Las Vegas — The Kansas City Chiefs, led by Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, have won the Super Bowl twice in a row.
Mahomes fired a 3-yard touchdown throw to Mecole Hardman in overtime, and the Chiefs recovered to defeat the San Francisco 49ers 25-22 on Sunday, becoming the first team to win consecutive Super Bowls in 19 years and ninth overall.
Pop singer Taylor Swift watched boyfriend Kelce from a suite as the Chiefs won their third title in five years, firmly establishing themselves as a dynasty.
The NFL’s inaugural Super Bowl in Las Vegas was a sloppy, error-filled game that was basically boring until the back-and-forth fourth quarter and overtime. It was the second of 58 Super Bowls to be tied after regulation, and the first to be played under new overtime rules that guaranteed both teams had the ball.
The Chiefs (15-6) trailed 22-19 after Jake Moody kicked a 27-yard field goal on the first play of overtime, but Mahomes rallied the team, completing another stunning comeback in a Super Bowl rematch from four years ago.
Mahomes ran 8 yards on fourth-and-1 to keep the Chiefs’ hopes alive, then scrambled 19 yards to set up the winning score at 14:57 in the extra frame, just before what would have been the second overtime.
“Despite facing adversity this season, we came through tonight. … “I’m proud of the guys,” added Mahomes, who won MVP. “This is fantastic. Legendary.”
After he connected with a wide-open Hardman, the Chiefs dashed onto the field as red and yellow confetti dropped.
The most exciting moment of the first half occurred when a disgruntled Kelce shoved Andy Reid on the sideline, knocking the Chiefs’ 65-year-old coach back a few steps after teammate Isiah Pacheco fumbled inside the red zone during the second quarter.
“You guys saw that?” Kelce stated. “I will keep it between us until my’mic’d up’ informs the world. I was only telling him how much I loved him.”
The action ramped up after San Francisco’s special teams made a critical mistake, allowing Mahomes to throw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Marquez Valdes-Scantling for a 13-10 lead.
Brock Purdy and the 49ers (14-6) responded, but they were unable to make enough plays, depriving Mr. Irrelevant the opportunity to advance from the last pick in the 2022 NFL draft to Super Bowl champion.
Mahomes and Reid are now halfway to Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, who won six championships with the New England Patriots over a 20-year period and were the most recent duo to do it after the 2003-04 season.
Mahomes, 28, becomes the fourth starting quarterback to win three Super Bowls, following Brady, Joe Montana, Terry Bradshaw, and Troy Aikman, and the second-youngest.
Niners wide receiver Jauan Jennings tossed a touchdown pass and caught one, joining Eagles quarterback Nick Foles six years ago as the only individuals to do so in the Super Bowl.
After Moody’s 53-yard field goal gave the Niners a 19-16 lead with 1:53 left, Mahomes and Kelce went to work. Mahomes connected with Kelce for a 22-yard gain, setting up Harrison Butker’s game-tying 29-yard field goal with three seconds left.
A holding call on Kansas City’s Trent McDuffie extended San Francisco’s first overtime possession, and Purdy made important passes to get the 49ers to the Chiefs’ 9. But San Francisco settled for a field goal.
Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, and the Niners got out to a 10-0 lead in the Super Bowl, but Mahomes and the Chiefs seem unconcerned. They have trailed by 10 points in all three of their victories, including last year’s 38-35 victory over Philadelphia.
Mahomes struggled early and threw an interception. But with the game on the line, he became a magician once more. He completed 34 of 46 for 333 yards and two touchdowns.
The Chiefs were far from dominant during the regular season, and they entered the playoffs as the AFC’s No. 3 seed. They won at Buffalo and Baltimore in the postseason, Mahomes’ first road playoff games, and entered the Super Bowl as 2 1/2-point underdogs, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
“The Kansas City Chiefs are never considered underdogs.” “Just know that,” Mahomes stated.
The game changed when San Francisco’s Ray-Ray McCloud failed to scoop a punt that struck teammate Darrell Luter Jr.’s leg, and the Chiefs recovered at the 49ers’ 16, setting up Mahomes’ go-ahead touchdown pass to Valdes-Scantling.
On the next series, Purdy threw a 10-yard touchdown throw to Jennings, giving the Niners a 16-13 lead. Moody’s extra point attempt was blocked.
Niners coach Kyle Shanahan gambled on fourth-and-3 from the Chiefs’ 15, missing a chance for a matching field goal. Purdy connected with George Kittle for a 4-yard gain before finding Jennings for the score.
Shanahan used deception for the only touchdown in the first half.
Jennings, a wide receiver who had never thrown an NFL pass, connected with McCaffrey for a 21-yard touchdown. He was hit as he threw, but McCaffrey caught the wobbly pass across the field and raced to the end zone.
Shanahan went 0-2 as a head coach in Super Bowls and 0-3 overall, including a loss as Atlanta’s offensive coordinator. That was the game in which Brady and the Patriots came back from a 28-3 deficit to win in overtime.
There were plenty of stars in attendance as the NFL delivered its biggest game to America’s showcase capital. Many celebrities attended the event, including Jay-Z, LeBron James, and Paul McCartney.
Post Malone sang “America the Beautiful,” Reba McEntire sang the national anthem, and Usher captivated the audience at halftime. He invited several guests, including Alicia Keys, H.E.R., Jermaine Dupri, Lil Jon, and Ludacris.
Attendance was announced at 61,629, the smallest crowd in Super Bowl history since the pandemic game in Tampa, Florida, three years ago.
