The San Francisco 49ers (3-3) return to Levi’s Stadium on Sunday afternoon to face the Kansas City Chiefs (4-2) after splitting a pair of games on the East Coast.
Sunday will be the first meeting between the two teams since squaring off in Super Bowl LIV won by Kansas City.
There has been a lot of roster turnover for both squads, but the loss still stings for those who remain with the 49ers.
“I hadn’t watched it for a while until these last two days,” said Kyle Shanahan before practice on Wednesday. “I don’t like watching it, but this week it wasn’t about that. I had to watch it for schematic reasons and what our history is together.”
Kansas City has faced San Francisco fourteen times with each team winning seven games. The 49ers have never lost to the Chiefs at home, winning each of the six previous matchups in the Bay Area.
With that as a backdrop, here are the five burning questions to which the answers will be key to the outcome on Sunday:
1.) Will Christian McCaffrey get on the field?
The 49ers pulled off a blockbuster trade for McCaffrey late Thursday, sending multiple draft picks to Carolina in the process.
McCaffrey jumped on a plane Friday morning and was able to watch practice before getting a workout in with coaches.
John Lynch told assembled media it would be a tall task for McCaffrey to play against the Chiefs. Kyle Shanahan echoed that sentiment, noting there are several things which will go into the decision to ensure the team isn’t left short handed in case of injury to another player.
As far as McCaffrey, he wants to play. According to Lynch, McCaffrey has already been asking to get in.
“That would have to be the coach’s decision,” said McCaffrey. “Preparing to be ready and ready to roll, but that’s not my decision. The good thing about the game being on Sunday is you still have two days. You can process a lot in two days and figure out a lot in a short amount of time. It’s my job to learn as much as humanly possible in the next two days and get ready to play a football game.”
The addition of McCaffrey is expected to help a 49ers rushing attack which has struggled to get on track after a quick start.
Since Jimmy Garoppolo stepped in at quarterback San Francisco has managed only 3.9 yards per rush attempt.
2.) Can the 49ers defense contain Patrick Mahomes?
The 49ers defense will face its toughest test this season on Sunday, trying to slow down Patrick Mahomes.
“We know it’s a challenge. Everyone knows Mahomes is one of the best quarterbacks to play and his ability to keep plays alive by being on the move is very difficult to defend,” said DeMeco Ryans. “Everybody has to be sound, be where they are supposed to be. With the rush and coverage tied together, that’s how collectively we will be able to stop these guys.”
It is expected Ryans will have Nick Bosa back this week.
Bosa missed the game in Atlanta due to a groin injury. He and Samson Ebukam, who has been dealing with Achilles tendonitis, both looked quick and fluid while going through practice this week.
Another 49ers defender to watch on Sunday is rookie defensive end Drake Jackson.
Jackson has three sacks on the season, tying him for most in the NFL among rookies with Lions pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson.
The 49ers have registered at least one sack in 33-consecutive games, the longest active streak in the NFL.
For San Francisco, having its top pass rushers healthy is vital to getting a win on Sunday.
Patrick Mahomes has been faced more pressure this season than any time since 2018. The Chiefs are allowing pressure just under a quarter of their passing attempts.
3.) Will the 49ers keep Travis Kelce out of the endzone?
With Tyreek Hill now in Miami, Kelce has become the focal point in the Chiefs passing offense.
The tight end is the Chiefs leading receiver and is on pace for 147 targets this season, just off his career high. He also leads Kansas City in touchdown receptions with seven.
San Francisco is expected to get safety Jimmie Ward back for Sunday. Ward missed last weeks game after suffering a broken hand against Carolina.
Ward has proven to be tough in coverage against tight ends in the past. Along with Talanoa Hufanga and Fred Warner, he will need to have a strong effort for the 49ers to hold the Chiefs out of the endzone.
That is easier said than done.
The Kansas City offense uses a lot of different looks, motions and shifts which gives opposing defenses trouble.
