The NFL is reaching the conclusion of the 2023 season. With said conclusion looming means one of the greatest of American events… The Super Bowl. This year the Super Bowl will be taking place in Las Vegas for the first time at the home of the Las Vegas Raiders, Allegiant Stadium. Super Bowl LVIII will be a clash between the NFC winning San Francisco 49ers and the defending Super Bowl and AFC winning Kansas City Chiefs. 

To be quite honest… this Super Bowl will not be very interesting. Now I could be wrong, but considering the circumstances, this is the quite possible worst combination of a matchup for the Lombardi trophy when you look at all of the other teams in the postseason. We could be getting ready for a Ravens vs Lions (I’ll get into these teams in a moment), Bills vs Packers, or even a Bills vs Lions matchup. But instead we are getting a rematch of Super Bowl LIV of two teams the vast majority of NFL fans can’t stand. This is because the 49ers have a stacked roster with pro bowlers and all pros everywhere, and for the Chiefs because of the insufferable antics of Chiefs Quarterback Patrick Mahomes’s wife and brother. 

The Chiefs have been very lucky to even be in this game in the first place. With help from officiating and Lamar Jackson forgetting how to play the game of football, the Ravens could easily be getting ready for Las Vegas. Speaking of the Ravens as just mentioned, Lamar Jackson looked like a deer in headlights in this game. It was very reminiscent of the Ravens brutal playoff loss to the Tennessee Titans a few years ago. It seemed as if the moment was too big for the at the time MVP frontrunner. His performance in this game has to be put into consideration in MVP voting. 

He shouldn’t be in consideration in the first place. Out of the Quarterbacks who are finalists with him, he ranks the lowest in TD passes, passing yards per game, and QBR; quite frankly the gap isn’t close either. How can a player be in the MVP conversation and yet produce such low numbers. Just because he was the quarterback on the best team shouldn’t qualify Lamar Jackson as an MVP candidate. 

As for the 49ers, they are also just as lucky to be still in the postseason. Their two wins this postseason were to Green Bay where the Packers were the better team throughout, and the Lions were up 24-7 at halftime, the Lions beat themselves rather than the 49ers coming back and winning… sorry not sorry San Francisco fans.

In terms of picking this game it is honestly a tough call. This is mainly because the NFL this season has been as unpredictable as ever. A major factor in this is the officiating during games all season. With questionable calls league wide, it makes this Super Bowl a very difficult one to pick. 

On the Hilltop, Anselmians have picked the Kansas City Chiefs to hoist the Lombardi trophy. In a poll conducted by the Crier, the Chiefs won with 57% of the vote while the 49ers got 43%. This data is shocking considering the wider broader opinion on the matchup. The 49ers have a better roster than the Chiefs, yet for Kansas City, roster talent hasn’t seemed to bother them. They have been playing teams with better rosters throughout the season.

Another reason for this result is the Taylor Swift factor. She is hoping to make the game in order to support her boyfriend, Kansas City All Pro Tight End Travis Kelce. Her appearances throughout the season has helped put the NFL and Kansas City at the forefront of sports, with the NFL making up to $330 million on Kansas City merchandise and viewership by just showing the GRAMMY winning artist on screen for even just a short moment here and there throughout games.

These numbers are all fun and all… but this is how Super Bowl LVIII is going to go. I am predicting the San Francisco 49ers to defeat the Kansas City Chiefs 27-17 to hoist their league tying 6th Lombardi trophy. At the end of the day, the 49ers talent can’t go unnoticed. While I think the Chiefs will try to keep it close for the first half or so, I think the 49ers high octane offense and stifling defense will take over. I am expecting running back Christian McCafferey to be a focal point and not just win game MVP, but help San Francisco to win their 6th Super Bowl and that’s the take.