49ers fans take over the Superdome: Shanahan and players react

It may have been a home game for the New Orleans Saints, but inside Caesars Superdome on Sunday, it felt more like Levi's Stadium. The San Francisco 49ers Faithful showed up in force, outnumbering and out-cheering the home crowd in a 26-21 49ers victory.

Linebacker Fred Warner was seen waving his arms to fire up the sea of red and gold, while the players thrived off the energy that made the atmosphere feel like a home-field advantage.

There was so much talk about preparing the environment in New Orleans, which is considered among the loudest in the league. However, this wasn't the first time head coach Kyle Shanahan saw The Faithful take over the venue.

"Oh, it's so cool," Shanahan said after the game. "One of my favorite times in my career was 2019, how many fans we had here, how loud that game was, and then watching them on Bourbon Street after. Driving around yesterday, or coming back from our walkthrough on the bus, Saturday, just seeing a bunch of groups of Niner fans walking around.

"I know our guys travel well, but it seems like we travel here better. The stadium almost seemed 50/50. There were times we didn't have to do the silent cadence during the game, which was unusual. And then you could hear our guys at the end. I couldn't be happier with our fans. It was pretty cool."

The Faithful made their presence especially felt after Jauan Jennings' 42-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. Jennings celebrated with fans in the stands, who roared back with chants of support.

"I love it, I love it," Jennings said, his trademark smile spreading across his face. "Everywhere we go, we see 49ers fans, and it just turns me up. I can't wait. And it kills me if I can't play, knowing we got all these Faithful here. That's what it's about."

One player who was especially surprised by the number of 49ers fans in attendance was wide receiver Ricky Pearsall.

"It was crazy. I was actually talking to [Kendrick Bourne] when we were sitting down on the bench. I was like, 'It is so loud in here.' It was on the last drive, they had a third down, and it was super loud. And I started kind of looking around, and I was like, 'There's actually a lot of red in here.'

"So it's crazy. Shout out to the fans for showing up."

The 49ers now head home to Levi's Stadium for their first true home game of the 2025 season, hosting the Arizona Cardinals in Week 3.