“We have to have eyes on Kelce. He’s one of the most targeted guys in the redzone and he finds a way to come down with a lot of touchdowns,” said Ryans. “Guys have to be very dialed in and locked in with their eyes being exactly where they are supposed to be, making sure they are looking at the proper thing and not getting tripped up by all of the window dressing they see.”:
4.) Can Jimmy Garoppolo take advantage of the Chiefs pass defense?
Jimmy Garoppolo has been his typical up and down self since taking over as the starting quarterback when Trey Lance went down for the season.
While he wasn’t the reason the 49ers lost to Atlanta, his play contributed to it.
This week Garoppolo will face a Chiefs defense missing starting cornerback Rashad Fenton.
Kansas City’s pass defense has been in the bottom half of the pack this season. They currently rank 15th in net yards allowed per pass, and the most passing touchdowns in the NFL.
With weapons such as Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, Kyle Juszczyk, George Kittle and now Christian McCaffrey, Garoppolo needs to step up his game. A strong performance from the quarterback will be necessary to come out on top in this game.
5.) Which team holds on to the ball?
While the focus is on how the 49ers will stop Patrick Mahomes, how Jimmy Garoppolo will play, stopping Travis Kelce and the addition of Christian McCaffrey, this game will come down to the team that holds on to the football.
Kansas City has turned the ball over at least twice and lost the turnover battle in both of their losses this season.
For San Francisco, the story is much the same. They have turned the ball over more than their opponent in each of their three losses. If they do that on Sunday, the Chiefs could make this one ugly.
Prediction:
49ers 20 Chiefs 24
The 49ers don;t win if they can’t run. KC’s running D is one of the best in the NFL. If Williams is fully healthy it will help but it usually takes him at least one game to regain form. With the rest of the O line being AVG. McGlinchey and Banks to below Avg. Brendel and Burford I don’t see the 9ers gaining over 120 yards. That coupled with no Kinlaw, Armstead, Moseley along with a limited Ward looks like a losing performance for the 9ers. imho
Guess how many throws over 20 yards Jimmy will complete on sunday?\
The answer pretty much confirms if we win or lose
And the receiver catches it. Twice last week he threw 2 long passes that hit the receivers hand and they dropped it. So it’s not just up to Jimmy. Everyone has to do their job.
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1. I think MCM will play Sunday. Maybe not a lot, and maybe some as a decoy. He’s very experienced and I’m sure he can learn a few plays.
2. Great to have our pass rushers back and that will help a lot but we are now weak at cornerback.
3. That’ll be hard to do but if anyone can, it’s the Niners.
4. Everyone’s play contributed to the loss last week and I can name a number of players I’d list before Jimmy.
5. The game is all about turnovers. If we win that battle we will most likely win the game.
We’ve got a great chance to win this game.
It will be interesting to see how many touches CMC gets. It will also be interesting to see who the 9ers release to make room for CMC. I am hoping they release Coleman and then sign him to the veteran PS as opposed to releasing Mason and trying to resign him to the PS.
Kinlaw went on IR did anyone take his place? I thought they had already brought Coleman up THEN put Kinlaw on IR…if that’s the case then I think they have an open spot.
Not sure about tomorrow, but Christian McCaffrey will help the 49ers convert on 3rd and long.
Just to be fair, the 49ers just elevated Donte Johnson from the practice squad. If he plays, he’ll help KC convert on 3rd and long as well.
Chivalry in the NFL is not dead. Helping KC’s offense convert on 3rd and long is the polite thing to do.
Dontae has taken his criticism but he actually played really well when they called him in during the playoffs last year.
I can see why they keep bringing him back. He knows the calls and he’s a known commodity, and sometimes he holds in own in pass coverage. He’ll never give you the flashy play but in a pinch he might be worlds better than Ambry Thomas.
