For the second time in five seasons, the Kansas City Chiefs will battle the San Francisco 49ers with the Lombardi Trophy at stake. Patrick Mahomes has already established himself as arguably the most talented quarterback of all time, and his Chiefs team appears to be securing a place in pro football history as one of the NFL’s most daunting dynasties.

It’s remarkable just to consider how many trips Mahomes has already made to the Super Bowl. He played in three Super Bowls to date (Super Bowls LIV, LV, and LVII). His fourth appearance will come in Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday.

In contrast to the Chiefs, their opponents in Super Bowl LVIII, the San Francisco 49ers, have been knocking at the championship door for half a decade. Can they finally get the job done with Brock Purdy, a former NFL Draft “Mr. Irrelevant,” leading the offense at quarterback?

Here are eight things bettors should consider before wagering on the Chiefs-49ers matchup in Super Bowl LVIII.

Chiefs vs. 49ers Betting Stats

Money Line: 49ers -130, Chiefs +110
Spread: 49ers - 2 (-110), Chiefs +2 (-110)
Total Points: 47.5

Eight things to know about 49ers-Chiefs history before placing a bet on Super Bowl LVIII

8. Chiefs vs. 49ers Head-to-Head History

Let’s begin by taking a look at the all-time head-to-head record between Kansas City and San Francisco. The 49ers and Chiefs have faced each other 15 times since Kansas City entered the NFL in 1970. The Chiefs currently hold the all-time series edge by an 8-7 margin, and they earned those bragging by beating the 49ers four years ago in Super Bowl LIV.

It has been a story of domination for the Chiefs in recent years. Not only did they secure a Super Bowl win over the 49ers at the end of the 2019-20 season, but they also have three consecutive victories over San Francisco, which hasn’t beaten them since 2014. Trends exist to be broken, and a dramatic Super Bowl win by the 49ers would fittingly tie the all-time series record at 8-8.

7. 49ers vs. Chiefs Most Recent Game

The last Chiefs-49ers game was a rather one-sided affair in Kansas City’s favor. That 44-23 road win came in Week 7 of the 2022 season, when Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes was his usual dominant self. He completed 25 of 34 pass attempts for 423 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception. Receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling both caught passes for more than 100 yards, and tight end Travis Kelce fell just short of the mark with 98 yards.

The Chiefs were in fine form at the time, and the victory lifted them to 5-2 on the season. Kansas City would go on to lose only one more game in 2022 -- finishing up with a 14-3 record -- before storming to a Super Bowl LVII victory over the Eagles. That gave the Chiefs their second championship in four years, after having beaten San Francisco just three years earlier. This year’s title game presents Kansas City with a chance to become the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls since the New England Patriots did it in 2003 and 2004.

After losing that 2022 Week 7 game to the Chiefs at home, the 49ers didn’t lose again during the regular season and finished with a 13-4 record. The remarkable story of quarterback Brock Purdy, a former “Mr. Irrelevant” in the NFL Draft, started in week 13 of that season against the Miami Dolphins. Purdy entered the game after starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo suffered an injury. The 49ers continued winning until facing Philadelphia in the Divisional Round of the 2023 playoffs, when Purdy was forced to leave in the first quarter with a torn elbow ligament.

6. Battle of Elite Tight Ends

The 49ers and Chiefs each benefit from having one of the greatest tight ends to play the sport -- George Kittle in San Francisco and Travis Kelce in Kansas City. Kittle finished the 2023 season as the only NFL tight end with more than 1,000 receiving yards, but Kelce can now proudly boast ownership of the NFL record for career postseason receptions with 152. He passed Jerry Rice in the Chiefs’ AFC Championship Game at Baltimore, a victory in which Kelce caught all 11 of his targets for 116 yards and a TD.

Kelce is also the proud holder of another postseason record. In this year’s Divisional Round at Buffalo, he and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes connected on their 16th career postseason touchdown, which broke the previous record of 15 set by the Patriots’ Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski.

Kelce’s immense chemistry with his quarterback makes him the most dangerous weapon on the field for Kansas City, but no one should take Kittle for granted either. Kittle has had six games with over 80 receiving yards this year and is also a great blocking machine. He prides himself in that part of his game, and recently stuck Detroit’s leading pass rusher, Aidan Hutchinson, in the dirt with ease during the NFL Championship Game. Blocking is an art form in San Francisco, and it’s something the coaching staff takes very seriously. No matter how they show their skills, Kelce and Kittle will both provide box-office entertainment during Super Bowl LVIII.

5. Yardage Kings

San Francisco fans can look forward to the Super Bowl knowing that their team led the NFL in total yardage per game this season. The 49ers’ 396.9-yard average should come as no surprise, however, since they benefit from an incredible array of offensive stars. Running back Christian McCaffrey, tackle Trent Williams, tight end George Kittle and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk were all named to All-Pro teams, and quarterback Brock Purdy was selected for the Pro Bowl.

