A Super Bowl loss often leaves an emotional toll on NFL teams, sometimes leading to underwhelming performances the following season. For the San Francisco 49ers, that narrative seems to fit. Their 5-5 campaign has fallen short of expectations, though fans are quick to attribute much of the struggles to injuries.
Still, the 49ers' performance has consistently been below their usual standards, which is evident by the several mental errors committed on game days. They've lost three games this season when leading by four or more points in the fourth quarter—all against divisional opponents. They are the first team to achieve that specific unfortunate accomplishment since 2000.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan rejects the idea that the team's performance is tied to lingering effects from February's Super Bowl loss at Allegiant Stadium.
"I don't think there is an answer about a journey or Super Bowl hangover," Shanahan said during a Monday conference call. "I think it's about what's happening in that exact game. The week before was almost the same game. I think we went down 13 to 10 or something in the third. I think they came back and tied it up, and we went down and won it on the last play."
Shanahan was referencing the 49ers' Week 10 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In that game, San Francisco was actually holding onto a 13-10 lead in the third quarter before falling behind 17-13 in the fourth. The game was tied 20-20 in the final minute when the 49ers orchestrated a decisive drive to set up kicker Jake Moody for a game-winning field goal—redeeming himself after missing three earlier attempts.
Against the Seahawks, the 49ers trailed 13-10 in the third quarter but responded with a 17-play touchdown drive in the fourth to regain the lead. The defense then forced a turnover on downs, but the offense failed to sustain its next drive, leading to a punt. That allowed Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith to engineer a game-winning touchdown drive.
Had the 49ers offense sustained their drive before the Seahawks' game-winning possession, it's unlikely Geno Smith would have had enough time to orchestrate a comeback.
Shanahan reflected on the missed opportunities, saying, "We missed a throw and catch, which I think would've got us in the red zone and allowed us to run out more clock, possibly the clock, but we didn't make it, and then they got us on the last drive. So we've got to play better on those two last drives. And it usually comes down to that in football."
Emphasizing the importance of executing in crucial moments, Shanahan added, "If you don't want it to come down to that before that, you've got to play pretty flawlessly to get up a couple scores before the end. But that's why most games in this league do come down to the end, and we got that done versus Tampa, but we didn't get it done this week."
Now, the 49ers are searching for solutions as they prepare for a challenging road trip to face the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. This pivotal matchup could determine whether San Francisco turns its season around or fades into irrelevance down the stretch.