Joe Montana might have two dogs in the Super Bowl, but it was clear where his loyalty stands on Sunday night. About an hour after the 49ers punched their ticket to Miami with a 37-20 win over the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game, the former 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs QB congratulated his former team.
But what about the team he finished his career with? Where was Montana's tweet to the Chiefs? There wasn't one. Montana already exacted his revenge on the 49ers in 1994. He's true to The Faithful, and it's clear who Joe Cool is rooting for when it comes to Super Bowl LIV.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Montana, who won four Super Bowl rings with the 49ers, faced his original team for his first and only time on Sept. 11, 1994. Though Steve Young wound up winning the MVP that season and led San Francisco to its last Super Bowl win, it was a 38-year-old Montana who beat out Young that day.
Montana completed 19 of his 31 pass attempts for 203 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and was sacked just twice in the Chiefs' 24-17 win over the 49ers. Young went 24-for-34 on his passing attempts for 288 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He was sacked four times.
And that's only one slice of the 49ers' history with the Chiefs. Their last matchup was one to forget.
With just under six minutes remaining in the 49ers' 38-27 loss in Kansas City on Sept. 23, 2018, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo scrambled out of the pocket, ran down the sidelines and then crumbled to the ground.
San Francisco 49ers
Find the latest San Francisco 49ers news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Bay Area and California.
The 49ers confirmed the worst the next morning. Garoppolo tore his ACL and was out for the season. San Francisco went on to suffer a 4-12 season.
Since then, Garoppolo led the 49ers to a 13-3 regular-season record, good for the NFC West title and No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs. Despite only passing the ball eight times Sunday against the Packers, Jimmy G has San Francisco back in the Super Bowl.
Stuck in between Montana facing the 49ers and Garoppolo's injury was the return of Alex Smith. The former No. 1 draft pick faced the 49ers for the first time on Oct. 5, 2014 when San Francisco beat Kansas City, 22-17. Smith had 158 yards passing, one touchdown and one interception, while Colin Kaepernick led the 49ers to victory with 201 yards passing, one TD and no INTs.
The 49ers and Chiefs first faced each other on Dec. 6, 1971 in what was a 26-17 Chiefs win at Candlestick Park. All in all, the 49ers are 7-6 against the Chiefs in their franchise history. But the two teams never have played each other in the playoffs.
[RELATED: Grading 49ers' offense, defense in NFC title win vs. Packers]
When these teams last squared off, an injury defined the 49ers' season. Now, these storied franchises have made it to Miami with dreams of lifting the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
History is on the line, and these squads aren't short on storylines.
Programming note: NBC Sports Bay Area feeds your hunger for 49ers Super Bowl coverage with special editions of “49ers Central” all week (5:30 p.m. Monday and Wednesday; 8:00 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday; 6:00 p.m. Friday)