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.
Kansas City Chiefs 31, San Francisco 49ers 20 (Super Bowl LIV)
Jimmy Garoppolo was back in 2019, and so would be the San Francisco 49ers. The team got off to an impressive 8-0 start and would stumble only three times during the regular season. The NFC West champions claimed the top seed in the NFC playoffs and looked the part in convincing victories over the Minnesota Vikings (27-10) and Green Bay Packers (37-20).
The Niners and AFC champion Chiefs would clash at Hard Rock Stadium in South Florida. Kyle Shanahan’s team struck first with a field goal, but fell behind 10-3 in the second quarter. However, the next two-plus quarters would belong to San Francisco. The 49ers scored 17 straight points and owned a 20-10 lead after three quarters of play. With less than 12 minutes to play, Patrick Mahomes threw his second interception of the contest.
The next three times Kansas City had the ball, it would result in a touchdown. Reid’s club orchestrated drives of 88, 65, and 42 yards, respectively. The Chiefs gained 397 total yards in the 31-20 victory, 195 of that on those TD marches. Damien Williams scored two of those touchdowns, the first on a five-yard toss via Mahomes and the second on a 38-yard run. Garoppolo’s second interception of the game helped seal the Chiefs’ first Super Bowl title since 1969.
Kansas City Chiefs 44, San Francisco 49ers 23 (2022)
It was a Sunday afternoon affair at Levi’s Stadium between two teams that would not only win their respective divisions but reached their conference title game. However, both the Chiefs and 49ers were coming off losses entering this Week 7 interconference clash.
Once again led by quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (back as the starter after Trey Lance went down in Week 2), San Francisco owned the early advantage in scoring the first 10 points of the game. Kansas City would respond and by intermission owned a 14-13 lead, this despite turning over the ball twice.
Andy Reid’s team would own the second half, outscoring the Niners 30-10 while rolling up 280 yards of total offense. Patrick Mahomes was on point throughout the game, despite a first half interception. He would connect on 25 of his 43 throws for 423 yards and three touchdowns. Wideouts Juju Smith-Schuster (124) and Marquez Valdes-Scantling (111) each topped the century mark in receiving yards, and the Chiefs finished the game 529 total yards on 58 plays – an imposing 9.1 yards per play.
Garoppolo threw for 303 yards and two scores, but he was sacked five times and turned over the ball twice. With less than four minutes to play and the issue decided, Kyle Shanahan sat his starter and gave rookie Brock Purdy some playing time. He threw for 66 yards in his limited time and served up one interception.