You are absolutely right. Elevating Johnson from the practice squad is likely the best option the 49ers currently have at CB Sunday.
I liked Johnson early on. I thought Johnson would thrive when Saleh implemented a modified version of Seattle’s defense. But at some point he started giving up 3rd and long conversions as if it were almost by design. That said, there could still be a role for him. Wish Bosa back pressuring the QB, I think Johnson can be effective.
I had hopes for Charvarius Ward and Jason Verrett vs KC, but I don’t think that happening. I’m guessing if Verrett is good to go it will be after the bye.
Smiles
There were many NFL talking heads along with 49ers fans at the beginning of the season saying that the 49ers were a strong candidate for a SB appearance.
And then we lost our starting QB, top RB, our big space eater Kinlaw and CB Moseley to go with other minor injury players.
Yet, I still strongly believe that we are still a Superbowl team.
Imho, the game with KC is a “prove it” game for the 49ers.
It is the perfect game to prove that all the post season and SB talk was not a pipe dream.
A win against the Chiefs can heal the emotional wounds of losing to lesser talented teams over the last six weeks and set the 49ers on a course to the Superbowl again.
If we lose to the Chiefs (that is, lose the “prove it game”) but beat the Rams next week, we’ll still be in first place unless Seattle wins their next two.
Then we’ll be nearly whole except for Kinlaw and Armstead. That’s huge and maybe we’ll just have to live with that
for the season.
To J: Nice point on last blog comments about 9ers not having much cap space until Garoppolo restructured.
Nak,
“nearly whole except for Kinlaw and Armstead” How soon we forget, how bout Lance, Moseley and Al-Shaair? You add those 3 to Kinlaw/Armstead and we are still missing 5 starters.
Nakamoto,
I agree, that a loss to the Chiefs is not a season is over game.
But beating the Chiefs, another SB contender team at a time when many of our top players are hurt, could be a positive mental game-changer going forward. There is still a lot of football left, and yes, the Rams are right around the corner. But a win tomorrow is a nice mental resume for the 49ers to store away.
Though a different sport with different dynamics, this baseball postseason is proving the age old adage that cuts across all sports – what counts is when you get hot. A third place division team (Phillies) is about to advance to the WS. In the AL, Houston, who only had three winning streaks during the regular season lasting six games or longer, are unbeaten in the post season – also one game away from the WS. Meanwhile bunches of 100+ win teams are now relegated to the sidelines, wondering “wha happened?”
Win or lose the next couple of games I’m not running for the hills, the team is still banged up. Niners, getting healthy in the 2nd half, the addition of CMC, I predict they will be a formidable presence by the end of the season and beyond. Look out, NFC playoff opponents. And yes you too, Bills and Chiefs of the AFC.
I think our Offense will explode tomorrow and beat the crap of KC! With or without CMC. It is about time the Offense carries the team while our Def is recovering.
Yes sir!
I’ve been waiting for the offense to do the same.
Tomorrow is a good day to start.
1. We cant allow Mahomes to scramble and make plays. In our three losses Fields, Wilson and Marriota all scrambled for first downs and touchdowns at critical stages in the game.
1a. In addition to no turnovers we can’t have special teams blunders.
2. It would be malpractice for CMC not be on the field for at least a dozen plays. He will open up opportunities for Kittle and Deebo.
2a. Bummer that our old buddy Max McCaffrey isn’t still on the practice squad.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Byn4NpvnGba/
3. Welcome back : Bosa, Williams, Ward, and Hufanga.
4. I agree with Ricardo our Offense will light it up this afternoon.
Niners 30 Chiefs 17
The 49ers will suit up 47 professional football players this Sunday ,as will the Chiefs.
I can only be concerned about those 47 players.
I believe our 47 will prevail over theirs.
Go 9ers
According to the KNBR pregame show this morn. 49ers starting DB’s today Thomas, Lenoir and Womack. Mahomes must be licking his lips.