When the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs met in Super Bowl LIV four years ago, the rosters looked vastly different than they do now for Super Bowl LVIII.
While head coaches Kyle Shanahan of San Francisco and Andy Reid of Kansas City remain the constants, only a select group of key players have been retained from that 31-20 victory for the Chiefs, who won their first Super Bowl in 50 years.
In an age of roster volatility from one season to another, the San Francisco 49ers have managed to keep eight core players — fullback Kyle Juszczyk, receiver Deebo Samuel, tight end George Kittle, defensive end Nick Bosa, linebackers Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw, defensive tackle Arik Armstead, and punter Mitch Wishnowski. Only the latter three players have never been invited to a Pro Bowl.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs still have the player most integral to their success, quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who’s now led them to four Super Bowl appearances in the five seasons. Mahomes will try to lead Kansas City to its third Super Bowl victory in five years and the fourth in franchise history on Feb. 11 in Las Vegas.
In addition to Mahomes, the Chiefs have kept three All-Pro performers in tight end Travis Kelce, guard Joe Thuney (out with a torn pectoral muscle), and defensive tackle Chris Jones, along with kicker Harrison Butker, receiver Mecole Hardman, tight end Blake Bell, guard Nick Allegretti.
Let’s take a look at where each teams made roster changes that have had the greatest impact on their success heading into Super Bowl LVIII.
Related: How NFL teams failed to take advantage of the Kansas City Chiefs in a two-year ‘rebuilding’ window
San Francisco 49ers: Key additions since Super Bowl LIV
In Super Bowl LIV, the San Francisco 49ers had Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback. Garoppolo guided the 49ers to a 10-point fourth quarter lead and came within about one foot or so of both winning the game and locking up the Super Bowl MVP award for himself.
But he overthrew receiver Emmanuel Sanders on a long pass that would have resulted in a touchdown. Instead, it was Mahomes who completed the most important pass of the game, a long one to Tyreek Hill, that led to their come-from-behind victory.
Since then, the San Francisco 49ers have moved on from Garoppolo, who signed with Las Vegas, and have made their most significant upgrades on the offense. The following moves have had the greatest impact:
- Trading for All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams (highest graded left tackle, according to Pro Football Focus)
- Trading for all-purpose running back Christian McCaffrey (led the NFL in rushing and touchdowns)
- Drafting receiver Brandon Aiyuk (led the NFL in yards per reception)
- Drafting quarterback Brock Purdy (led the NFL in QB rating, QBR, yards per attempt)
All four were either invited to the Pro Bowl this season or named to an NFL All-Pro team.
On an offense that already had three star players in Kittle, Juszczyk, and Samuel, there’s no wonder the 49ers, who played in three straight NFC Championship Games, have been able to play their way back to the Super Bowl.
OFFENSE
| PLAYER | POS. | STARTS | HOW ACQUIRED |
| Brock Purdy* | QB | 16 | Drafted: 7th round, 2022 |
| Christian McCaffrey* | RB | 16 | Traded from CAR, 10/20/2022 |
| Brandon Aiyuk* | WR | 16 | Drafted: 1st round, 2020 |
| Colton McKivitz | RT | 17 | Drafted: 5th round, 2020 |
| Trent Williams* | LT | 15 | Traded from WAS, 4/25/2020 |
| Aaron Banks | RG | 14 | Drafted: 2nd round, 2021 |
| Spencer Burford | LG | 13 | Drafted: 4th round, 2022 |
| Jake Brendel | C | 17 | Signed (MIA): Undrafted FA, 2021 |
Defensively, most of the changes have come at the coordinator job, which was held by Robert Saleh, who left to coach the New York Jets, and then by DeMeco Ryans, who left to coach the Houston Texans. Now, the defense belongs to Steve Wilks.
It’s helped that the 49ers began the season with an All-Pro player at every level — defensive end Nick Bosa, linebacker Fred Warner and safety Talanoa Hufanga (who’s out for the season). The 49ers tied for the league lead in interceptions, a direct result of Wilks’ impact on the secondary, particularly former Chief Charvarius Ward, who was invited to his first Pro Bowl.
