Chiefs legitimately dared Brock Purdy to beat them and couldn't do it

Despite their best effort, the San Francisco 49ers fell short in the Super Bowl. They gave it their all, making it the second Super Bowl in the game's history to go into overtime, but still fell short.

With drama even before the game started, including a team hotel fire alarm and an undesirable practice field, the 49ers made excuses. Unfortunately, injuries, miscues, and uncalled penalties helped put the Chiefs in a desirable position.

But some stats from how Steve Spagnuolo and the Chiefs defense approached playing Brock Purdy reveal quite a bit more.

Chiefs defense dared Brock Purdy with defensive looks, man coverage

Brock Purdy has been discredited for what he has done for the 49ers the entire year. Cam Newton famously called him a “game manager.” Is it because he was Mr. Irrelevant? Is it because of his supporting cast?

Despite leading his team to back-to-back NFC Championship Games and having an MVP-like season, he does not get the credit some think he deserves. And it seems the Chiefs were one of many that have not bought into the Brock Purdy hype.

Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is known for what he can do on the defensive side of the ball. He is remarkable at creating a defensive game plan around whoever the Chiefs are playing and having his players execute it at a high level.

In the AFC Championship Game, his defense held MVP Lamar Jackson to 10 points. In the Divisional Round, his defense held Josh Allen to 24 points. And he created a game plan that knocked Purdy off his rocker. That game plan was simple: pressure, pressure, and more pressure.

The Chiefs played man 64.3% of the time against Purdy. The Browns had the highest at 71% and handed the 49ers their first loss of the season. The Chiefs played 40.5% in Cover 1 (man coverage with safety playing over the top). Spagnuolo, also called cover zero (man coverage and everyone else blitzes), 21.4%, a season-high for the 49ers offense to face.

The Chiefs told the 49ers, “Brock Purdy is going to beat us, or no one is.” Unfortunately, Purdy couldn’t do it. He had solid stats of 255 passing yards and a touchdown but missed some open throws and could not escape pressure.

The Chiefs will parade around Kansas City tomorrow at 12 p.m. ET