What We Learned in Kansas City’s Super Bowl Victory

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Kansas City Chiefs stormed back for a ridiculous 31-20 win over the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl, reeling off three touchdowns in just over five minutes to overwhelm one of the N.F.L.’s most dominant defenses. The win snapped a 50-year championship drought for the Chiefs, while handing San Francisco its second Super Bowl loss since the team last won one following the 1994 season.

Here’s what we learned from the game:

• Andy Reid had to give up a title to get a title. The Chiefs head coach entered Sunday as the winningest coach in N.F.L. history to have never won a Super Bowl. With his 222nd win (including the postseason), he officially passed off that title, giving it back to Marty Schottenheimer, whose 205 wins came largely with the Chiefs.

• Age is just a number. Patrick Mahomes was the youngest player to win the N.F.L.’s Most Valuable Player Award when he took it home last season at 23. He is the youngest quarterback to be named Super Bowl M.V.P., winning it at 24. He does not have many more major awards to win, so he will have to set his sights on being the N.F.L.’s youngest Man of the Year, or its youngest Hall of Famer.

• If the Chiefs are losing, they are probably winning. Kansas City must have thought winning during the regular season was too easy, because the team turned the difficulty way up in the postseason, reeling off three consecutive victories in which it got down by at least 10 points — setting an N.F.L. record for postseason comebacks. The Chiefs trailed the Houston Texans by 24 points in the divisional round, the Tennessee Titans by 10 points in the A.F.C. championship game, and were down 10 points to San Francisco with less than seven minutes left in the fourth quarter. “We’re something special,” said wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

• Speed kills (eventually). The 49ers defense had limited the Chiefs offense to mostly a series of dinks and dunks, which appeared to have Kansas City on its heels for a third-and-15 play with 7:13 left in the game. Mahomes stayed cool in the pocket despite pressure by DeForest Buckner, as Hill raced his way into an open area. Mahomes then launched an absolute bomb, finding Hill for a game-changing 44-yard reception. According to the N.F.L.’s NextGen Stats, the pass traveled 57.1 yards in the air, which was Mahomes’s longest completion by air yardage this season.

• Kyle Shanahan does not like fourth quarters. Shanahan, the 49ers coach, talked all week about the “scars” he had from the Super Bowl following the 2016 season. He was an offensive coordinator when his Atlanta Falcons blew a 28-3 fourth-quarter lead to the New England Patriots. Shanahan watched yet another transcendent quarterback deliver a career-defining performance as his own offense fell apart. He was asked if he had felt comfortable when his team led by 20-10. “No,” he said. “You never feel good until the game is over.”

• Deebo Samuel picked the wrong day to set a record. The 49ers rookie set a record for wide receivers with 53 yards rushing in a Super Bowl, topping the previous mark of 45 by Percy Harvin of the Seattle Seahawks set in the Super Bowl following the 2014 season. Samuel, Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman helped San Francisco generate 6.4 yards a carry, which was a huge reason for the lead, but they were a non-factor on the team’s final four drives, which resulted in a combined total of 49 yards with two punts, a turnover on downs and an interception.

• Damien Williams picked a great day to shine. The Chiefs running back was largely written off in the buildup to the game. Mahomes led the team in rushing in both of Kansas City’s playoff wins and the Chiefs preferred to pass. For much of this game, Williams was the only thing working for Kansas City. He finished with a team-leading 133 yards from scrimmage, putting the Chiefs ahead with a 5-yard touchdown reception and sealing the victory with a 38-yard touchdown run.

Records Set or Tied in the Game

As compiled by the Elias Sports Bureau.

Super Bowl Records Set

• Most Rushing Yards, Game, Wide Receiver — 53, Deebo Samuel

Super Bowl Records Tied

• Most Touchdowns, One Quarter — 2, Damien Williams

• Most Points, Fourth Quarter — 21, Kansas City

• Fewest Punt Returns, Game, Team — 0, Kansas City

• Fewest Punt Return Yards, Game, Both Teams — 0, Kansas City vs. San Francisco

• Fewest Fumbles Lost, Game, Both Teams — 0, Kansas City vs. San Francisco

• Most Fourth Down Conversions, Game, Team — 2, Kansas City

• Youngest Quarterback to win Super Bowl M.V.P. — 24 years, 138 days, Patrick Mahomes

They Said It

• “I had two goals when I became the starting quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs, and the first goal was to win the Lamar Hunt trophy. I wanted to bring it home, the one that has our founder’s name on it. I wanted to bring it to this family and this organization. And the second most important thing was to get Coach Reid a Super Bowl trophy.” — Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs quarterback

• “I hate losing. I hate losing, period. It’s going to sting for a while, but I’m going to have to put it behind me and get ready for next year.” — Kwon Alexander, 49ers linebacker

• “We’re like Golden State in their prime, baby. We do what it do. Sack Nation.” — Chris Jones, Chiefs defensive tackle, comparing his team’s defensive line to the Stephen Curry-led Warriors

• “We’ll lick our wounds and we’ll get over this. We’ll be fired up for next year.” — Coach Kyle Shanahan, 49ers