Patrick Mahomes at the end of Super Bowl LIV.

After a poor offensive performance early on, especially from superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the Kansas City Chiefs rallied to win Super Bowl LIV 31-20 over the San Francisco 49ers. The game was tied 10-10 at the half, and the 49ers were up 20-10 after the third quarter, but Mahomes then led two giant drives that put the Chiefs up 24-20. The Kansas City defense then forced a turnover, and Chiefs’ running back Damien Williams then sealed the deal with a long 38-yard touchdown run:

The game started with the Chiefs going three and out and the 49ers responding with a 10-play, 57-yard drive that ended in a field goal. Kansas City came right back with a big drive that ended in a one-yard touchdown run from Mahomes, and the Chiefs then took a 10-3 lead following a Jimmy Garoppolo interception that they turned into a field goal.

The 49ers responded with a 80-yard touchdown drive of their own, though, capped off by a pass from Garoppolo to fullback Kyle Juszczyk:

And it remained 10-10 heading into the half. In the second half, San Francisco’s first drive ended in a field goal, and the 49ers’ Fred Warner then picked off Mahomes for a drive that ended in a one-yard touchdown run from Raheem Mostert, putting the 49ers up 20-10:

The third quarter ended with San Francisco up 20-10, and Mahomes’ stats were far from great; with around 12 minutes left in the fourth quarter, he was 18 for 29 for 172 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions and a 49.8 passer rating. But it soon turned around from there, with Mahomes leading 68- and 65-yard touchdown drives that put the Chiefs up 24-20 with 2:50 left.

Those would prove to be the decisive score. The Chiefs then forced a turnover on downs, Williams ran for an insurance touchdown, and a Kendall Fuller interception of Garoppolo really sealed the deal, giving Kansas City the 31-20 victory. And that had a lot to do with Mahomes. While he got off to a poor start, he finished with 26 completions on 41 attempts for 286 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. And he was critical to the Chiefs’ giant comeback, and to their first Super Bowl victory since Super Bowl IV 50 years ago.

[NFL.com]

About Andrew Bucholtz

Andrew Bucholtz has been covering sports media for Awful Announcing since 2012. He is also a staff writer for The Comeback. His previous work includes time at Yahoo! Sports Canada and Black Press.