Riki Ellison remembers his first Super Bowl win fondly.
The Christchurch-born linebacker was part of a strong San Francisco 49ers defence in the 1984-85 NFL season, a team that boasted an elite offence as well, led by Joe Montana.
After winning 17 of 18 games across the regular and post-season schedule, they went into the Super Bowl against Dan Marino and the Miami Dolphins. Good as the 49ers offence was, Ellison recalls the Dolphins being touted as one of the best of all time.
But as is so often said in the sporting realm, defence wins championships. Ellison and the 49ers’ defence were able to unsettle the Dolphins after going behind early and the 49ers went on the claim a convincing win.
On Monday, Ellison believes a similar result could play out when the 49ers meet the Kansas City Chiefs in Las Vegas.
“I can see similarities with our defence for sure, because I think the linebacker core this year with [Fred] Warner and [Dre] Greenlaw is the best in the NFL and the speed that they have is going to have an effect on [Chiefs quarterback] Patrick Mahomes,” Ellison tells the Herald.
The 49ers were the third-most passed-against team in the NFL this season, with opponents attempting to pass the ball 621 times against them and completing at 66 per cent. Only the Baltimore Ravens (634) and Philadelphia Eagles (652) saw teams attempt more passes.
The 49ers’ defence led the league in intercepts with 22, and were among the best in the league at bringing the quarterback down with 48 sacks. The Chiefs were also very good at getting to the playmaker with a whopping 57 sacks on the season.
Both teams we good at keeping teams out of the end zone, too, as the Chiefs and 49ers conceded the second and third-fewest points respectively.
Ellison believes the Chiefs would have to come in with a smart game plan around the line of scrimmage and how to best utilise their tight ends - including Mahomes’ favourite target Travis Kelce - to help protect their quarterback.
“We have a hellacious pass rush,” Ellison says.
“They move Kelce, they move their tight ends in motions and put them on an open space and they leave, but if you do that, you leave your left tackle against [defensive end Nick] Bosa one-on-one and that’s a problem.
“There’s going to be game planning on their side to try and deal with that and you’ll see the first 30 plays being played by Kansas City that they’ll orchestrate to do some damage with it. But in the end, they really only have two weapons; they really only have Patrick Mahomes and Kelce, and Kelce will always be in a mismatch with a small defensive back.
“They’ll put him in those mismatches, so it’s really up to that pass rush to rip into them and for the offence to control the game with plays and time of possession. We should be able to do that because they can’t defensively match up against the San Francisco 49ers. Not a chance. Too many weapons that we have, and you can’t take them away.”
But it’s a clash of styles in the offence that could see this game decided. The 49ers attempted the fewest passes in the NFL this season (491) as they got plenty of production out of their running game, led by NFL Offensive Player of the Year Christian McCaffrey.
The Chiefs attempted the second-most passes (635); Mahomes leading a very pass-heavy offence with tight end Travis Kelce as his favourite - and hugely reliable - target. Kelce has 120 targets on the season - 18 more than any other Chiefs receiver - for 93 receptions and five touchdowns. The Mahomes-Kelce combination has stepped things up in the playoffs so far, too.
The 49ers, however, threw for more touchdowns than Kansas City and utilised their attack weapons - both running and passing - well to score a league-leading 61 touchdowns on the season. The Chiefs scored 39.
Speaking on the offensive production, Ellison says McCaffrey looks like the key figure to dictate how the 49ers will be able to play.
“You’ve got to take away his run. If you can take away his run, then those pass rushers can’t pass rush, so it opens up the passing game. Then you’ve got to stop [tight end George] Kittle, you’ve got to stop [wide receiver] Deebo Samuel, you’ve got to stop [wide receiver Brandon] Aiyuk - they don’t have the weapons to do that.
“If all those players run like they should be in the Super Bowl, they’re like a Ferrari, man. Those guys, and the timing, it could be magnificent.”
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.