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2024 Super Bowl, Chiefs vs. 49ers score: Patrick Mahomes leads OT comeback as K.C. wins back-to-back titles

Call it a dynasty; the Chiefs are the first team to win consecutive Super Bowls since 2003-04

The Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl champions, again. Patrick Mahomes engineered a 75-yard touchdown drive to conclude overtime of Super Bowl LVIII, leading the Chiefs to their second consecutive NFL championship, this one a 25-22 victory over the San Francisco 49ers.

Kansas City became the first team since the 2003-04 New England Patriots to win back-to-back titles in what was just the second overtime game in Super Bowl history.

Mecole Hardman caught a 3-yard pass from Mahomes, one of only three players to win three or more Super Bowl MVPs, to end the 13-play walk-off scoring drive just one possession after the 49ers' Jake Moody kicked a 27-yard field goal to conclude a 13-play, 66-yard drive that put San Francisco ahead of Kansas City to start the extra period.

The championship-winning drive, which included a fourth-and-1 scramble from Mahomes and a clutch 7-yard catch from tight end Travis Kelce, was a must-score for K.C. The NFL's new playoff overtime rules -- both teams are guaranteed at least one possession in the extra period -- were in effect for the first time, and the Chiefs needed to answer the Niners' field goal.

Scoring sparked late with 34 points posted after halftime as defense dominated the first 30 minutes. The Niners started with a 10-0 advantage as head coach Kyle Shanahan went into his bag of tricks with wide receiver Jauan Jennings throwing a touchdown to Christian McCaffrey in the second quarter. Jennings was dynamite for San Francisco, also grabbing a late go-ahead score, while McCaffrey fumbled on the game's first possession but finished with 160 total yards.

The Chiefs avoided a first-half shutout with a late field goal from Harrison Butker, but it was a sluggish effort until the break with Kelce logging just one catch. The offensive malaise continued after Usher's halftime performance with Mahomes throwing an interception to start the third quarter. It was clear Kansas City needed some sort of break to truly push San Francisco.

The Super Bowl turned on a dime later that period. Butker drilled a Super Bowl-record 57-yard field goal, and the Chiefs converted a fumbled punt -- off the heel of Niners special teamer Darrell Luter Jr. -- in the red zone into a touchdown. Mahomes found Marquez Valdes-Scantling across the goal line on the next play. Held out of the end zone until that point, Kansas City grabbed its first lead of the game at 13-10.

Jennings' touchdown receiving (followed by a missed extra point) concluded a 75-yard drive that put the Niners back on top, 16-13, as the wideout joined former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles as the only players to throw and catch a touchdown in a Super Bowl.

The Chiefs drove down to the 3-yard line but settled for a 24-yard field goal from Butker to retie the game before Moody responded with a 53-yarder. However, Mahomes successfully executed a 2-minute drill as Butker added a 29-yard field goal with 3 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime.

Butker and Moody put together historic performances, combining to go 7 of 7 on field goals in the game. Moody previously set the Super Bowl record with a 55-yard field goal to start the second quarter before being bested by Butker.

Mahomes was exceptional, completing 34 of 46 passes for 333 yards with two touchdowns and an interception while picking up 66 yards rushing on nine carries. He spread the ball around -- eight pass-catchers had at least two receptions -- slowly but surely overcoming a threatening 49ers defense that knocked him off his spot consistently in the first half.

Mahomes, with his third Super Bowl MVP, now sits alongside Tom Brady (five) and Joe Montana (three) atop the mountain while becoming just the third player to win the award back-to-back, joining Bart Starr (I-II) and Terry Bradshaw (XIII-XIV).

Kelce finished with 93 yards on nine receptions -- doing much of his work in the second half and overtime -- while Hardman and Valdes-Scantling caught Mahomes' touchdowns. 

Niners quarterback Brock Purdy completed 22 of 38 passes for 255 yards and a touchdown with star WR Deebo Samuel only gaining 41 total yards while battling through injury.

  • The Chiefs are the first repeat champions since the 2003-04 Patriots, snapping the largest such drought in NFL history.
  • Mahomes now has 15 playoff wins; only Brady and Montana have more in NFL history. 
  • All three of Mahomes' Super Bowl wins have come after Kansas City trailed by 10+ points. 
  • This is the fourth Super Bowl championship in Chiefs history. 
  • The Chiefs are the fifth team to win three Super Bowls in a five-year span. 
  • Kelce is the third player in NFL history to lead three Super Bowl championship teams in yards receiving. 
  • Andy Reid is tied with Joe Gibbs and Bill Walsh for the third-most Super Bowl titles by a head coach in NFL history. 

Keep on reading for additional takeaways from Super Bowl LVIII.

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Live updates
 

Jauan Jennings steps up

The Niners finally pick up their first first down of the second half. They hadn't gotten a new set of downs since around the 4-minute mark of the second quarter. This time, it's No. 3 receiver Jennings coming up with a big catch on an out-breaking route. Much-needed for San Francisco.

