It was quite a season for the two teams in this year’s Super Bowl matchup at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium. Yes, they played well to reach the big game, but that hasn’t always been the top news story. It’s been hard to watch the news and not hear about Taylor Swift and the Kansas City Chiefs (14-6). Let’s not forget the last pick of the draft, who just happens to be the San Francisco 49ers (14-5) quarterback, Brock Purdy. Viewers were ready for the final game of the season.
The first quarter opens with the Chiefs kicking to the 49ers. The 49ers got three flags for a total of 20 yards. On their first drive, Christian McCaffrey fumbled the ball but the Chiefs could not get to a first down. Patrick Mahomes, quarterback of the Chiefs, was sacked once during the quarter. The 49ers dominated in the first quarter with seven first downs while the Chiefs only got one.
Even though the first quarter went scoreless, it did not take long for 49ers’ Jake Moody to kick the longest field goal in Super Bowl history at 55 yards at the opening of the second quarter. Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco fumbled the ball in the red zone. The 49ers scored a touchdown on a trick play where wide receiver Jauan Jennings threw to McCaffrey. The Chiefs received four flags during this quarter, which prevented them from scoring a touchdown. Harrison Butker was able to kick a 28 yard field goal just before halftime. The 49ers were leading 10-3 at halftime.
On the first snap of the second half, the Chiefs running back Pacheco dropped the ball for a loss of twelve yards. Mahomes then threw an interception to rookie safety out of Penn State Ji’Ayir Brown, on the same drive. With eight minutes to go, the first down of the quarter was reached with a catch by Travis Kelce. Butker then kicked a 57 yard field goal which broke the record set earlier. The 49ers on a punt lost the ball that was recovered by Watson of the Chiefs, which then turned into a touchdown by the Chiefs. The Chiefs were up 13-10 at the end of the third.
The 49ers responded with a receiving touchdown by Jennings to start the third. However, the extra point by Moody was blocked, which would prove costly. The Chiefs responded with Butker kicking a field goal to tie the game at 16 all. The game was tied up until the two-minute warning when Moody of the 49ers kicked a 53 yard field goal to take the lead. The Chiefs then responded by kicking a game-tying field goal with seconds left sending the game into overtime for only the second time in Super Bowl history.
In overtime, the 49ers won the coin toss and chose to receive the kick. They proceeded down the field and Moody kicked a field goal. The Chiefs, after a long drive, won Super Bowl LVIII with a receiving touchdown by wide receiver Mecole Hardman.
