Sarni's Scrolls: Destiny... Dynasty
Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift sealed it with a kiss.
Did you expect the Super Bowl to end any other way?
Kansas City Chiefs 25, San Francisco 49ers 22. Overtime.
1. Love conquers all.
2. Never bet against Mahomes.
Real life happy ending for the NFL's Fantastic Four -- savvy coach Andy Reid, clutch quarterback Patrick Mahomes, inspirational leader Kelce and good-luck charm Taylor Swift.
The NFL has a repeat champion for the first time in 19 years. The underdog? Chiefs, with a third Super Bowl triumph in five seasons, cemented the league’s modern-day dynasty.
What happened in Vegas Sunday at Allegiant Stadium will stay with us forever.
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CBS's Jim Nantz and Tony Romo, after boring Super Bowls 53 (Patriots 13, Rams 3) and 55 (Bucs 31, Chiefs 9), hit the jackpot on Sunday.
Overall, Nantz and Romo, in his third Super Bowl telecast, had a decent game.
"What a thrill to be able to say that we witnessed an overtime Super Bowl game and what will go down in history as one of the greatest games of all time and the longest Super Bowl game of all time. That’s what I’m trying to process right now,” Nantz told the AP.
“I’m thrilled for our team and thrilled for the sport. It was an unbelievably fitting finish to a remarkable football season.”
Romo, who tends to get too excited, eased into the game by starting the first drive at a slower pace. He was having fun, singing an Adele song while CBS went to a commercial break.
Romo still took a beating on social media from critics who prefer Fox's Greg Olsen as an analyst.
Romo erred when he said that Brock Purdy's wild throw for Jauan Jennings "was for the Super Bowl." Regardless, the Chiefs were still getting the ball.
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Turning point: The 49ers chose to go on offense after winning the overtime toss.
Under the new rules, both teams get a possession. If the game remains tied... then sudden death.
My take: I'd rather know what the Chiefs do first. San Francisco settles for a field goal. Kansas City now knows a touchdown wins the game.
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan explained his decision: “We just wanted the ball third. If both teams matched and scored, we want to be the ones that had the chance to [win on the third possession].”
Third possession? Think about the first and second possessions.
How cruelly ironic it is that Shanahan has been on the losing end of both Super Bowl overtime games now.
■ As Atlanta’s offensive coordinator seven years ago, he saw Tom Brady overcome a 28-3 Falcons lead to win that game.
■ And Sunday, Mahomes overcame a 10-point San Francisco lead with 32 minutes to go to win this one. Brady and Mahomes.
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Pregame observations
■ Nate Burleson and JJ Watt were "The NFL Today" stars... with good reason. The former players are the future at CBS, with contracts up for Boomer Esiason, Bill Cowher and Phil Simms.
■ Burleson also called the Nickelodeon telecast from Bikini Bottom with Noah Eagle, SpongeBob and Patrick Star. It was a blast for "lovers of slime and really good football." I taped it to enjoy in the morning.
■ Noah's call of game-winning call: "Touchdown! Kansas City wins back-to-back Super Bowls! That's Mecole Hardman! ...Mahomes magic makes its way to Bikini Bottom, and the Chiefs have done it once again!"
■ Ian Eagle (loved the blue checkered socks) anchored a strong second panel which included play-by-partner Charles Davis, Matt Ryan and Jason McCourty.
■ The "NFL Today" crew Las Vegas-themed parody of "The Hangover" was hilarious. Produced by Emmy-award-winning Pete Radovich, Jr., Senior Creative Director for CBS Sports.
■ Another funny spot: The Limo Cam in the car taking Boomer and Co. from The Bellagio to the stadium. Chowing down on sandwiches.
■ Reba McEntire sang the National Anthem in 1 minute 40 seconds -- 10 seconds longer than the over-under from oddsmakers. Still, it was the quickest version of the anthem at the Super Bowl since Kelly Clarkson sang it 12 years ago.
