49ers open as slight favorites over Chiefs ahead of Super Bowl LVIII

The conference championship matchups provided plenty of drama, but by Sunday evening, two teams remained: the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs, who return to the Super Bowl for the fourth time in the last five years, and the San Francisco 49ers, avenging their loss to the Eagles in last year’s NFC title game.

The Chiefs held off an explosive Baltimore Ravens offense to grind out a 17-10 win, while the 49ers erased a 17-point halftime deficit to defeat the Detroit Lions. In a rematch from Super Bowl LIV, when the Chiefs defeated the 49ers, 31-20, these teams will meet again in Las Vegas in two weeks.

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Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes remain the constant in this matchup, but the Kyle Shanahan-led 49ers will have Brock Purdy at quarterback instead of Jimmy Garoppolo this time around.

Here’s a look at the odds as of Monday morning.

These teams last played during the 2022 season, a dominant 44-23 road victory for the Chiefs over the 49ers with Garoppolo still as the starting quarterback. Kansas City has won the last three matchups overall; San Francisco’s last win in the series came during the 2014 regular season.

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Despite the 49ers being slight favorites, Mahomes is the leader to win Super Bowl Most Valuable Player at FanDuel, trading at +130, while Purdy has the second-best odds, valued at +210. 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (+480) is the only other player with odds of 19/1 or better to win the award.

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