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The Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers square off in Super Bowl 54 on Sunday, February 2nd. We’ll be breaking down everything you need to know to prepare your daily fantasy football lineups for the big game. We’re starting with a player-by-player preview for the skill position players on the two teams.
The Kansas City Chiefs’ D/ST has not been under much pressure lately as the Chiefs offense has been blazing down the field averaging 43 points per game during the playoffs. With a tough opponent defensively on the docket for Mahomes and his offense this weekend, the Chiefs D/ST may be asked to step up and make some plays. How will they fare against a recently stellar 49ers offense? We break down the fantasy implications below.
DFS Super Bowl price
DraftKings Captain: $4,500
DraftKings Flex: $3,000
DFS opponent position ranking
DraftKings: 8th
Season performance
The Chiefs D/ST averaged 7.6 fantasy points per game over the course of the regular season. They allowed an average of 19.2 points per game and 349.6 yards per game, and they recorded 45 sacks, 16 interceptions, scored four touchdowns, and secured seven fumble recoveries. Their performances were inconsistent at times with occasional 10-20 point swings in performances from one week to the next. They had a bit of a boom or bust nature as you could never be quite sure which Chiefs D/ST you would get on any given day. Despite the inconsistencies, the Chiefs D/ST did manage to finish the season ranked 11th of all fantasy DSTs and they ended the season with a flurry of strong performances, averaging 12.4 points per game over in Weeks 13-17.
Playoff performance
The Chiefs D/ST has under performed in the postseason, averaging 4.5 points per game over the past two weeks. They did manage to record eight sacks in that time and recovered one fumble, however their performance was overall uninspiring in allowing 55 total points to their opponents. Fortunately, the Chiefs offense did enough work to score 86 total points, easily defeating each of their playoff opponents. The D/ST saw a significant boost in defensive production with the return of defensive tackle Chris Jones, who provided a spark the the defense on a limited snap count. Jones is expected to have an even larger role in Super Bowl 54, as he continues to recover from a calf injury.
Matchup
The San Francisco 49ers have been on a bit of a scoring tear of their own over the past two weeks, averaging 32 points per game. Most of their production has come on the ground, as they rushed for 186 yards against Minnesota behind a strong 105 yard performance from Tevin Coleman. The following week, Raheem Mostert exploded for 220 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns against Green Bay. This is bad news for a Chiefs defense that struggled against the run all season. The Chiefs allowed an average of 128 rushing yards per game to opponents during the regular season, which is the 7th highest total in the league. They will have their work cut out for them this weekend, as the 49ers may employ a three headed backfield with Mostert, Matt Breida, and possibly Tevin Coleman as he recovers from a dislocated shoulder suffered early in the NFC championship game.
DFS pricing and analysis
The low salary for the Chiefs D/ST is reflective of the dim outlook they have this weekend against a dynamic offense that has excelled on the ground recently. The addition of Chris Jones will certainly help, but will it be enough to slow down the 49ers? It likely won’t pay off to play the Chiefs D/ST as your captain this week, but they can serve as a low priced flex option if your budget is running low. With an over/under set at 52.5, most are not expecting this to be a strong defensive game and you are likely to be disappointed if you plug the Chiefs D/ST into your line-up.