Super Bowl 2024: Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes vs Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey – and Taylor Swift’s influence from the stands… where the game will be won and lost

The Super Bowl is the most important annual event on the American sports calendar. A game scrutinized by the general public, complete with a legendary halftime musical show and a $7 million 30-second commercial. It’s both bizarre and completely typical.

On the field, the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs will compete in the NFL’s championship game for the second time in four years.

The 49ers are one of the NFL’s most respected teams, yet they haven’t won a championship since the 1994 season.

Kansas City is in its fourth Super Bowl in the last five seasons, hoping to win its third title during the evolving dynasty.

And of course, CBS will show Taylor Swift every time it makes sense. Where will the Super Bowl be won and lost in Las Vegas? Here, DailyMail.com breaks it down..
The quarterbacks: Patrick Mahomes vs Brock Purdy
One is hoping to go from Mr. Irrelevant to Super Bowl champion in less than two years. The other believes a win will help cement his legacy as one of the best quarterbacks of all-time.

Purdy was the last selection of the 2022 NFL Draft. He complicated the 49ers quarterback situation with Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo. Then Purdy made general manager John Lynch’s decision incredibly easy with his stellar play.

Patrick Mahomes has been one of the NFL’s finest overall players since 2018, winning two Super Bowls, including Super Bowl LIV over San Francisco.

Purdy undoubtedly has more offensive skill around him, but he has never competed in a game of this magnitude.

Mahomes has been here before, but he may have the poorest supporting cast in Kansas City, aside from Travis Kelce and Isiah Pacheco, who have ever appeared alongside him in a Super Bowl.

Regardless of how prepared Purdy is to disappoint Swift, it is difficult to bet against Mahomes in these kind of games.

Running backs: Christian McCaffrey versus Isiah Pacheco
This will be one of the more unpredictable matchups at Super Bowl LVIII because McCaffrey cannot be assumed to have an advantage.

Wait, the best running back in the NFL vs. the man picked 11 spots ahead of Purdy?

McCaffrey has a clear advantage on paper, but it is not that straightforward in this particular battle.

Pacheco has previously appeared on this stage, but McCaffrey will play in his first Super Bowl, launching what may be a Hall of Fame career.

McCaffrey’s presence alone, combined with the rest of the 49ers’ offensive weaponry, is enough to shift the outcome in his favor, but not by as much as one might assume.

Tight ends: Travis Kelce vs George Kittle
For the Swifties reading this story, wondering if Taylor’s boyfriend is actually good at football: yes. One million times, yes. He is Hall of Fame good and likely the best tight end in football today. And Kittle is not too far behind.

Kelce has an other-worldly connection to Mahomes, while Kittle is on the rise but has not established a partnership with Purdy that compares. To be fair, not many duos in NFL history are as in sync as Mahomes and Kelce.

While off-field distractions and a ‘down’ year for Kelce have been talking points, Kelce has been phenomenal in the Chiefs last two games and consistently shows up in the biggest moments.

If Kelce does not score at least one touchdown against the 49ers, it will be a shock. Kittle is not as automatic to reach the end zone.

Advantage to the guy Swift was referring to with the adlib: ‘Karma is the guy on the Chiefs’.
Taylor Swift vs. everyone?
Usher will not be the most famous musician at Super Bowl LVIII. There is no way Swift is not in attendance, even with her shows in Tokyo.

The ‘Anti-Hero’ singer will be shown during the game, which will infuriate some and make those fans she brought to the broadcast happy. Others will not care because she is on screen for incredibly small doses.

Her relationship with Kelce has been the prominent plot point of the NFL season, only in the same stratosphere as the impending divorce between the Patriots and Bill Belichick.

Her presence at the game likely will not effect Kelce. No other member of the crowd, even as plenty of other celebrities will be in attendance, will come close to how much Swift is shown.

Best of the rest.

Even with the Chiefs’ defensive improvements in recent seasons, the 49ers have a superior unit.

Offensively, it’s difficult not to notice how San Francisco is more balanced than Kansas City.

The key to this game’s outcome is how all of those components come together on Sunday against a club that has had the same shell since 2018, never losing the AFC Championship until overtime.

For years, the Chiefs have been under the glare of numerous bright lights. If the 49ers can bear the same pressure, they will triumph. If not, the Chiefs’ dynasty gains another Lombardi Trophy.