MIAMI — Kobe Bryant loomed over Super Bowl Opening Night on Monday, looking down on the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers from a giant screen as the NFL paid tribute to the Los Angeles Lakers great killed in a helicopter crash. Opening night has usually been a light-hearted and often zany start to Super Bowl week as the players from both teams dive into a media mosh pit for a prime time question-and-answer free-for-all where very little is out of bounds. With Super Bowl tickets on the resale market averaging more than $7,000, some fans jumped at the chance to get a closer look at the two teams, paying $25 to watch players mill about answering questions. While the NFL Opening Night production gets bigger every Super Bowl the crowds appear to have gotten smaller and the scene tamer. This Super Bowl is first as a head coach for 49ers’ Kyle Shanahan but he took it all in familiar stride having watched his father Mike Shanahan guide the Denver Broncos to two Lombardi trophies.

Source: National Post January 28, 2020 04:07 UTC