Super Bowl 2020: TV Coverage, Live-Stream Schedule for 49ers vs. Chiefs

This is it, football fans. The biggest game of the 2019-20 NFL season is nearly upon us. On Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers will face off in Super Bowl LIV. With the Lombardi Trophy on the line, this should be one intense matchup.

Adding to the intensity is the fact that the game will feature two aggressive defenses. While the 49ers defense was in the spotlight for most of the season, Kansas City improved immensely down the stretch, finishing with 45 sacks and with the eight-fewest passing yards allowed in the regular season.

San Francisco is a run-based team, of course, but if the 49ers are forced to lean on Jimmy Garoppolo, Kansas City will be ready to attack. The same is true for San Francisco's defense and its quest to slow quarterback wunderkind Patrick Mahomes.

With plenty of offensive firepower also on the field—the 49ers ranked second in scoring, the Chiefs fifth—this is the rare Super Bowl that could either be an offensive shootout or a defensive street fight. The unpredictability only adds to the allure.

Super Bowl LIV

When: Sunday, February 2 at 6:30 p.m.

Where: Hard Rock Stadium, Miami

TV and Live Stream: Fox, Fox Sports Go

Line and Over/Under (from Caesars): KC -1.5, 54.5

Remembering 28-3

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In his last game as offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was a part of perhaps the most incredible comeback in playoff history. Unfortunately, he was on the wrong side of it.

The Falcons led the New England Patriots 28-3 in the third quarter. Then, Tom Brady and his team rallied furiously and won the game in overtime. While the memory of 28-3 is still fresh on the minds of many fans, it's essentially burned into Shanahan's head. He'll never allow his players to coast with a large lead again.

"Yeah, he's on edge," defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said, per Ben Volin of the Boston Globe. "Shoot, we were up, 41-13, I think against Carolina, and he was like, 'Keep your guys focused!'"

Shanahan isn't the only former Falcon making a return trip to the Super Bowl. Tevin Coleman, Levine Toilolo and Ben Garland were there, too. So were passing game coordinator Matt LaFleur, run game coordinator Mike McDaniel and running backs coach Bobby Turner.

Don't expect any of them to let up until the final whistle.

Win one for Andy

Brynn Anderson/Associated Press

While many of the 49ers are spurred on by a previous Super Bowl loss with another franchise, many of the Chiefs are motivated to win for head coach Andy Reid.

Reid, a potential Hall of Fame coach, hasn't won a Super Bowl as the coach in charge. He was an offensive assistant and tight ends coach for the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXI. He took the Philadelphia Eagles to the big game after the 2004 season, but he too fell to Brady and the Patriots.

A victory on Sunday could cement the 61-year-old's place in the Hall of Fame, and his players know it. They also know what finally winning the big one would mean to him.

"One of the best coaches to ever coach football and to never have a Super Bowl as a head coach, that's one of the biggest things I feel like is on my list as far as things I'd love to happen this Sunday," defensive end Frank Clark said, per Dan Wolken of USA Today. "I know the joy he's going to get."

Reid's search for a Super Bowl ring will be one of the most sentimental storylines of Super Bowl LIV, but it's also a driving force for the men who play for him.

A Rare Opportunity

Brynn Anderson/Associated Press

While a Super Bowl win would likely be the crowning achievement of Reid's legacy, it could be a mere early footnote in the career of Mahomes. This is the gunslinger's third season, and he's likely to have many more ahead of him.

A win would cement the 24-year-old's spot as one of the best young players in the game today. He's already won a league MVP, of course, but players are judged by championships. Until he gets his, plenty of folks will refuse to view him as one of the greats.

However, there's no guarantee Mahomes will get another crack at a title. Dan Marino didn't get back after his one appearance. Aaron Rodgers hasn't been back since his win. Russell Wilson appeared poised for a dynasty run before a certain goal-line play call derailed things. He may finish his Hall of Fame career with one ring.

This is an opportunity for Mahomes to arrive as perhaps the best quarterback in the NFL, but it's also a rare opportunity to be a champion. That's something he and the other young players participating on Sunday shouldn't forget.

While they still have long careers ahead of them, this might be their only shot at Super Bowl immortality.