The San Francisco 49ers, at least according to Las Vegas, enter Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium as favorites to dethrone the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs.
At BetMGM, the 49ers are two-point favorites, and -130 moneyline favorites over the Chiefs – but most experts seem to be backing Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Kansas City.
Could overconfidence in the Chiefs be a good omen for the 49ers? As of Sunday afternoon, 63 percent of bets against the spread and 73 percent of moneyline bets at BetMGM are on the Chiefs.
We scoured the internet for predictions from NFL writers, and here’s what we found:
Chiefs and 49ers Wire editors are both picking Kansas City
John Dillon, Chiefs Wire – Chiefs 28, 49ers 13
This will be a supremely interesting game if the 49ers take an early lead and are able to run the ball with Christian McCaffrey. But, if San Francisco is forced to throw the ball against Kansas City’s sticky secondary, the Chiefs will likely have a huge advantage. Patrick Mahomes has proven he can win shootouts in the past, and with a third ring on the line, fans should expect an all-time great performance from the reigning MVP.
Kyle Madson, Niners Wire – Chiefs 30, 49ers 23
I might get fired for being the Niners Wire guy and picking the Chiefs, but they have a better defense and the best quarterback in the world. A path to a 49ers victory involves a ton of Christian McCaffrey and allowing Brock Purdy to go on play action to help mitigate some of what Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is going to throw at him. However, San Francisco has really struggled to stop the run in the postseason and it feels like Andy Reid is going to design a ton of runs that consistently put the Chiefs in second or third-and-short. Stopping Patrick Mahomes is hard enough, doing it after Kansas City wins on first down is nigh impossible.
ESPN predictions
ESPN polled 65 staffers, and a whopping 49 of them are picking the Chiefs to win.
Field Yates: Chiefs 27, 49ers 24
Dan Orlovsky: Chiefs 24, 49ers 21
Rex Ryan: Chiefs 31, 49ers 24
Robert Griffin III: Chiefs 31, 49ers 21
Tedy Bruschi: Chiefs 24, 49ers 21
Scott Van Pelt: 49ers 24, Chiefs 17
Jeremy Fowler: 49ers 27, Chiefs 24
CBS Sports predictions
You can see CBS’ full list here.
Tyler Sullivan: Chiefs 24, 49ers 20
Pete Prisco: Chiefs 24, 49ers 20
John Kerr: Chiefs 30, 49ers 24
Chris Berman is backing the Chiefs
Berman’s been on fire in the last two years, correctly predicting the winner and the margin of victory of Rams over Bengals and Chiefs over Eagles.
In 2024, Berman is picking the Chiefs to win, 23-20.
Action Network predictions
Over at Action Network, the majority of experts are backing the Chiefs.
Billy Ward: Chiefs 24, 49ers 20
Andrew Lynch: Chiefs 24, 49ers 20
Gilles Gallant: Chiefs 27, 49ers 24
Sean Koerner: 49ers 24, Chiefs 21
Nick Giffen: 49ers 31, Chiefs 24 (OT)
CeeDee Lamb: Chiefs 24, 49ers 17
In a podcast appearance with Micah Parsons, CeeDee Lamb, CJ Stroud and Jordan Love all picked the Chiefs.
CeeDee Lamb, CJ Stroud, Jordan Love and Micah all drop their Super Bowl predictions 👀
(via The Edge with Micah Parsons) pic.twitter.com/sTwFRP1qPx
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) February 11, 2024
For The Win: 9 out of 10 writers pick the Chiefs to win
Over at For The Win, 9 of the 10 staffers polled are picking the Chiefs, and a few writers aren’t expecting the game to be all that close.
Robert Zeglinski: Chiefs 35, 49ers 24
Mary Clarke: Chiefs 30, 49ers 17
Andrew Joseph: Chiefs 33, 49ers 17
Cory Woodroof: Chiefs 34, 49ers 24
Christian D’Andrea: 49ers 23, Chiefs 21
