49ers nonetheless processing Tremendous Bowl loss, falling quick once more

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — As varied San Francisco 49ers filed via the locker room at their facility, lower than 48 hours faraway from dropping Tremendous Bowl LVIII to the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs in additional time, the enormity of that devastating defeat had already sunk in. They simply did not need to imagine it.

At one finish of the locker room, defensive finish Nick Bosa instructed reporters he wanted time to digest the loss earlier than trying to subsequent season. On the different, left sort out Trent Williams, normally one of many workforce’s most considerate and expansive interviews, had little to say. Others — equivalent to working again Christian McCaffrey, tight finish George Kittle, receiver Deebo Samuel, fullback Kyle Juszczyk and quarterback Brock Purdy — described their upcoming grieving course of.

All of them — together with coach Kyle Shanahan — had declined to rewatch what occurred at Allegiant Stadium. None had been positive they’d have the ability to abdomen it anytime quickly. However they made it clear that what occurred in Vegas actually will not keep there.

“It actually hit me, after which it might go away then it hit me once more and it is similar to it do not even really feel actual,” Samuel mentioned. “It is a totally different sort of feeling. Like I do not even have the reply. … It is like one of many largest heartbreaks you may take care of.”

Coping with heartbreak has grow to be an undesirable offseason custom for the 49ers. It began with their loss to the Chiefs in Tremendous Bowl LIV to conclude the 2019 season. In 2021, they fell quick within the NFC Championship Sport in opposition to the Los Angeles Rams. In 2022, they performed most of one other NFC Championship Sport with out a wholesome quarterback in what turned a blowout loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

In every season, the Niners had taken a unique, sometimes circuitous path to get again on Lombardi’s doorstep. The ultimate defeat was at all times tough to swallow however was typically buoyed by an inner perception they might return.

To their credit score, the Niners have put motion behind these beliefs. However Tremendous Bowl LVIII appeared to hit the toughest. Not simply because they misplaced a sport that was there for the taking, but in addition due to the cumulative impact of the earlier close to misses. They usually is likely to be working out of probabilities to rectify them, not less than of their present iteration.

“It is gut-wrenching,” normal supervisor John Lynch mentioned. “And in the end, we’ll must reside with for a lifetime the fact that we did not get it achieved this time. However I say this time as a result of that is this time. It hurts. And proper now, everybody’s grieving.

“It is not simply going to be OK instantly, however you perceive that the one factor you are able to do is use this gas to propel us ahead. And that is the place our mindsets are at, or not less than the place they’ll arrive in some unspecified time in the future.”

Attending to that time would possibly take a bit longer this time given simply how shut the Niners got here to successful the franchise’s long-coveted however elusive sixth Lombardi Trophy. The reminiscences of a third-quarter punt bouncing off cornerback Darrell Luter Jr.’s foot, the missed safety by guard Spencer Burford in opposition to Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones on a key third down in additional time, the Chiefs blocking Jake Moody’s fourth-quarter further level and numerous different performs that might have swung the sport in San Francisco’s favor will linger.

It is why the one participant within the 49ers’ locker room who acknowledged rewatching the Tremendous Bowl lower than two days after it concluded was linebacker Fred Warner. The earlier Tremendous Bowl loss was the conclusion of Warner’s second NFL season, and he believed on the time his workforce would have the ability to get again and get the job achieved briefly order.

4 years and one other Tremendous Bowl loss later, Warner calls that mindset the naïveté of a younger participant who did not acknowledge how onerous it’s to get there or the scars that dropping a Tremendous Bowl can depart. Whereas Warner’s takeaway from his Tremendous Bowl LVIII rewatch was pleasure in his workforce’s effort, he is aware of that it will not be simple to climb the mountain once more even when San Francisco — as anticipated — retains most of its star, veteran nucleus in 2024.

“It will get simpler, however it’s going to stick with you all over,” Warner mentioned. “The factor that offers me hope is realizing how a lot it means to me, how a lot it means to this group, how a lot it means to Kyle and the gamers and John, and the issues that make up a championship workforce.

“I do know we’ve got these issues. You bought to behave the best way of a champion earlier than you’re a champion. And so, I do know it isn’t a factor of whether it is simply when, and it sucks that it wasn’t this time.”

The when a part of the equation dominates any 49ers dialogue. The likes of Warner, Bosa, Kittle, McCaffrey, Samuel and Williams are beneath contract for 2024 and past. Purdy presently has a meager cap cost of $1.004 million in 2024 and $1.119 million in 2025.

There are, after all, questions that should be answered amid the grieving. Wideout Brandon Aiyuk is due for a contract extension. The Niners wish to hold him long run however his ascent (75 receptions for 1,342 yards and 7 touchdowns in 2023) has pushed that price up.

Shanahan has a handful of coaches to switch, together with defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, who was fired three days after the season ended. Linebacker Dre Greenlaw has an arduous restoration from the torn left Achilles he suffered within the Tremendous Bowl.

From a roster standpoint, the offensive line, line of defense and secondary require fast consideration. Receiver and linebacker aren’t far behind.

For now, gamers have gone their separate methods and can transfer previous this loss in no matter means — and on no matter timeline — they see match. For Bosa, meaning returning dwelling to Florida and taking a bit time without work earlier than getting again to his exercise routine. Kittle, Juszczyk and McCaffrey have already headed to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, for his or her annual offseason getaway. Purdy is within the last phases of planning for his March wedding ceremony.

Upon getting back from Las Vegas, Shanahan spent his first night time at dwelling hanging out and watching Netflix together with his household, avoiding something that needed to do with the Tremendous Bowl. He says he will not watch it till he is “able to or when I’ve to.” He does not know when that shall be. He does know that if his workforce goes to crack the code to lastly successful all of it, he will must be again and wanting to assault the subsequent climb prior to later.

“That is actual,” Shanahan mentioned. “You do must grieve this. … I feel our guys are going to be hungry as ever getting back from this.”