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Usher's halftime show, the best Super Bowl performance in years, was a Vegas-worthy spectacle.
A marching band, Vegas show girls, dancers on rollerblades, pyrotechnics, people flying in the air.
Usher delighted his fans with many of the biggest hits of his 30-year music career. including “Caught Up,” “Love in this Club,” “U Got It Bad,” “OMG,” “Yeah!”
Guests: Alicia Keys on the piano, H.E.R. on the guitar, Jermaine Dupri, will.i.am, Lil Jon, and Ludacris.
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There were several entertaining commercials. The winner, according to the public...
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito, first paired in a 1988 box office smash, reunited for State Farm’s Super Bowl entry and walked off with the top spot in USA Today’s 36th Ad Meter contest.
The 60-second spot features Schwarzenegger playing a State Farm employee in an action film, rescuing puppies and a pregnant woman from a burning home. Yet the Austrian-born actor struggles to pronounce the insurance giant’s tagline, giving his pal DeVito an opening to save the day in a surprise cameo.
"Like A Good Neighbaaa” scored 6.68, outpointing Dunkin’s 6.52. The coffee giant’s ad once again teamed actor Ben Affleck and wife Jennifer Lopez, joined by Affleck’s Boston bros, Tom Brady and Matt Damon.
Dunkin’ was followed in the top five by Kia (6.36), Uber Eats (6.26) and the NFL (6.23).
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ETC.
■ The next three Super Bowls: New Orleans, Santa Clara, Los Angeles.
■ Jason Kelce met with ESPN and Fox about a broadcasting position.
■ Pro Bowl Games ratings: 5.79 million, down 8%.
■ Amazon has acquired the rights to stream an NFL Wild-Card playoff game next season, taking over from Peacock.
■ The Dolphins are the likely home team for the NFL's 2025 international game in Madrid. It's the AFC's turn to have the extra home game, and Miami's the only AFC team to have marketing rights in Spain.
■ Puppy Bowl: Team Ruff 72, Team Fluff 69. Cookie's FG on final play wins again.
■ JJ Redick could join Mike Breen and Doris Burke on the NBA Finals for ABC.
■ Brittany Mahomes is featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.
■ The Dodgers and Padres started spring training over the weekend. They open the MLB season, March 20 in Seoul.
■ MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred wants to launch a league-owned, direct-to-consumer streaming service in time for the 2025 season.
■ Soccer officials are proposing a "blue card," sending players off the pitch for 10 minutes for a cynical foul or dissent.
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■ Jon Stewart returns Monday to "The Daily Show" as a once-a-week host.
■ Billy Joel's 100th Madison Square Garden concert will air as a CBS special on April 14.
■ "Moana 2" will hit theaters the day before Thanksgiving on Nov. 27.
■ Taco Bell is releasing a Baja Blast Gelato.
■ Singapore is the most expensive city in the world for the ninth time in 11 years. Tied with Zurich.
■ January was the warmest January on record.
■ Burn-away cakes — confections where the top layer is lit on fire and burns away to reveal a hidden message or picture.
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THEY SAID IT
■ "Taylor Swift is in Las Vegas. She has made it. Taylor Swift is here; she has flown from Tokyo, where she had a concert, to LAX, to Vegas... Is expected to be at the game at a suite to be determined... I'll never report bigger news today." - Ian Rapoport, The NFL Network
■ "Chiefs coach Andy Reid had Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Chris Jones address the team last night at the hotel. All were great. Kelce particularly so— "Unbelievable" and "powerful", according to people in the room, to the point where some teammates were moved to tears." -- Albert Breer, Sports Illustrated
■ "I think I want the Chiefs to win just because of Taylor Swift's boyfriend and all of you that are complaining about Taylor Swift being at games get a f*cking life." -- Adele
■ "There's no such thing as bad pizza. There's no such thing as Pat Mahomes fatigue." -- NFL Network's Peter Schrager.