 

Niners open the door, Chiefs walk through it

Q3: Chiefs 13, 49ers 10

Ray-Ray McCloud muffed the punt after trying to pick it up, and Jaylen Watson recovered. The ball hit Darrell Luter Jr.'s foot and bounced toward McCloud, who couldn't quite control it. Watson fell on the ball inside the red zone, and on the first play, Mahomes found Marquez Valdes-Scantling for a touchdown and the Chiefs' first lead of the night. 
 

Chiefs secondary steps up again

Kansas City's defensive backs are BALLING. Mike Edwards and Trent McDuffie made great plays on the ball on back-to-back snaps to force incompletions intended for Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel. The Niners have gone three-and-out on all three of their drives this half, and they are getting absolutely nothing through the air right now. 

 

ANOTHER NEW RECORD

Q3: 49ers 10, Chiefs 6

Earlier in the game, Jake Moody set a Super Bowl record by making a 55-yard field goal. That record didn't even make it two hours before being broken. Harrison Butker's 57-yarder cuts the lead to four points with 5:01 remaining in the third quarter.
 

Deebo Samuel QUESTIONABLE to return

Samuel pulled up lame on the third-down incompletion that ended San Francisco's previous drive. He went into the medical tent and has already re-emerged, but he is QUESTIONABLE to return with a left hamstring issue Remember, San Francisco has already lost Dre Greenlaw for the night, and Samuel has been battling multiple injuries during the playoffs.
 

Chris Conley's big night

Conley had a huge catch in the first half to give the Niners a first down on their field goal drive, and he has now made two excellent plays on special teams as well. He downed the previous punt on the two-yard line, and just absolutely leveled Richie James as soon as he caught the ball on this most recent punt. 
 

49ers not taking advantage

Kansas City's offense has been a disaster so far, with just seven first downs on seven possessions. And the Niners only have a seven-point lead despite that. They've quickly punted after each of the Chiefs' turnovers, and they just did it again after KC's latest punt. They should be leading this game by a lot more right now. They're letting the Chiefs hang around, which is very dangerous. 

 

Game management matters

It sure looked like Travis Kelce was pretty close to picking up a first down on that short catch-and-run. The Chiefs chose not to challenge the spot of the ball, then burned a timeout before the third-and-1 play, which ended with Pacheco getting stopped short of the marker and setting up a punt. Now, they're down a timeout that will almost certainly be needed later on. Pretty big mistake from Andy Reid. And then the Chiefs punted on fourth-and-maybe-half-a-yard, because the ball was so deep in their own territory. All of this because they don't run QB sneaks. 

 

Short yardage

The Chiefs do not run quarterback sneaks in these situations. Patrick Mahomes injured his knee on a sneak several years ago and has not run a sneak since. They will use tight ends for sneaks or hand it off to a back, but never sneak it. 

 

Defense steps up again

There have been three turnovers tonight -- two by Kansas City and one by San Francisco. On the ensuing drives, the teams have run a combined 10 plays and punted all three times. That's why this is still a 10-3 game. 

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Another turnover

The Chiefs opened the half with a disaster of a drive. Patrick Mahomes' pitch to Isiah Pacheco was just a little bit behind the running back, who dropped the ball and took a loss of 12 yards on the play. The Chiefs got back to third-and-long, Mahomes stepped up through the pocket, but way overshot Travis Kelce with his throw on the move and got picked off by Ji'Ayir Brown. 
 

Recapping Usher's halftime show

Usher was expected to bring out Alicia Keys, who he worked with on their hit song "My Boo," which is now 20 years old, but the number of guests attending was the biggest surprise of the night. Some fans may be disappointed that Justin Bieber, whom Usher reportedly reached out to about joining him on stage, was not one of those surprises. Another surprise was Usher singing all throwback songs, with no songs off his new album "Coming Home," which came out days before the Super Bowl.

2024 Super Bowl halftime show: Usher takes the stage, set list, full video of singer's performance
Shanna McCarriston
 

Second half coming up

The Niners out-gained the Chiefs, 189-157, in the first half. They also collected 12 first downs to Kansas City's seven. Both teams had one turnover, while the Chiefs were penalized five times for 50 yards and the Niners took three fouls for 20 yards. Jauan Jennings (!) had the game's only touchdown pass on a trick play throwback to Christian McCaffrey. 

The Chiefs haven't led at halftime in any of their previous three Super Bowl appearances during the Patrick Mahomes-Andy Reid era, yet they are 2-1 in those games. Can they stage another comeback here, just like they did a year ago?

 

More guests! 

Jermaine Dupri! H.E.R.! Lil Jon! Ludacris! 
 

Usher and Alicia Keys

Usher's first special guest of the halftime show: the legend, Alicia Keys. 
 