These players will have their work cut out for them against a Kansas City defense that allows the NFL’s fourth-fewest yards per game and the second-fewest points per game. The Chiefs have dominated the league in recent years because of their offense, but this season’s emergence of a top-notch defense makes for a very scary combination.

4. Coaches’ Head-to-Head History

Kyle Shanahan and Andy Reid are two NFL head coach at the opposite ends of their careers. At age 44, Shanahan is in his sixth year as the 49ers’ head coach, but he has already had his fair share of heartbreaking losses. Not only did he watch his San Francisco team give up a 10-point lead with under seven minutes remaining in Super Bowl LIV, but he was also on the wrong side of the most famous collapse in Super Bowl history as offensive coordinator for Atlanta seven years ago in Super Bowl LI. The Falcons infamously blew a 28-3 lead in falling to the New England Patriots 34-28.

With two very painful Super Bowl losses already under his belt, Shanahan will be desperate to win his first championship sooner rather than later. For that to happen, he will have to beat Reid, who is in his 25th season as an NFL head coach. Shanahan is 0-3 in his career against Reid, the architect of Kansas City’s remarkable fourth-quarter comeback win over Shanahan’s 49ers four years ago.

3. Comeback Kings

The 49ers have been shedding their former reputation over the last two weeks. Prior to these playoffs, San Francisco was a miserable 1-32 when entering the fourth quarter down by three points or more, and 0-38 when entering the fourth quarter down by at least eight points. However, in the Divisional Round, the 49ers overcame a seven-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat Green Bay, and one week later they erased a 17-point deficit to beat Detroit. That tied the record for the biggest-ever comeback to win an NFC Championship Game.

San Francisco QB Brock Purdy struggled early in both games, but he came back strong to secure two huge victories. Those performances will have given Purdy and his 49ers teammates a huge new level of confidence.

When it comes to comebacks, nobody can count out the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes -- as if anyone doesn’t already know that. The All-Pro quarterback has been the NFL’s best at his position for years, and he has also produced some insane Chiefs comeback victories. His famous 13-second drive to down the Bills in a 2021-22 season AFC Divisional Round game will go down as one of the greatest moments in NFL playoff history. Mahomes also managed a comeback against the 49ers in Super Bowl LIV

Down by 10 points with seven minutes remaining in that Super Bowl, Mahomes came up clutch to lead two touchdown drives and swing the game in Kansas City’s favor. A last-minute rushing touchdown iced the game, but it was Mahomes’ precision passing -- in just his second year as a starter -- that got the job done. In any case, with these two teams competing, there won’t be any celebrating until the clock hits zero on Sunday.

2. Patrick Mahomes’ Record vs. San Francisco

The possibility that San Francisco’s Brock Purdy ranks as a potentially elite NFL quarterback has been a hot topic of debate in recent weeks, but there is no doubt about the status of Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes. The 28-year-old Chiefs quarterback already has two Super Bowl rings, two MVP awards, has led the league in passing touchdowns twice, and led the league in passing yardage once. He is a certified stud.

This year hasn’t been quite as easy for Mahomes and the Chiefs' offense, however. His 4,183 passing yards and 27 TD passes are the lowest numbers he has posted since 2019, and his 14 interceptions are a career-high. His relative struggles were largely due to a lack of depth at the wide receiver position, which led many NFL pundits to believe that the Chiefs were vulnerable this season.

Unfortunately for the 49ers -- and the Chiefs’ AFC playoff rivals – Kansas City managed to find its top form just in time for the postseason. The Chiefs have looked to be at their brilliant best over the last few weeks, banishing any thoughts that 2023 was some sort of “down” season. This does not bode well for San Francisco.

Mahomes is 3-0 in his career against the 49ers, and his teams scored more than 30 points in each game. He averages 341 passing yards per game against San Francisco with a total of eight TD passes. To win their first Lombardi Trophy since the 1995 season, the 49ers must do something they have never done -- stop Patrick Mahomes.

1. Chiefs Have Four Straight Wins as Underdogs

The Chiefs have entered only four games as the underdog over the past two years, and have won them all. The Philadelphia Eagles were favored to beat Kansas City in last year’s Super Bowl, but the Chiefs prevailed 38-35. The other three underdog victories have all come this season. Kansas City was an underdog in the regular-season finale against the Los Angeles Chargers, when the Chiefs rested their starters, and they were underdogs again in each of their last two playoff games.

In the playoffs’ Divisional Round, the Chiefs were given a +2.5 spread against Buffalo, which they beat 27-24, and in the AFC Championship Game against the Baltimore Ravens, they were given an very generous spread of +4.5. They didn't need it, as they knocked off the Ravens 17-10.

The Chiefs now enter the Super Bowl as underdogs for the third time in this postseason. Can they make it a perfect three from three? For the record, underdogs are 12-4 against the spread over the last 16 Super Bowls.

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