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Someone is finally stirring the Chiefs-49ers pot

... and I’d bet you can probably guess who it is.

NFL: Super Bowl LIV Opening Night Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

I received an email this morning from an AP reader that struck a chord with me.

“Was wondering if you thought the Chiefs and 49ers were too nice to each other on the Monday media sessions,” wrote the reader. “I’d kinda like to see them talk trash like 1990s WWF”

The thing is — so would I.

Opening night is lighthearted in nature, but there was an awful lot of complimenting going on during the two hour-long media sessions. Tyreek Hill said he wants to swap jerseys with cornerback Richard Sherman, and Travis Kelce and George Kittle loved up each other on each other’s skill sets. On Tuesday, Andy Reid was sure to mention just how well 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is playing right now.

But that did not last for long...

Defensive end Frank Clark casually slipped in that he is not too fond of former Chief and current 49ers defensive end Dee Ford before recalling what he was doing during last year’s AFC championship game — when Ford’s offsides penalty likely cost the Chiefs a Super Bowl trip.

“I didn’t even watch the game when they played the game last year,” Clark said, via 41 Action News. “I was busy doing other things. I was out to play, also. I wasn’t worried about football at the time. I just knew he had lined up offsides and that anybody that lined up offsides in a time like that, I feel like that’s a dumb penalty at the end of the day. I’m sure he feels the same way.

“Myself personally, I’ve lined up offsides before — not in that type of capacity but I’ve lined up and cost my team games. I’ve jumped offsides. I’ve done things — I’ve been suspended. Who knows what it was? But any capacity, that’s just something that shouldn’t happen. It’s a year later, though. He’s back here this year and that’s a wonderful thing for him. I’m sure he’s got a lot to prove, so it’s going to be a good day out there.”

Ford told media on opening night that he understands the constant questioning he has received about the penalty.

”I’m being really serious, I’ve been through worse than that,” said Ford, via NFL dot com. “I wasn’t even supposed to be playing. I came off my second back surgery that I had to beg my surgeon to do. He didn’t want to do it. I wasn’t supposed to play last year. I had my second back surgery before that year. Nobody expected me to come back. I came into training camp, I was 25 pounds under weight. So, I’ve been through worse things than that. You have to block out the negative, focus on the positive.”

Clark and Ford won’t see the field against each other Sunday, as they both play defense. But who outperforms the other is quickly becoming a storyline to watch.

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