A Super Bowl matchup between the 49ers and the Chiefs is nothing new for Charvarius Ward.
But it’s not just new that he’s now on the 49ers’ side instead of the Chiefs’ side as he was in the 2020 Super Bowl four years ago.
“It’s better here,” Ward said. “In every possible way.”
The second-team All-Pro cornerback didn’t go into further detail, but he’s tough on the Chiefs and head coach Andy Reid, who let him become a free agent on a three-year, $40.5 million deal he signed in March 2022. He claimed he had no feelings. .
He earned $5.5 million in four years with the Chiefs, according to Spotrac.com.
“I feel like they didn’t have enough money to compensate me,” Ward said. “I really wanted to stay. They wanted me to stay. Coach Reid made that very clear. But I had to go get my bag.
“I was young. I was in the league, but I wasn’t rich yet. I needed the money. The 49ers were a great team, a Super Bowl contender, and they gave me a bag. So I am grateful.”
Ward went undrafted in 2018 and was traded by the first team (Cowboys) as a backup offensive lineman, but developed into a starter by his second year under Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo.
He recorded four tackles and played 98 percent of the defensive snaps as the Chiefs rallied to win their first Super Bowl in 50 years.
“[The 49ers] I thought they were going to beat us,” Ward said, briefly returning to the Chiefs’ “us and us” mentality. “I thought they missed the game, but I thought we were the better team back then. And I feel like the 49ers are a better team overall now. I really do. I am.”
But if the team switch had been in the reverse order, it’s hard to imagine he would feel like he’s on an inferior team right now.
Most of the 49ers had unfinished business after losing a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Ward doesn’t, but his teammates feel he has his own motives for many of his old friends.
“He’s been a great player for us,” defensive end Nick Bosa said. “And I think he wants something in return, so we’re going to have to help him get that.”
It’s rare for a team to lose a player with the developmental potential of Ward, 27, and perform as well at the opposite position.
But the Chiefs have Rajarius Sneed, who started 15 games opposite Ward in 2021, on the sidelines to become one of the most physical shutdown cornerbacks in the NFL, and is a first-team player. drafted All-Pro player Trent McDuffie to play. The slot was decided just one month after Ward’s departure.
“I’m not going to say they made a mistake, because they won the Super Bowl the year I left,” Ward said. “They’re doing something there. But it was a great addition for the 49ers to bring me in.”
Ironically, there is a perception around the NFL that Snead is the league’s biggest despiser of All-Pros, a sentiment echoed by his Chiefs teammates.
Considering that the Jets’ Sauce Gardner and the Cowboys’ Daron Brand were first-team outside cornerbacks, and another second-teamer, the Bears’ Jaylon Johnson, was the NFL’s top-ranked cornerback. The Spot reported that Ward likely went instead. The focus of pro football.
“I think Snead is one of the best corners in the game,” Ward said. “He’s going to hit like a linebacker and cover like a corner. He’s going to get recognized sooner or later. I don’t know if I’ve coached him, but he’s going to play my game. He definitely took little cues from him and I took some cues from his game as well.”
All shared knowledge will be published on Sunday.
