6 lessons to be learned from Chiefs SB 54 victory...

6 lessons everyone can learn from the Chiefs’ Super Bowl 54 win

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Retired NFL lineman Geoff Schwartz says this year’s Super Bowl is a reminder that teams need to be bold to win it all.

By Geoff Schwartz

The Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl champions! Their fans have waited 50 years to hear that line. Congrats to Chiefs Kingdom, Andy Reid, and the entire organization. It was an outstanding game with so many lessons to take away, most of them revolving around the offense.

Here’s what I learned from Super Bowl 54.

1. Having an elite quarterback is the only thing that matters

Getting an elite quarterback is much easier said than done. By my count, there are only a handful — Patrick Mahomes, Russell Wilson, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and Drew Brees — who I’d trust to “win” a Super Bowl right now. The Chiefs had Alex Smith, who was good enough to win the division, at quarterback. Then they made an unemotional decision to ditch him when they found a special replacement in Mahomes. Teams need to be bold to win the Super Bowl.

Of course it paid off, as the Chiefs were down by 10 points or more in all of their playoff games before Mahomes brought them back. Entering the Super Bowl, all of the trends favored the San Francisco defense and for three quarters, the 49ers played the game they wanted. They slowed the tempo and controlled the line of scrimmage. They harassed Mahomes and forced two interceptions (and two fumbles that weren’t turnovers).

But reminiscent of the Steph Curry-led Warriors, the Chiefs’ offense lit the fuse and couldn’t be stopped. The 49ers’ defense, which smartly played off coverage to avoid the explosive pass all night, allowed an opening and Mahomes took advantage of it. On third-and-15, the Chiefs were down 20-10 and if they didn’t convert, the game was more or less over. Mahomes dropped back 14 yards to avoid pressure and found Tyreek Hill breaking open on a deep corner route:

The Chiefs never looked back. Mahomes made ALL the plays they needed when it mattered the most, and he deserved the MVP.

On the flip side, 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo played well for the first three quarters, but he missed on multiple opportunities later in the game, either by not throwing to the open receiver or overthrowing open receivers. These are throws elite quarterbacks would have made. Garoppolo can still learn from this game and make these plays in the future, but I fear that he’s just not on that next level as a quarterback.

2. ABA: Always Be Aggressive

If you’d told me that Andy Reid would have been the more aggressive coach in a Super Bowl, I’d have called you a liar. But, Reid was 2-for-2 on fourth downs when it counted (the final throwaway of the game was on fourth down).

On their first touchdown drive, the Chiefs ran a special play on fourth-and-1 that they pulled from the 1948 Rose Bowl. My brother, Mitch Schwartz, said the play was in since May and had been practiced every so often, but they decided to use it this week. Go big or go home.

That play eventually led to a touchdown. On the very next drive, the Chiefs went for it on fourth down again, converted, and eventually got a field goal. That’s 10 points, just from being aggressive.

That wasn’t the case for the 49ers. Kyle Shanahan was way too conservative at times. It was baffling. There’s no excuse for the end of the first half. It was 10-10, and the 49ers were set to get the ball to start the second half. The Chiefs had just failed to convert on a third-and-14 with under two minutes left in the first half. The Niners had all three of their timeouts and didn’t use any while the Chiefs let the clock bleed until they had to punt.

The 49ers started their drive at their own 20 with 59 seconds left. They ran the ball twice, and after the Chiefs used a timeout, the Niners completed a pass to their running back for 20 yards on third down. The following play was a beautiful deep pass that was called back for a questionable offensive pass interference penalty on George Kittle. If OPI hadn’t been called, the 49ers would’ve gotten the ball inside the 20 with enough time to score, though not enough time to attempt multiple shots at a touchdown.

Instead, they settled for nothing and went into the half tied. It was a head-scratching decision by Shanahan, who had to know points were needed in this game. Shanahan explained afterward he didn’t want to give the ball back to Mahomes with a chance to score. Sure, but it also screams, “I don’t trust my quarterback.”

In that situation, one first down avoids the Chiefs getting the ball again before halftime. Shanahan deciding to be OK with no points is wild, considering the Chiefs were going to put up more points. Remember, they only scored under 23 points once all season. The lack of faith in Garoppolo in this spot goes back to my first lesson: having an elite quarterback wins you titles.

3. It’s hard to build a Super Bowl-winning offense with the run game as the primary source of your success

I understand that expected points added (EPA) will always favor the pass game, as you gain more yards passing than rushing over the season. This is more about the core principle of your offense. We’ve seen now several Super Bowls in a row where winning with a rushing attack first isn’t working. The Eagles beat the Patriots with 373 yards passing from Nick Foles. Yes, the Eagles ran the ball well in that game, but their offense wasn’t built with the run first.

Last season, the Patriots’ offensive line and run game were terrific in the postseason, but they got there with the pass game. Look at their AFC Championship win against the Chiefs, where a number of third-down conversations happened in the air. When the Patriots scored the only touchdown of Super Bowl 53, they primarily leaned on the pass game. Sony Michel ran in a short touchdown, but Tom Brady and the Patriots went down the field through the air on that drive. Meanwhile, the Rams’ run-based offense was completely flustered all game, especially when Jared Goff needed to pass to win.

And lastly, this year, the Chiefs won with the pass game, as they usually do. They didn’t run the football all that much throughout the season. Why? Mahomes is the best player in the world.

4. “Luck” is awesome

I’m a firm believer that you make your own luck, but it’s sure nice when things line up for you as well. Entering Week 17, the Chiefs were looking at the No. 3 seed and potentially having to go through red-hot Tennessee, New England, and Baltimore, the latter two on the road. Then, the Dolphins beat the Patriots, so the Chiefs got a bye. When the Titans took out the Patriots and then the Ravens, that ensured Kansas City hosted the AFC title game.

On Super Bowl Sunday, things again went their way. A questionable OPI call on Kittle took points off the board. Mahomes fumbled twice, which were both recovered by Kansas City. The snap on the trick play was bad, but it didn’t cost them. Garoppolo missed wide receivers. Garoppolo also appeared to get hit a few times in a manner that could, some would argue should, have resulted in an unnecessary roughness.

Even though it felt like the Chiefs’ time, they also finished the job, which is most important.

5. Less officiating is better

The officials allowed the game to be played on the field and not with their flags. Do I disagree with the OPI call on Kittle? Yes. But otherwise, they called zero holdings on either side of the trenches. They only called defensive pass interference on a single play, which was obvious. It wasn’t a perfect game, but we left the game on Sunday without an officiating controversy. Bravo to them.

6. There’s no such thing as too much booty shaking during the halftime show

I was in the stands for the halftime show. It was hard to see and hard to hear. The stadium was rocking and it appeared people enjoyed it. I noticed after the game that the usual people were complaining about the booty shaking by Jennifer Lopez and Shakira toward the end of their performance.

So, being the investigative reporter that I am, I went back to watch the halftime show because I had to see with my own eyes. And, I got to say, being upset about the show is warranted, because there wasn’t enough booty shaking. Just my humble opinion, of course.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/06/2020 10:11AM by Rams43.