Clock (mis)management

Halftime: 49ers 10, Chiefs 3

The 49ers should have been calling timeouts on that red-zone opportunity to give themselves a chance for another drive at the end of the half, but Kyle Shanahan appears content with his team's lead. He made this exact same mistake the last time the Chiefs and 49ers met in the Super Bowl, only it was with his team on offense and he let the clock run down instead of trying for a score. His team then blew a double-digit second-half lead. Let's see what happens this time around. 

 

Niners defense needs to buckle down

The Chiefs have the ball in the red zone with just over a minute left in the first half. They also get the ball to start the second half after deferring on the coin toss. They could have back-to-back opportunities to score here, depending on how they manage the clock. With a 10-0 lead, the Niners need their defense to not give up back-to-back touchdowns and suddenly send the offense back out there trailing after having not had a chance to touch the ball. This is a big sport for Steve Wilks' group. 

 

More mistakes from Kansas City WRs

The Chiefs were plagued this entire season by drops and penalties by their wide receivers. We just saw one of each on the past couple plays. Mecole Hardman had a false start that created a third-and-long. And after Justin Watson came through with a conversion on that play, he had a big drop on the very next snap. 

 

"We are beating ourselves"

Chiefs DT Chris Jones tried to rally the troops after the McCaffrey touchdown. He and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo apparently delivered this message to the unit, which is allowing 6.1 yards per play so far. 
 

CHUG! CHUG! CHUG!

What do you do when your team is losing and they show you on the JumboTron? Drink the entire rest of your beer, duh. 
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A little trickeration leads to a 49ers TD

Q2: 49ers 10, Chiefs 0

Throwback pass from Jauan Jennings to Christian McCaffrey gives us the game's first touchdown! Brock Purdy threw it backward to Jennings, who awaited the oncoming pressure and fired it back across the field to CMC. The ball stayed in the air seemingly forever, but a great block at the point of attack allowed it to drop into McCaffrey's arms. That was all he needed to take it to the house. Massive play for the Niners. 
 

Frustration foul

L'Jarius Sneed and Brandon Aiyuk have been battling all game. Aiyuk only has 1 catch for 18 yards, but he just picked up another 15 yards by baiting Sneed into a personal foul penalty. Sneed smacked Aiyuk across the face mask following a short run by Christian McCaffrey. Sets the 49ers up for a red zone opportunity with a chance to extend the lead. 

 

49ers LB ruled out with Achilles injury

The Niners announced that Greenlaw's injury is to his Achilles, which is not surprising given the video. Right before halftime, he was ruled out. Brutal stuff. 
 

Freak injury for 49ers LB

49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw went down with a non-contact injury while running onto the field after the last 49ers punt. The cart came out for Greenlaw and took him to the locker room. That is a potentially massive injury for San Francisco, as he and Fred Warner are the NFL's best linebacker duo. He'll be replaced by Oren Burks and/or Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles. 
 

Kelce needs to shake it off

Travis Kelce was NOT happy about the Isiah Pacheco fumble. He was open on the deep pass to Hardman, then came off the field for the next snap, with Noah Gray coming into the game to block. Kelce then exploded on Andy Reid once he got to the sideline. 
 

Chiefs defense steps up

Just like the 49ers did earlier in the game, the Chiefs forced a quick punt after their running back fumbled the ball inside opponent territory. Even after a horse-collar tackle by Nick Bolton, Kansas City locked down, stopped two runs for minimal gain, then chased Brock Purdy out of the pocket to end the drive. Now, the Chiefs need their offense to join the party. 

 

Ecstasy and agony

The Chiefs have gone this whole season not creating big plays deep down the field as often as we've gotten used to seeing them do it. Who came up with the biggest play of the night so far? Mecole Hardman, who signed with the Jets this offseason and then returned to the Chiefs after the trade deadline. He beat the defense over the top for a 52-yard gain to set the Chiefs up in the red zone... only for Isiah Pacheco to fumble on the very next snap, with Deommodore Lenoir ripping the ball, and the scoring opportunity, out of his hands.
 

First score of the game: Super Bowl record

Q2: 49ers 3, Chiefs 0

Purdy had just enough time to stand up against the rush and deliver the ball downfield, and he tried to hit Deebo Samuel deep over the middle. Trent McDuffie stepped up and knocked it out of the air to force fourth down. Then, Jake Moody nailed a Super Bowl-record 55-yard field goal right through the uprights. Niners grab a lead. They've run more plays (18) than the Chiefs have total yards (16) so far. 
 

Playing their role

Brock Purdy hung in the pocket for as long as possible on that third-and-long and finally found Chris Conley coming across the field. The former Chief picked up 18 yards on third-and-9 to move the chains. On the next snap, Purdy found Ray-Ray McCloud for another chunk gain. Those are the Nos. 4 and 5 wide receivers for the 49ers. Role players are stepping up for the Niners on both sides of the ball. 
 

Niners need to score here

This is about to be San Francisco's third possession. The Chiefs have yet to record a first down, but the game is still tied. The Niners need to work their way down the field here and take an early lead, or they are going to regret not putting themselves ahead while the Kansas City offense was struggling. 
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