"In evaluating these two teams, though, there's one significant weakness that stands out: the Chiefs' run defense. Against most teams, the Chiefs are simply too devastating on offense for their 29th-ranked run defense to matter. The 49ers have feasted on those terrible run defenses in 2019, scoring 51 points on the 32nd-ranked Panthers, 31 points on the 30th-ranked Browns and 41 points on the 28th-ranked Bengals. Furthermore, if you were trying to build a defense for Shanahan to exploit in the passing game, you'd want to build one that was overmatched at linebacker and free safety.
The Chiefs have been able to overcome sloppy play on defense and special teams by scoring at an astronomical, unsustainable rate on offense, even by Mahomes' incredible standards. The 49ers won't shut down Mahomes, and I would be worried about a fourth-quarter comeback if the 49ers are winning once the pass rush begins to tire and Reid finds a weakness, but this is the best defense Mahomes has faced during the postseason by a considerable margin. The 49ers should be better along the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball in this game, and that has won football games for a century now. If Mahomes can overcome those advantages and still guide Reid to his first Super Bowl victory, we'll be lucky enough to see it. 49ers 27, Chiefs 23"