25 years ago, Mike Shanahan an Ed McCaffrey celebrated back-to-back Super Bowl wins with the Denver Broncos. Now their sons Kyle and Christian have a chance to win their first with the San Francisco 49ers.

No doubt about it, Broncos Country will be rooting for the 49ers against the AFC West rival Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs beat the Broncos 15 straight times until Denver finally bested them this year. And KC is now playing in their fourth Super Bowl in the last five years.

Simply, Broncos fans are fed up with Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs fans complaining about officiating when they get so many calls, and all the winning.

But beyond rooting against the Chiefs, Broncos Country has 49ers rooting interests, too.

Christian McCaffrey, son of Ed, could win his first ring on Sunday

25 years ago, nearly to the day, and Ed McCaffrey enjoyed a stellar Super Bowl XXXIII performance. “Eddy Mac” as he is warmly called in the Mile High City, hauled in five passes for 72 yards that day. And, he was part of John Elway’s Super Bowl MVP performance, along with a second straight championship.

Back then, a 2-year old Christian McCaffrey ran around the field as it was covered in confetti:

Now all grown up, Christian has a chance to win his first ring with the 49ers.

For his first six years, McCaffrey was the lone bright spot for an otherwise dismal Carolina Panthers team. In 2019, he was arguably the best player in football, with 1,387 rushing yards, 1,005 receiving yards, and his 19 total touchdowns led the league.

But in 2020 and 2021, he played in only 10 games due to multiple leg injuries, and a shoulder strain. He bounced back in 2022, playing well for the Panthers before being traded to the 49ers.

This year rivals even his 2019 campaign; his 1,459 rushing yards lead the NFL, as do his 2,023 yards from scrimmage and 21 total touchdowns. In fact, ever since joining the 49ers, McCaffrey has been basically automatic to score a touchdown in every game. He tied the NFL record with 17 straight touchdowns in Week 16 against Baltimore; when he gets going, he’s unstoppable.

When San Francisco takes on the Chiefs this Sunday in Super Bowl XLVIII, McCaffrey will undoubtedly be a focal point for both teams. The Niners have to get him going, and the Chiefs will want to shut him down.

But that’ll be extremely difficult for Kansas City, despite their great defense this year. When he carries the ball, McCaffrey is the toughest running back to tackle, with an NFL-leading 573 yards after contact this year. The San Francisco running back is also a gifted pass-catcher and he’s explosive with the ball in his hands.

While many folks are talking about Brock Purdy vs. Mahomes, if the 49ers win the big game, it’ll likely be McCaffrey taking MVP.

Kyle Shanahan follows in his dad’s footsteps, hopes to win first Super Bowl

Kyle Shanahan is undoubtedly one of the best head coaches in the NFL today.

Over the last five years, he’s coached San Francisco to a 54-26 record (67.5%) and Sunday will be his second Super Bowl as the head man. In Super Bowl LIV, the Niners lost to the Chiefs 31-20 in February, 2020.

But, compared to that team, this year’s Niners are better in nearly every category when compared to the rest of the league. San Francisco is No. 2 in total yards, No. 3 in points scored (28.8 PPG), No. 3 in rushing yards, and No. 1 in rushing touchdowns. Defensively, they’re third in points allowed (17.5 PPG) and third in rushing yards allowed.

While both the Chiefs and Niners are complete teams, it’s hard to argue Shanahan’s team isn’t the best all-around team in the NFL.

Like his star running back, Kyle Shanahan followed his dad Mike to the league.

Mike “The Mastermind” Shanahan won a Super Bowl with San Francisco as offensive coordinator with Ed in 1994. Then, they both came to Denver, where “Shanny” is still the greatest coach in Broncos history.

His—and Alex Gibbs’—zone-blocking run game not only made defenses look silly, it revolutionized the game. In fact, Kyle Shanahan still uses the zone run game today, with many of his own tweaks.

And when the 49ers won the NFC Championship over the Detroit Lions two weeks ago, there was Mike to celebrate Kyle’s achievement.

How does the younger Shanahan coach so well?

Apparently, surveillance is the name of the game, and Mike did so as well with the Broncos.

And even beyond Christian McCaffrey and Kyle Shanahan—who grew up in Castle Rock and Greenwood Village, CO respectively—former Broncos safety John Lynch is also the Niners’ GM.

Super Bowl LVIII is set to kickoff at 4:30 p.m. MST on Sunday, Feb. 11 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The game will be televised on CBS.

And Broncos Country will be rooting for the 49ers.