In what is an undesirable matchup by many, the battle between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII Sunday has the makings for a very enjoyable contest, similar to the last time these two teams met in the big game four years ago. With a variety of talking points – from the two opposing quarterbacks, to the broadcasters and players’ girlfriends – let’s take a look into what America is discussing ahead of Sunday.
The NFL takes a gamble
First of all, the location itself of this year’s Super Bowl will come as a shock to anyone who paid attention to, I don’t know, the previous 100 years of the relationship between sports and gambling. Just a decade ago, there were no professional sports teams in Las Vegas and sports gambling was not officially legalized in the U.S. Now, there are three teams with a fourth franchise coming once the Oakland Athletics jump ship, multiple partnerships between the NFL, sports media outlets and gambling platforms as well as the world’s biggest event taking place in “Sin City.”
In 2015, former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo (more on him later) was barred by the NFL from speaking at an event in Las Vegas. The topic of the event? Fantasy football, of all things. Times have changed.
Sensationalizing Super Bowl QBs
This…this is the topic that has sparked the most frustration out of me. If I may be frank, it grinds my gears. The discourse going on between quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Brock Purdy is hyperbolic to a comical degree, especially regarding Purdy.
All year long, the second-year 49ers quarterback has been criticized for being a “game manager.” Sure, his team has immense talent at every single position on offense, but it still takes a competent quarterback to bring it all together. And he’s done just that, to a remarkable degree considering head coach Kyle Shanahan and company sifted through many different quarterbacks to land on the former “Mr. Irrelevant.”
But still, Purdy has his critics. While he rarely makes true game-changing plays in the fashion of a Mahomes, Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen, he gets the ball to his playmakers and wins games. That counts for something, and calling Purdy a bum is disingenuous. What’s also disingenuous is calling Purdy “elite” or believing he’s a top five quarterback in the league, which he isn’t. Just because he is able to accomplish those things I mentioned doesn’t put him above the Allens, Joe Burrows, Justin Herberts or the Jacksons in the league. Purdy is a very good quarterback, but there needs to be some nuance in his discussions. So far, all I’ve seen is either he’s in the upper echelon of those at the position or he’s not much better than Mitchell Trubisky. It’s maddening.
And then on the other side of the field, debates are taking place on whether or not Mahomes has already surpassed Tom Brady as being the greatest player of all time. That sounds wrong to even think about, much less say in front of a national audience. Stop it. Mahomes is an incredible player, perhaps the most talented to ever play the position, but let’s pump the brakes before we enter premature discussions similar to the Michael Jordan vs. LeBron James arguments (which are also terrible for this business).
Haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate
Did you know that Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce has a girlfriend? Did you know that she’s a singer? Did you know that she’s probably the most famous singer walking the planet right now?
We all know, thanks to the nonstop coverage Taylor Swift has received, through no fault of her own I must say. You can tell that Swift doesn’t appreciate being shown during Chiefs games as often as she does, as many noticed during the AFC Championship in Baltimore. She’s there to support her boyfriend, simple as that.
The people to blame for this “outrage” are the NFL social media accounts – as well as those like ESPN – who feel the need to make posts about Swift just to generate clicks. They don’t care if all the top comments are panning the league for giving Swift this much coverage, just as long as there are numbers generated.
I’m not what you might call a “Swiftie” – my girlfriend is usually my source of music and entertainment news – but if you’re upset about a woman supporting her boyfriend, then you have way too much time on your hands. It’s the last football game of the season. Enjoy it.
Ehhhh, I don’t know Jim
Well, if there was one reason to not enjoy this game…
I can comfortably say that Tony Romo is the worst “A-team” color commentator in the sport right now, which wasn’t the case when he first started. When Romo was fresh out of his playing career in Dallas, he joined Jim Nantz in the CBS booth with an energetic passion of what was being displayed on the field, but his calling card was being able to tell the audience what play the offense was about to run before the ball was snapped. He was seen as a wizard, in that regard, and the 2019 AFC Championship between the Chiefs and New England Patriots was his magnum opus. He peaked in Kansas City that night.
But then, the game began to move past what Romo experienced during his playing days, and he signed a cushy contract at CBS worth a reported $17 million per year. In the years since, he’s almost become a parody of himself, often saying whatever pops into his mind and making various sound effects throughout the duration of the game. It’s almost like if an actor from “Saturday Night Live” played him on a skit but then replaced him full time.
I could probably name 20 analysts that I’d rather listen to than Romo, but luckily I’ll be back home in Lucedale watching the game in a room full of friends. I may not be a fan of Romo, but complaining about the broadcasters feels like it’s not the worst problem to have in the buildup to the big game.
Prediction: Chiefs reign supreme
When I watch Mahomes and the Chiefs, I get the same feeling that I had when watching Brady and the Patriots’ dynasty. No matter who the opposing team was, no matter how good they are or how poor the Patriots were overall on paper, you always felt like Brady had the upper hand. And that’s what I feel when I watch Mahomes.
You can make the argument that the Chiefs did not have a better roster than the Miami Dolphins, the Buffalo Bills or the Baltimore Ravens – all teams that the Chiefs took down in the playoffs to get to this point. But, and not to pat myself on the back here, I thought the Chiefs would win each time because, like Brady, Mahomes is the Big Bad Wolf. He and head coach Andy Reid have been magical together, and the only thing comparable is Bill Belichick and Brady. Joe Montana and Bill Walsh in the prime days of San Francisco are comparable, but there’s a strong chance that Reid and Mahomes will pass them in short order.
The 49ers have a great team and have been a great story with players like Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle, Trent Williams and Nick Bosa to name a few, but it’s hard to pick against the best player on Earth. Plus, the Chiefs have a pretty great defense as well.
If I had to predict a score, I’d say that the Chiefs prevail 31-27 in what should be a memorable Super Bowl.
