One part of Andy Reid's effusive praise of 49ers should definitely be taken with a pinch of salt

The Kansas City Chiefs have had the edge over the San Francisco 49ers for a long time, winning the last four meetings between the two teams including victories in Super Bowl 54 and Super Bowl 58.

But you certainly not find any complacency among the Chiefs, who needed a fourth-quarter comeback to beat San Francisco to the Lombardi Trophy in their first duel on the biggest stage and came from behind again in February to edge the Niners in an overtime thriller in Las Vegas.

Unsurprisingly, eight months on from a classic at Allegiant Stadium, head coach Andy Reid had a lot of praise for the 49ers and their coaching staff, especially on the offensive side of the ball, with San Francisco continuing to thrive despite diverging away from the yards after catch-centric attack that has defined their success under Kyle Shanahan .

Heading into the Week 7 rematch between the 49ers and Chiefs, quarterback Brock Purdy is the highest-graded quarterback in the NFL by Pro Football Focus and leads the league in explosive plays and air yards per attempt.

Asked about the challenge of playing the 49ers, Reid said: "Kyle does a great job with the team. He and [run game coordinator and offensive line coach ] Chris [Foerster] have that offense rolling right now, and their defense is one of the top defenses in the NFL; [defensive coordinator] Nick [Sorensen] heading up the defense.

"And special teams, [special teams coordinator] Brian [Schneider] does a great job there on special teams. So listen, they're well coached, they've got good players. I think both teams kind of know each other, and it should just be a heck of a game."

Reid's praise is effusive, but his comments on the 49ers' special teams should be taken with a pinch of salt. San Francisco is 31st in special teams DVOA, with the Niners' struggles in kickoff coverage proving an albatross for a team that has of late made strides on defense to complement its highly efficient offense.

The 49ers are 29th in opponent kick return average (33.8 yards) and 27th in opponent punt return average, with San Francisco affording opposing offenses the best average starting field position (31.8 yards) in the NFL.

For all his very complimentary words about the Niners, Reid and the Chiefs coaching staff will view special teams as an area they can exploit to get the better of San Francisco once again. The challenge for Schneider and his group is to stem the bleeding after giving up a kickoff return touchdown last week and ensure Kansas City is not given the opportunity to take advantage.

Related: Brock Purdy's well-deserved ranking adds spice to 49ers quarterback's Super Bowl rematch with Patrick Mahomes