The 49ers may want to put the debate over the decision to get the ball first in overtime behind them, but behind-the-scenes footage from Super Bowl 2024 likely won’t help that cause very much — and one ex-NFL star expects someone will lose their job over it.
“Inside the NFL” captured the moments before and after that fateful coin toss before overtime started and the surprise on the Chiefs’ faces spoke volumes after San Francisco elected to receive to start the extra period.
“They want it. They want the ball,” Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes repeated over and over in shock as he ran off the field after the coin toss.
“They wanted it, baby,” he exclaimed as he meandered around the sideline.
What ended up being a costly mistake was so egregious that former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler couldn’t believe what he had seen.
“He was shocked. I was shocked. I think everyone was shocked,” Cutler said. “It’s like you’re going to give Patrick Mahomes the ball second and give him four downs. Someone’s getting fired.”
Travis Kelce seemed equally surprised as Mahomes as the cameras cut to the Chiefs All-Pro tight end on the sideline.
“We want them to have the ball. They want it they can have it,” Kelce said.
Niners coach Kyle Shanahan has faced extensive criticism for his decision to start overtime with the ball instead of electing to kick.
Those complaints grew louder after several San Francisco players said they weren’t aware of the new overtime rules.
The “Inside the NFL” footage seemed to confirm that when it cut to fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who admitted on the sideline that he didn’t realize what it meant — until that moment.
“Hey even if we score a touchdown they still get the ball,” Juszczyk said to another teammate and Shanahan in the clip. “I didn’t know that.”
The decision proved to be costly, as the Niners were held to just a field goal on their possession.
Then, Mahomes and the Chiefs marched down the field to score the game-winning touchdown.
Shanahan said he didn’t go over the new rules with the 49ers ahead of the Super Bowl when he met with reporters on Tuesday, but that he had reiterated the new setup to his coaches and asked them to relay the message.
