The San Francisco 49ers are disappointed. Perhaps "disappointed" isn't the right word to use. They sound angry. Despite the injuries that have impacted the roster, the Niners entered Sunday's home matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles as eight-point favorites. It was a game they should have won, and they know it.
"The mood in the locker room, it sucks," tight end George Kittle said after the loss. "I said Week 1 (that) losing sucks. It just does, especially when we have high goals. We want to get back to the Super Bowl, and when you go out, and you play like that, there's not really any chance.
"We have to look ourselves in the mirror. We have to say, 'Hey, why are we not running the ball well? What are our issues? We have to fix them.'
"Thankfully, we get another shot next Sunday, so we can try to go 1-0 in that week, and that's all we're going to be focused on. We're going to come back, we've been practicing really well, and we're just going to try to continue to get better and get used to each other because it is a new season with new players. We're just going to try to do everything we can to get better on Wednesday."
Linebacker Fred Warner perhaps had an even better description of the mood in the locker room after the disappointing loss.
"Pissed off," Warner said. "We're upset, for sure. The fact that we're 0-2 at home, there's got to be a sense of urgency. Guys have got to execute a lot better. I've got to look at myself in the mirror. It starts with me on defense. Everybody's got to be better. That can't happen. Luckily, we've got a game this upcoming week at home, where we can improve and make sure that doesn't happen again."
Running back Jerick McKinnon was also asked about the team's mood following the 25-20 defeat.
"It definitely sucks," he responded. "You never want to lose, especially with the caliber team we've got. Our expectations, our standards are higher than that. We've got to play better, play better at home. We've lost two home games, so we've got to come in, correct it. We've got to find a way to get this thing going at home."
The 49ers will return to practice on Wednesday as the team tries to move past this loss and prepare to play the visiting Miami Dolphins next weekend.
