SANTA CLARA – Colton McKivitz’s leg once got caught on an electric, barbed-wire fence while turkey hunting with his dad. He considers it the best scar on his 6-foot-6, 301-pound body.
Then there is the psychological scar he and his 49ers teammates bear from their Super Bowl LVIII loss eight months ago.
It came against Kansas City in overtime, and it’s been a salt-in-the-wound week for the 49ers (3-3) as they rehash that loss ahead of Sunday’s game at Levi’s Stadium against the two-time reigning champion Chiefs (5-0).
“It sucks, but you learn from things, man. That’s why they’re called scars,” McKivitz said.
Coach Kyle Shanahan said Super Bowl film from last season as well as the 2019 team’s defeat to the Chiefs “can give a little post-traumatic stress,” so his emphasis entering this regular-season rematch is to focus more so on the here and now. The lessons learned Sunday, after all, could pay off if a Super Bowl rematch unfolds Feb. 9 in New Orleans.
Tight end George Kittle, five years removed from demanding “vengeance” for their first Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs, now takes a more holistic approach. “Flushing Super Bowl losses, not the easiest thing to do,” Kittle said. “If you let stuff linger and affect you, you can’t be the best player you want to be. I try my best to tune out whatever noise is on the outside, specifically this week.”
Kittle then volunteered what he thought are two keys to a 49ers’ victory, and let’s start with those in this five-key preview:
1. PROTECT BALL
“Every time we’ve played the Chiefs we’ve had multiple turnovers on offense,” Kittle said. “You can’t turn the ball over against a team that has Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce on their side. They can really score at will.”
That puts extra onus on Brock Purdy to carefully dissect a Chiefs defense that flummoxed the 49ers in the Super Bowl with their combination of man coverage and blitzes. “It’s not like man-coverage is our kryptonite or anything like that,” Purdy said. “I still think we’ve got really good ballplayers that can create separation and we find ways to win.”
Joining those “good ballplayers” is Ricky Pearsall, the 49ers’ first-round draft pick who will make his NFL debut after recovering from a death-defying gunshot wound to his chest in an Aug. 31 robbery in San Francisco. Pearsall could be the No. 3 receiver behind Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel for Purdy to target while Jauan Jennings (hip) is out.
Purdy has thrown four interceptions in 185 passes this season; Mahomes has thrown six in 160 passes. Of the 49ers’ four lost fumbles, Purdy accounts for two, Jordan Mason one, and Isaac Guerendo one (on a kick return).
The 49ers have not played a game with a negative turnover differential this season, and their plus-3 mark in Seattle assured a 36-24 win last game. As for their Super Bowl losses, the 49ers had as many turnovers as the Chiefs in both games, but an opening-series fumble (by Christian McCaffrey) and a botched punt return (off Darrell Luter’s foot) were timely miscues last time.
2. BALL HOGS RUN
Kittle’s next key to victory: “I would love to run the ball 30 times. Stay on the field, dominate the time of possession.”
Last Super Bowl, the 49ers indeed ran the ball 31 times (110 yards), but the Chiefs had 30 runs (130 yards). The point is, however, keeping the ball, killing time off the clock and playing ball hog is always smart against Mahomes.
Mason, the NFL’s second-leading rusher, will return from a left-shoulder sprain that forced him to miss most of the second half last game in Seattle. The last time he carried at Levi’s Stadium: a fumble on first-and-goal, leading to the Arizona Cardinals’ game-winning drive.
With McCaffrey yet to make his debut, Mason’s understudies got their most action of the season once Mason got hurt last game, so the 49ers shouldn’t balk at handing off to Isaac Guerendo, Deebo Samuel or Patrick Taylor Jr.
Conversely, the Chiefs’ Clyde Edwards-Helaire can make his season debut Sunday, though Kareem Hunt is coming off a 100-yard game in place of the injured Isiah Pacheco. Mahomes has yet to rush for a score this season — and he’s yet to throw a touchdown pass to Travis Kelce — but rookie speedster Xavier Worthy has twice run for touchdowns.
3. MYSTERY OF MAHOMES
Defensive end Leonard Floyd has worn the jerseys of the Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Rams and the Buffalo Bills in losing to Mahomes. What is Floyd anticipating as he tries to change that outcome in a 49ers uniform? “I’m expecting something new that hasn’t been done yet. He has a lot of creativity,” Floyd said. “You can tell the coaching staff gives him the keys to do whatever he wants.”
Like completing a behind-the-back pass in the preseason. Like keeping the ball on fourth-and-1 with the Super Bowl on the line to keep alive February’s winning drive.
“The ways he creates plays, he likes to pump fake people, make them miss and run for first downs when you need them,” Nick Bosa said. “His running ability is underrated. He’s stout, so he’s tough to bring down. And he makes good decisions.”
While Bosa has three sacks this season, Floyd has two. That’s not great, but that’s not all they’re doing. Bosa had 14 pressures last game. “We’re getting pressures and hits on the quarterback,” Floyd said. “It’s just a matter of the quarterback holding the ball that much more for us to complete the sack.”
When there’s no instant sack, Mahomes is putting stress on the coverage units, so much so that Fred Warner: “It wears on you because you have to cover for an extra play. Basically it’s two plays in one.”
4. FINISH THEM
Last time out, the 49ers did not let a 20-point lead evaporate, so perhaps they’ve found an elixir to finishing games. They allowed the Seahawks within one score before closing strong to post a 34-21 victory.
When it comes to blown leads, however, none weigh heavier in 49ers’ history than their fourth-quarter cushions that proved not great enough in their 2019 and 2023 teams’ Super Bowl losses to the Chiefs. So closing out the Chiefs at twilight Sunday will be an obviously tough task, as their opponents already learned this season. Kansas City won its first two games on each’s final play.
“Mahomes is the best quarterback in the league, so you’ve got to play 60 minutes against that boy,” said cornerback Charvarius Ward, who played for the 2018-21 Chiefs.
The 49ers’ best way to finishing off the Chiefs: pull away with touchdowns, not field goals (see: Super Bowl LVIII defeat). Now, if it does come down to another field-goal barrage, um …
5. SECURE SPECIAL TEAMS
Anders Carlson will be the 49ers’ third kicker in three games, after Jake Moody and Matthew Wright got injured making tackles on kickoffs the previous two games. Yes, Carlson has survived making an NFL tackle, last season as a Green Bay Packers rookie.
Carlson’s more pertinent history: He missed a 41-yard field goal with 6:18 remaining at Levi’s Stadium, setting the stage for the 49ers’ divisional-round comeback win in January. Had Carlson made his kick, Green Bay would have led 24-17. The 49ers responded with a winning touchdown drive.
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This will not be his first time kicking inside Levi’s Stadium since then. Carlson practiced on that field amid Thursday’s windy conditions — “It definitely has some elements,” said Carlson — and he also auditioned there the previous week with four other kickers, including Wright.
The 49ers were Carlson’s fifth team he worked out for since getting cut by the Packers, who also saw him miss six point-after attempts last season. On field goals, he was 27-of-33 (7-of-13 from at least 40 yards). Only 43 percent of his kickoffs resulted in touchbacks (37-of-86).
Since Week 2, the 49ers have had a special teams gaffe, so Carlson is not alone in having pressure to perform. Kansas City’s left-footed punter Matt Araiza offers a new challenge to the 49ers’ rookie returner, be it Jacob Cowing or, if activated, Ricky Pearsall.