.
For the first time in years, the NFL fandom is truly split down the middle when it comes to who they think will come out on top at Super Bowl 54.
The Chiefs have the league’s best quarterback in Patrick Mahomes along with the offensive weapons of Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce while the 49ers have the leagues best defensive unit with Nick Bosa and DeForest Buckner.
The 49ers have had lots of success in recent matches from their running game, with Raheem Mostert taking centre stage in the NFC Championship game.
Super Bowl 54 breakdown
Throughout the season they have also used Matt Breida and Tevin Coleman. Their tight end George Kittle who many consider the best in the business, has also played a part in the run blocking. You even saw him when mic’d up encouraging the run game.
What you see from the 49ers here is selflessness, with players happy to sacrifice personal achievements to help gain team achievements. Its all about the win.
The Chiefs have improved defensively in recent weeks but I still would question them defensively, particularly against the run.
This is especially the case when their last six regular season games, which were all wins, only featured one team that made the playoffs. This is where the game can be won for the 49ers.
The 49ers will be hoping to use the success of their running game against the Chiefs, who will have a test on their hands.
The Chiefs will hope to counteract the 49ers run game with their passing game. The arm of Mahomes will give Chiefs plenty of hope coming into the Super Bowl.
Kansas have been behind by double digits in both play off games, particularly against the Texans who lead 24-0 at one point. They will use that as encouragement if the 49ers go ahead early.
The tight end battle is intriguing, with the two best in the league both being involved. Kittle and Kelce will be batting it out and hoping to make some impact in the game.
Judging by how the play offs have gone, you are likely to see Kelce alot more. Kelce scored three touchdowns in the second quarter against Houston while Kittle was restricted to just one reception against the Packers.
The Head Coach battle is also one to watch out for. Andy Reid has only made it to the big game once before in his long NFL career.
Shanahan is known for being the offensive co-ordinator for the Falcons during their Super Bowl 51 collapse. It’s a matter of both these coaches feeling they have something to prove.
Many feel that Jimmy Garoppolo has been limited due to the low number of passes that he has made this off season and that he would struggle in a shootout.
Plenty also feel that the Chiefs’ have yet to have a test to their offence in the post season with the poor offensive line of the Texans and the over-reliance of Derrick Henry by the Titans.
Jimmy Garoppolo has been in shootouts in his career, no more so than in their 48-46 win over the Saints in week 14 where he passed for four touchdowns and 349 yards.
The Chiefs still managed to contain Henry, which both the Patriots and the 14-2 Ravens failed to do. Their wins against Houston and Tennessee, games in which they were down big early on, they showed their mental strength to come back and pick up the win.
The game can be won by the 49ers by their powerful running game as well as their dominating defensive unit led by rookie Nick Bosa.
They have more of an overall strong roster which they will hope will guide them to their 6th Super Bowl, tying them with the Steelers and Patriots.
Where I think this game can be won for the Chiefs is the passing ability of Mahomes and the talent around him that can stun the Niner defence. They have the ability to come back from any deficit and that type of resilience is exactly why Kyle Shanahan and his team cannot take their eye off the ball at any point in this game.
My prediction is that the reason Jimmy G is not passing is because they are saving his arm for the big game and that it’s going to be a passing yard masterpiece.
I think it will be high scoring and will be the second game in Super Bowl history to go to overtime. I predict that the 49ers will win the toss and get the ball down the field and Robbie Gould will kick the game winning field goal in a 31-28 win, with Jimmy Garoppolo winning Super Bowl 54 MVP.
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