DEFENSE
| PLAYER | POS. | STARTS | HOW ACQUIRED |
| Javon Kinlaw | DT | 6 | Drafted: 1st round, 2020 |
| Javon Hargrave* | DT | 16 | Signed as FA (PHI), 3/14/2023 |
| Clelin Ferrell (IR) | DE | 17 | Signed as FA (LV), 3/15/2023 |
| Oren Burks | LB | 17 | Signed as FA, 3/17/2022 |
| Tashaun Gipson | S | 16 | Signed as FA, 8/31/2022 |
| Ji’Ayir Brown | S | 5 | Drafted: 3rd round, 2023 |
| Talanoa Hufanga (IR) | S | 10 | Drafted: 5th round, 2021 |
| Charvarius Ward* | CB | 17 | Signed as FA (KC), 3/18/2022 |
| Deommodore Lenoir | CB | 17 | Drafted: 5th round, 2021 |
SPECIAL TEAMS
| PLAYER | POS. | STARTS | HOW ACQUIRED |
| Jake Moody | K | 17 | Drafted: 3rd round, 2023 |
| Ray-Ray McCloud | KR/PR | 12 | Signed as FA (PIT), 3/22/2022 |
Related: Super Bowl odds
Kansas City Chiefs: Key additions since Super Bowl LIV
For the Chiefs, the massive difference between this season’s team and the one the 49ers faced four years ago is the defense, which Kansas City has completely overhauled under defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, now in his fifth season on Andy Reid’s staff.
With Jones as the only holdover from the original Super Bowl team and the anchor on the defensive line, the Chiefs have done a masterful job filling the other 10 spots around him — particularly through the draft — and transforming the defense into one of the NFL’s best.
Related: Travis Kelce says Justin Tucker broke ‘unwritten rule’, before Chiefs-Ravens AFC Championship
Nine of their current starters are players they’ve drafted over the last four years; among the players with more than five starts this season, safety Justin Reid and linebacker Drue Tranquill are the only players the Chiefs signed as free agents.
Under Spagnuolo, the Chiefs are second in total defense, second in points allowed and fourth in pass defense, getting All-Pro performances this season from Jones and cornerback Trent McDuffie.
DEFENSE
| PLAYER | POS. | STARTS | HOW ACQUIRED |
| Michael Danna | DE | 13 | Drafted: 5th round, 2020 |
| George Karlaftis III | DE | 8 | Drafted: 1st round, 2022 |
| Willie Gay Jr. | WR | 8 | Drafted: 2nd round, 2020 |
| Justin Reid | S | 10 | Signed as FA (HOU), 3/18/2022 |
| Leo Chenal | LB | 17 | Drafted: 3rd round, 2022 |
| Nick Bolton | LB | 17 | Drafted: 2nd round, 2021 |
| Drue Tranquill | LB | 8 | Signed as FA (LAC), 3/17/2023 |
| Chamarri Conner | S | 7 | Drafted: 4th round, 2023 |
| Mike Edwards | S | 5 | Signed as FA, 3/18/2023 |
| Brian Cook (IR) | S | 12 | Drafted: 2nd round, 2022 |
| Trent McDuffie* | CB | 16 | Drafted: 1st round, 2022 |
| L’Jarius Sneed | CB | 17 | Drafted: 4th round, 2020 |
Mahomes will always be the featured attraction on the Chiefs, and for good reason. But the Chiefs’ overhauled defense might be more responsible for their success than their all-world quarterback, especially when they’ve only allowed three points in the second half this postseason.
The offense, which ranked No. 1 in 2022, dropped to 15th in 2023, and Mahomes on several occasions lacked a reliable receiving threat aside from Kelce. While the Chiefs were able to win a Super Bowl without star receiver Tyreek Hill in 2022, they didn’t appear capable of reaching the Super Bowl again because they were struggling to score points.
Yet Mahomes finally started getting some production from rookie receiver Rashee Rice, and coupled with the hard-nosed running of Isiah Pacheco, the Chiefs started to find enough offensive answers to beat quality teams like Miami, Buffalo and Baltimore on consecutive weeks.
OFFENSE
| PLAYER | POS. | STARTS | HOW ACQUIRED |
| Isiah Pacheco | RB | 13 | Drafted: 7th round, 2022 |
| Justin Watson | WR | 8 | Signed as FA (TAM), 4/14/2023 |
| Rashee Rice | WR | 8 | Drafted: 2nd round, 2023 |
| Noah Gray | TE | 10 | Drafted: 5th round, 2021 |
| Marquez Valdes-Scantling | WR | 16 | Signed as FA (GB), 3/25/2022 |
| Jawaan Taylor | RT | 17 | Signed as FA (JAC), 3/14/2023 |
| Donovan Smith | LT | 12 | Signed as FA, 5/3/2023 |
| Trey Smith | RG | 17 | Drafted: 6th round, 2021 |
| Creed Humphrey* | C | 17 | Drafted: 2nd round, 2021 |
SPECIAL TEAMS
| PLAYER | POS. | STARTS | HOW ACQUIRED |
| Tommy Townsend | P | 17 | Signed as FA, 4/30/2020 |
| Richie James | KR/PR | 9 | Signed as FA (NYG), 4/11/2023 |