🏈🏈🏈🏈
San Francisco 49ers
vs.
Super Bowl LIV: Kansas City Chiefs 31, San Francisco 49ers 20
Usually before and after a major sports event, like the Super Bowl or a World Cup Final, I will talk about the results and the event for some time.
This year, I have felt myself unusually distracted by things. And so after writing a review of the Super Bowl game itself, and another reviewing some other indirect aspects of the game, such as the commercials and the halftime show, the posts regarding the Super Bowl kind of just ended.
Very quickly, I found myself talking about politics, which has always been important to me, but has taken on an extra level of urgency in the past three years, ever since one of the most awful men that I know of was elected to the White House. It has been a disaster ever since, yet the worse it gets, the more his loyal supporters applaud and claim that his is truly a great and wonderful presidency. It is sickening, and sometimes, you just need a break.
I decided to give myself one yet again, even if only for the weekend. It will be short-lived, admittedly, because there are big political stories coming up in the very near future. But for now, yes, I am taking a bit of a break from politics for the duration of this weekend.
So, let us get back to the Super Bowl, and let me share some thoughts beyond just the specifics about that one game.
First of all, it does indeed seem like Kansas City is on the verge of a dynasty. But that said, these things are often unpredictable. Anything can happen, and you can never tell what will change. I remember Bill Parcells saying that much right after his New England Patriots were defeated by the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXI. He said that you never know when, or even if, the opportunity to get back to the big game will come again, and that this was true of everyone who took the field, players and coaches alike. If you remember back then, the Green Bay Packers also looked like an emerging dynasty, to the point that many of the players themselves were trumpeting their era in. They were a very good team, and they did get back to the Super Bowl the next season. But they lost in a shocking upset to the Denver Broncos, and that Packers team never did get back, although a new Packers team with a new coach and a new quarterback would get back and win it all again in 2010. But Brett Favre and that incredible Packers team that seemed like the next dynasty? That never really came to fruition. The Buffalo Bills also looked like an emerging dynasty following the 1990 season, when they just barely missed winning the big game by a few feet in Super Bowl XXV, when that late field goal attempt sailed just wide right. They made it back to numerous Super Bowls, but never won one. And let us not forget the 1985 Chicago Bears. If there was one team that I felt absolutely certain would win more Super Bowls with the level of talent that they had, that was the team. They were so damn good that season, it seemed like they would surely be back. But they never went back to the big game, and only would reach the NFC Championship Game one more time, three seasons later. They got crushed at home by the 49ers, who would go on to barely beat the Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII.
The point is that you never know what is going to happen. Who knew that Patrick Mahomes would suffer that horrific looking knee injury, or that he would recover so quickly? He now has the distinction of being the youngest quarterback ever to win an NFL MVP and a Super Bowl ring. If things continue like this, he could indeed be the most accomplished quarterback in NFL history. But again, you never know what will happen. Maybe Mahomes leads them back, and they are tested again, but this time, the comeback falls just short. Or maybe they don’t even get back. Maybe they have that championship hangover that has afflicted so many teams in the past. Maybe next season is not so great, and then they never seem the same after that. Maybe they lose a lot of talent to free agency, and just never seem to be the same after that.
Or maybe this is the first of numerous championships for an emerging dynasty. That would not exactly be shocking, given how awesome they looked these last two seasons, and how well-positioned they appear right now.
We shall see, one way or the other.
As for the 49ers, much can be said about how great they looked, and also, like KC, how they are in a good shape to have other opportunities to reach the Super Bowl, and perhaps win it next time. Many people said the same thing the last time the 40ers were in the Super Bowl, when they lost to Baltimore. But they never did get back with that lineup. Many people expected the Rams, last year’s Super Bowl losers, to get back, with the offensive talent on that team. They missed the playoffs this season. A lot of people expected big things from other recent Super Bowl losers. Who thought that the Seattle Seahawks, who themselves seemed on the verge of a dynasty, would completely fade after that infamous 2nd and 1? Who could have foreseen that the Falcons would completely fade away after losing the Super Bowl to New England a few years ago, despite that awesome level of talent? Or the Panthers, a season before that?
Again, you never know. Recovering from a Super Bowl loss is very difficult, and few teams that lose Super Bowls go on to win one in the near future. It has happened, and in fact, it has happened a few times in recent years, so it is not impossible. But generally, the trend is not promising for most teams, especially if the loss was particularly devastating.
And let’s face it: this was a pretty devastating loss for the 49ers. They started dominating this game, imposing their will, after falling behind 10-3 in the second quarter. From that point on, they dictated the tempo of the game, through most of the second quarter, and throughout the third and most of the fourth quarter. To be sure, the Chiefs offense was beginning to move the ball late in the third and early in the fourth quarter, but that threat ended when Mahomes threw his second pick of the night. Had the 49ers scored on that drive, it very well may have put the game out of reach. Hell, even when the Chiefs got the ball back with just under eight minutes, I thought it might already be too late. Yes, I know the Chiefs have an amazing record with comebacks this season, unlike anything that anyone has never seen before. They were 5-0 in games in which they trailed by double digits. But let’s face it: they really, really waited as late as they realistically could have gone without showing much or producing many points in this game.
But when they finally did, suddenly they were unstoppable. I likened it to an amazing flurry of punches by a fighter who is hopelessly behind in points, and need a knockout, then gets it. That is kind of what it felt like. The last time that I saw a turnaround that quick and thorough in the Super Bowl was when Washington overcame a 10-0 Denver lead in the second quarter of Super Bowl XXII, and scored 35 points in the second quarter. And that was, again, the second quarter. Here, the 49ers were up by 10 with six and a half minutes to go, or so, and then suddenly experienced a collapse right at the end of the game like we rarely see. No, it was not 35 points in one quarter, like Washington. And no, it was not like the Falcons blowing that 28-3 lead against New England three years ago. But in the space of maybe four minutes and change worth of playing time, the 49ers went from being comfortably ahead and dominating, to falling hopelessly behind and letting the championship slip through their fingers. It was the biggest of possible games for them, and that really, really stung.
So, this one will sting for a while. Plus, they will have the pressure of having gone to the Super Bowl this season. They will not sneak up on anyone, and they play in an incredibly tough division, with the Seahawks, the Rams, and the up and coming Cardinals. They may repeat as NFC Champs, but it will not be easy.
Below are a couple of videos that I thought were pretty enjoyable and timely. The first is a video showing the 49ers walking into the locker room right after the end of the big game. The second one was of three legendary quarterbacks – Brett Favre, Drew Brees, and Joe Montana – watching this Super Bowl and commentating on it simultaneously. You do not have to watch the whole thing, but seeing their reactions during the biggest moments, particularly the explosive last few minutes with the huge momentum swing, was rather fascinating. And remember, Montana played for both of the franchises playing in this Super Bowl.
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