49ers should attack this key Chiefs weakness in Super Bowl 54

The San Francisco 49ers are making their seventh Super Bowl appearance this Sunday, and if they want to emerge victorious over the Kansas City Chiefs, they should attack.

For the first time since the 2012 season, the San Francisco 49ers are heading back to the Super Bowl. The newly-minted NFC Champions will square off against the Kansas City Chiefs in what has all of the makings of a thrilling championship game.

If the 49ers pull off the upset in Super Bowl LIV, they will become a third member of the elite six-Lombardi Trophy club behind the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots.

Winning a sixth Super Bowl will be no easy feat.

San Francisco will battle a potent Chiefs offense known for utterly crippling teams with speed, accuracy, and their superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The talented quarterback will do everything in his power to ensure Chiefs head coach Andy Reid finally wins a Super Bowl, a feat 20 years in the making.

But the lethal 49ers defense plans on spoiling the fun.

EDGEs Nick Bosa, Dee Ford, and Arik Armstead, along with defensive tackle DeForest Buckner are a hungry, deadly group. That fantastic four allows 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh to pressure opposing quarterbacks without blitzing.

With the way Saleh cycles his linemen to keep them fresh, coupled with 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman leading the secondary, the Chiefs should find less room with which to operate.

Per NFL Network, the 49ers rank:

• 1st  in fewest passing yards allowed
• 1st in fewest yards allowed to tight ends
• 1st in fewest 20+ yards allowed to opponents
• 2nd in fewest yards allowed to running backs
• 4th in fewest yards allowed to wide receivers

San Francisco will absolutely need to rely on their defense, but the key to the 49ers winning Super Bowl LIV lies in attacking the Chiefs’ secondary.

The Chiefs’ secondary is stacked in its own way. Charvarius Ward, Tyrann Mathieu, Daniel Sorensen, Bashaud Breeland, and Kendall Fuller are responsible for the fifth-most interceptions in the league.

Why even attempt it?

It’s the way 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan structures his plays that creates the third-most yards after catch (YAC) in the league. Good blocking, plus timely executed jet sweeps, outside zone runs, bootlegs, and screens by speedy backs and receivers lead to all those YAC.

If we take a closer look at that Chiefs’ secondary in light of the 49ers’ ability to earn YAC, the picture changes. Kansas City’s defense ranks:

• 32nd (dead last) in YAC to pass-catching running backs
• 28th in YAC to tight ends
• 1st in YAC to wide receivers

These rankings are great news for 49ers running backs, Raheem Mostert, Tevin Coleman (dislocated shoulder), Matt Breida, and possibly Jeff Wilson Jr., and fullback Kyle Juszczyk. It’s also great news for one of the best tight ends in football: George Kittle.

49ers wide receivers Emmanuel Sanders, Kendrick Bourne, and Deebo Samuel may find it harder to get their rhythm going on Sunday. There are two caveats, however.

First, any San Francisco receiver who lines up against Chiefs cornerback Kendall Fuller is almost assured to smash it. Fuller allows a 55 percent catch rate to receivers and an above-average passer rating over 130 to quarterbacks.

The other caveat is Shanahan’s tendency to use receivers as backs behind the line of scrimmage, then allowing them to accelerate to the flat to gain those valuable YAC.

The 49ers excel at creating YAC, an area in which an otherwise powerful Chiefs team struggles.

To win, the 49ers will have to target their pass-catchers in both creative and proven ways.