It used to be that about the only thing that the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs had in common was Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana. The four-time Super Bowl champion began his career in the Bay Area and played his final two seasons in Kansas City.
Of course, that not been the case in recent years. Although these successful franchises are members of different conferences, the clubs will meet this weekend (in Super Bowl LVIII at Las Vegas) for the fourth time in six years. To date, Andy Reid has gotten the best of Kyle Shanahan in all three previous encounters.
Kansas City Chiefs 38, San Francisco 49ers 27 (2018)
Back to 2018. It was a game in which Reid’s team outlasted Shanahan’s 49ers, 38-27, in Week 3 at Arrowhead Stadium. Kansas City jumped out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead thanks to a pair of scores of one-yard scoring runs by Kareem Hunt. The Chiefs then got three touchdown passes by quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the second quarter and owned a 35-10 halftime advantage.
Shanahan’s team got within 11 points in the third quarter, but would fall. To make matters worse, Garoppolo would go down late in the fourth quarter with a season-ending knee injury. The 49ers would finish 4-12 that season and in third place in the NFC West. Kansas City would win the AFC West, knock off the Colts in the divisional round and eventually fall in overtime at home to the Patriots in the conference championship game.