The San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs share more than the color red.
They share quarterbacks, too, with six of them over the years playing for both franchises.
For the second time in four years, the 49ers and Chiefs will meet in the Super Bowl after both teams won their conference championship games Sunday.
Hall of Famer Joe Montana famously played for both clubs, but so did Alex Smith, Elvis Grbac, Steve Bono, Steve DeBerg and Bob Gagliano.
Of those, only the journeyman Gagliano played for the Chiefs before two stints with the 49ers. Everyone else was on the West Coast before heading to the heartland.
“The Chiefs were impressed with the system and the style of play and especially impressed with Bill Walsh,” said Carmen Policy, longtime 49ers president, referring to the legendary coach.
Carl Peterson was Chiefs general manager for most of those quarterback acquisitions.
Policy was an executive with the franchise from 1981 through ’97, spanning the 49ers’ five Lombardi trophies and five of the aforementioned quarterbacks.
The only one of those quarterbacks who wasn’t around during the Walsh coaching or front-office era was Alex Smith, the No. 1 overall pick in 2005 who was traded to Kansas City eight years later when Andy Reid was heading into his first season there.
Both franchises have rich histories.
“Obviously two great organizations,” Bono texted Monday. “For Joe, Elvis, me very similar offenses. For that matter, Alex Smith as well.”
Agent Leigh Steinberg has represented some of the best quarterbacks in NFL history, although none of those 49ers/Chiefs were his clients. Steinberg knows both clubs well, however, having represented 49ers general manager John Lynch during his playing days, and currently co-representing Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes along with agent Chris Cabott.
“Both franchises have been the epitome of stability,” Steinberg said. “The Hunts have owned the Chiefs forever and that allows them to have long-term vision. The 49ers have been owned by the DeBartolo family forever. Second of all, they have really talented front offices. And both teams have coaches that value intelligence highly.”
The 49ers are delighted with quarterback Brock Purdy, who was terrific Sunday night in the come-from-behind victory over Detroit.
As for the Chiefs, they have no need to look to the West to address the position. With two-time Most Valuable Player Mahomes at the helm, they are pretty much the envy of the NFL.
The Super Bowl is in Las Vegas, meaning Reid will be halfway home.
The Chiefs coach grew up in Los Angeles, attended John Marshall High and played on the offensive line at Glendale College before moving on to Brigham Young University.
Reid still feels a close connection to people and places in the area. For instance, beginning when he was in Philadelphia and now in Kansas City, he has had frozen Tommy’s burgers shipped to him.
“I love those things,” he told The Times in 2018. “It’s good for your joints — the grease. Keeps you lubed up, man.”
Detroit Hall of Famer Joe Schmidt was the centerpiece of a championship defense, winning titles in 1953 and 1957, the last time the Lions ruled the NFL.
Not surprisingly, Reid has a fan club of old pals in L.A. who used to rumble around with him in his beat-up 1968 Volkswagen bug that was stuffed with classmates like a clown car.
“I love all of them,” Reid said Sunday night of those friends. “I feel a phenomenal connection to them.”
When Kansas City plays prime-time games, boyhood pal and Marshall classmate Mark LaBonge proudly displays his Chiefs flag and has watch parties at his Silver Lake home.
“We fill the house up with former teammates and classmates and cheer the Chiefs,” LaBonge said. “Some of them have passed on and we bring their urns. We cheer Andy, dead or alive.”
TV numbers are through the roof for the NFL and so are Super Bowl ticket prices.
It’s early, but according to StubHub, the price to simply get in to Super Bowl LVIII is around $6,500 and the average price of tickets sold so far is $9,300.
StubHub says overall sales for the game are trending 90% greater than last year’s Kansas City-Philadelphia game, and 147% more than the Chiefs-49ers matchup four years ago.
Ticket buyers from California account for 26% of sales, the site said, followed by Nevada (8%) and Missouri (7%).
Here’s everything you need to know about the 2024 Super Bowl, including start time, location, TV channel, streaming options and the halftime show.
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