The Kansas City Chiefs will take on the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV today at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. Both teams earned a bye to skip the first round of the playoffs, then won a pair of home games to advance to the NFL's championship game.

It's no surprise that the Chiefs made it to the big game this year. They came just one overtime period away from the Super Bowl last season, as they lost to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game. Patrick Mahomes had an incredible 2018 season, and threw for 5,097 yards, 50 touchdowns and just eight interceptions. While the Chiefs didn't get a chance to hoist the Lombardi Trophy, they truly took the league by storm, and Mahomes was rewarded with the MVP award.

The Chiefs finished with a 12-4 record for the second year in a row, but didn't appear as dominant early in the season. Mahomes missed Week 8 and Week 9 with a dislocated knee cap and the Chiefs won just six of their first 10 games. After their 35-32 loss to the Tennessee Titans in Week 10, however, the Chiefs regrouped, and won eight straight games -- which was enough to earn their first Super Bowl appearance in half a century. 

As for the 49ers, they are somewhat of a surprise team. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo tore his ACL three games into his first full season as San Francisco's starter in 2018, and the 49ers finished with a 4-12 record. Thanks to a couple of additions on both sides of the ball, the 49ers now find themselves just one game from their first Super Bowl victory since 1994. 

The 49ers appear to be one of the most complete teams in the NFL, and while the Chiefs have been on a roll as of late, San Francisco looks like it could shut down Kansas City's powerful offensive attack. 

The Pick Six Podcast featuring Will Brinson broke down the gambling angles for the Super Bowl on Friday's blowout episode, with spread, total and prop picks from Pete Prisco and R.J. White, fun prop talk with Ryan Wilson and John Breech, plus DFS tips from Heath Cummings. Give it a listen below and be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform:

San Francisco 49ers at Kansas City Chiefs (-1) 

Sunday, Feb. 2, 6:30 p.m. ET 

The 49ers will win this game if they can do the one thing every team has failed to do against the Chiefs this season: play well with a lead. That failure has been on full display this postseason, as Kansas City trailed by 24 points to the Houston Texans in the divisional round, and then 10 points on two separate occasions to the Titans in the conference championship. In both cases, however, the Chiefs were able to come back and win by double digits. It's been almost impossible to stop Mahomes and the Chiefs offense, so if the 49ers get a lead, they have to find a way to keep it.

Mahomes is having an incredible postseason. In two games, he has completed 65.7 percent of his passes for 615 yards and eight touchdowns. His receivers have been on fire as well. Sammy Watkins has nine catches for 190 yards and a touchdown, Tyreek Hill has eight catches for 108 yards and two touchdowns and tight end Travis Kelce has 13 catches for 164 yards and three touchdowns. Finding a way to slow down this offense is going to be important for the 49ers. 

While Kansas City knows how to score points, San Francisco has statistically the best defense in the playoffs. In two games, they have allowed an average of just 252.5 yards of total offense -- including just 41.5 rushing yards per game. While Richard Sherman and Co. will be focused on stopping Mahomes' arm, the 49ers will also have to worry about his legs. Mahomes has rushed for 53 yards in both postseason games, and is the Chiefs' leading rusher in the playoffs. His legs really served as the X-factor against the Titans, and the 49ers have to be ready should Mahomes want to leave the pocket. 

Who should you back against the spread and on the money line in the Super Bowl? And what's the exact final score? Visit SportsLine now to see their Super Bowl cheat sheet, all from the model that is up over $7,000 on its top-rated picks.

The 49ers have relied almost exclusively on the ground game in the postseason. Tevin Coleman rushed for 105 yards and two touchdowns in the divisional round against the Minnesota Vikings, and Raheem Mostert rushed for 220 yards and four touchdowns against the Green Bay Packers in the conference championship. Clearly, the 49ers need both to show up against the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, but they will also want to see more out of Garoppolo as well. He has thrown for just 208 yards, one touchdown and one interception in his two postseason starts. While it hasn't mattered much since San Francisco's defense and run game have been extraordinary, Garoppolo will need to shoulder more of the load against the Chiefs. The 49ers paid him to be the quarterback of the future, and he can prove he's one of the best signal callers in the league if he can find a way to bring the Lombardi back to the Bay. 

While the Chiefs allowed 128.2 rushing yards per game in the regular season, they improved as the year went on. In the postseason, they have allowed just 89.5 rushing yards per game, and held Titans running back Derrick Henry to just 69 yards on the ground last Sunday. Previously, he rushed for 182 yards against the Patriots in the wild-card round, and 195 yards against the Baltimore Ravens in the divisional round. Defensive end Frank Clark claims the Chiefs are the best defense in the world right now, and they have a chance to prove it on the biggest stage of them all.

Like many, I expect this game to be a close one, but I believe the Chiefs will win in large part due to Mahomes. The Chiefs know they should have been in Super Bowl LIII last year, and they don't want to let this opportunity slip through their fingers. Additionally, Andy Reid has been chasing that elusive Super Bowl ring long enough. 

The Pick: Chiefs 30-27 over 49ers