The Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers will meet in the Super Bowl for the second time in five years when they take the field at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Feb. 11.
For the NFL, Super Bowl LVIII is almost a dream-come-true matchup.
The league gets the defending champion Chiefs and the world’s most famous girlfriend going against the San Francisco 49ers, who’ve been the NFC’s best team, one filled with superstar players and big personalities.
From great teams and great players (and great coaches) come great stories. Following are arguably the five biggest storylines heading into Super Bowl LVIII.
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The Brock Purdy ‘Cinderella’ story
The Brock Purdy story is as Hollywood as it gets. The San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback is one of sports’ ultimate underdogs, and undoubtedly, there’s someone out there working on the screenplay as we speak, just waiting to see whether this real-life “Cinderella” story will end with a Super Bowl victory.
In two seasons, Purdy has gone from “Mr. Irrelevant” in the 2022 NFL Draft to Super Bowl LVIII, with plenty of setbacks along the way to add tension to this budding biopic drama that you’ll either see on Netflix or at a theater near you.
There’s no doubt the Purdy story will be written and talked about as much as, if not more than, any other story over the next two weeks.
Patrick Mahomes’ ‘Super’ status
The numbers for Mahomes are unreal. In six seasons as a starting quarterback, he’s gone to six AFC Championship Games and now four Super Bowls, with a chance to win his third championship ring in two weeks.
With that run of success, the Kansas City Chiefs’ star is venturing into extremely rare company. Tom Brady won three of his seven Super Bowl rings over his first four seasons as a starter. Joe Montana won his four Super Bowls over nine full seasons as a starter.
Another Chiefs victory in Super Bowl LVIII would elevate Mahomes a few notches closer Brady and Montana, if he isn’t there already.
The ongoing Travis Kelce-Taylor Swift romance
This one is rather obvious — you know, just another humdrum relationship, a Pro Bowl football player dating a recording superstar known by billions of adoring fans worldwide.
Even though Usher is headlining the Super Bowl LVIII halftime show, the Travis Kelce-Taylor Swift romance will take center stage in Las Vegas, with perhaps every Kansas City Chiefs player — and every San Francisco 49ers player, too — being asked about the hottest celebrity couple of the moment.
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Usher has already gone on record to say he would “serenade” Swift if she attended the Super Bowl to support her boyfriend, the Chiefs’ tight end. The only issue is that Swift’s “Eras Tour” kicks off the night before the Super Bowl — in Tokyo. Will she make the 12-hour flight back to Las Vegas?
Could Andy Reid retire after Super Bowl LVIII?
There’s been speculation about whether Reid would retire if the Chiefs were to win their third Super Bowl in five seasons. Rumors have even swirled Bill Belichick could end up as Reid’s replacement.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported, however, that Reid was “not thinking about walking away.” But unless Reid wants to continue riding the Patrick Mahomes train to more championships, as Bill Belichick did with Tom Brady in New England, there isn’t much more for Reid to accomplish as an NFL head coach.
Whatever Reid decides to do, he wouldn’t announce it until at least after the Super Bowl LVIII, perhaps even in the postgame press conference. But until then, he will asked about retirement repeatedly.
Related: Kansas City Chiefs bracing for possibility Andy Reid retires after NFL Playoffs
Can Kyle Shanahan win the big game?
In two weeks, Kyle Shanahan will coach in his third Super Bowl overall, and in his second as the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.
In his first Super Bowl, as offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons, Shanahan’s team took a 28-3 lead and subsequently lost it to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI.
Then, in Super Bowl LIV, Shanahan’s 49ers had a 10-point fourth quarter lead, but couldn’t hold it against Mahomes and the Chiefs. Tack on an NFC Championship Game in which the 49ers’ lost another 10-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Shanahan has already dispelled the notion that he can’t coach his team to come-from-behind victory because he did it on consecutive weeks against the Packers and the Lion.
For Shanahan to change the narrative about his ability to win the big game, all it will take is one Super Bowl victory, even if he never wins another one again.