Normally, this wouldn't be newsworthy. Of course, the source is reportedly coaches and executives around the NFL, so it at least makes it worth mentioning.
As many anticipate an exciting Super Bowl LIV featuring the high-powered Kansas City Chiefs offense going against the dominant San Francisco 49ers defense, some around the league don't believe the game will be much of a match. Mike Freeman, a columnist for Bleacher Report, says assistant coaches and front-office executives surveyed around the NFL believe the Chiefs will be the next Super Bowl champions and will win big against the 49ers.
"In asking a handful of people around the league who they believe will win Super Bowl LIV, what has surprised me—actually stunned me—is how many are confident the Chiefs will blow out the 49ers," wrote Freeman.
"I don't think this belief is isolated," he added.
The Bleacher Report columnist is surprised because he, like so many others, has been impressed by the 49ers' physical defense.
"They are tough, but they are also malleable," Freeman continued. "They won 9-0 against Washington in a rainstorm and 48-46 on the fast track of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans. They can do anything and everything."
Freeman goes on to write that Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes are reason enough to believe the Chiefs can emerge as the Super Bowl champions. Coaches and team executives reportedly think that no defense can stop Mahomes right now.
It wouldn't be the first time the 49ers enter a game playing the role of an underdog. It's something they have thrived upon. San Francisco has repeatedly stepped up and proven doubters wrong. If the report is true, they may have more doubters than they thought. It certainly bodes well for a 49ers team that thrives on shocking its critics.
The 49ers remain 1.5-point Super Bowl underdogs. We'll see how they respond on Sunday, February 2.
H/t to Patrick Tulini for the find.