Kansas City Chiefs rally to beat San Francisco 49ers 31-20 in Super Bowl

Kansas City Chiefs rally to beat San Francisco 49ers 31-20 in Super Bowl, franchise's first championship in 50 years.

Patrick Mahomes needed just the waning minutes of Super Bowl 54 to end a whole lot of frustration.

A championship 50 years in the making for the Kansas City Chiefs.

A two-decade wait for an NFL title for coach Andy Reid.

All it took was falling behind by double digits in the postseason, again. Then Mahomes found his mojo. The 24-year-old quarterback who was selected Super Bowl MVP, led the Chiefs to 21 straight points in the final 6:13 for a 31-20 victory Sunday over the San Francisco 49ers.

Patrick Mahomes needed just the waning minutes of Super Bowl 54 to end a whole lot of frustration.

A championship 50 years in the making for the Kansas City Chiefs.

A two-decade wait for an NFL title for coach Andy Reid.

All it took was falling behind by double digits in the postseason, again. Then Mahomes found his mojo. The 24-year-old quarterback who was selected Super Bowl MVP, led the Chiefs to 21 straight points in the final 6:13 for a 31-20 victory Sunday over the San Francisco 49ers.

“We never lost faith,” Mahomes said. “That’s the biggest thing. Everybody on this team, no one had their head down. We believed in each other. That’s what we preached all year long.”

The Chiefs (15-4) trailed 24-0 and 17-7 in their previous playoff games, both in the first half. In the big game, they nearly didn’t have time for a comeback.

Kansas City’s fans in the crowd of 62,417 at Hard Rock Stadium got little opportunity to chant and do the tomahawk chop as KC fell behind 20-10 in the third quarter. Mahomes even threw his second interception of the night after they fell behind.

But the vaunted 49ers defense wilted late and Mahomes brought the magic that makes him special.

He completed passes of 44 yards to Tyreek Hill and 38 to Sammy Watkins. The touchdowns came on short throws to Travis Kelce to cut the deficit to three and to Damien Williams for the lead. The first NFL title in Chiefs coach Reid’s two-decade career was clinched by Williams’ 38-yard TD run, sending red-clad Chiefs fans into chants of “Andy!” Andy!”

Reid, 61, won a Super Bowl ring with the 1996 Packers while in charge of tight ends. He’s been seeking one as a head coach since being hired by Philadelphia in 1999. The Eagles lost in their only trip to the big game under Reid after the 2004 season.

“This is what it’s all about,” Reid said as confetti fell and the Chiefs celebrated the climax of the NFL’s 100th season. “What a great team, great coaches. Appreciate every bit of it.”

Mahomes found Hill, whose bobble led to the second San Francisco pick, for 44 yards on a third-and-15 — the first long pass completed by Kansas City. A 20-yard pass interference call on Tarvarius Moore, who had that earlier pick, put the ball at the 1 and Kelce was wide open for the score.