(Image via espn.com)
Sports Editor: Tom Dunford
Email: tdunford@umassd.edu
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results – Albert Einstein
The San Fransisco 49ers lost Super Bowl LVIII to the Kansas City Chiefs 25-22, and to the naked eye, it feels like Groundhog Day all over again for the club.
Whenever the organization makes progress, it takes three steps backward, and it is only a matter of time before the team blows it up and starts over.
Let’s take a look at what went wrong in the past few seasons and see where exactly this team jumped the shark.
2019-2020: San Fransisco Loses Super Bowl LIV 31-20 To The Chiefs
Take a look, San Fransisco. Watch as the Kansas City Chiefs hoist just their second Lombardi trophy in Super Bowl history as you sit on the sideline and wallow in what-ifs. This team was so close, yet so far. Head coach Kyle Shanahan has failed to get over the bump, wiping away the stain of his failed offense in the biggest Superbowl collapse in Atlanta, when he blew a 28-3 lead.
But they lost for a real reason. The officials.
Don’t blame the playcalling, injuries, the lack of discipline, and the lack of defensive structure that the team had all game. Don’t blame the fact that the team didn’t change its attack tactics after the first half and not place a QB spy on the elusive, dual-threat magician in Patrick Mahomes. If all-pro defensive lineman Nick Bosa doesn’t get held on one play, then the 49ers would’ve won the superbowl!
It’s all the ref’s fault.
Starting QB Jimmy Garappolo has proven he can be the guy to carry a star-studded squad, with pieces like Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, and Kyle Juszczyk, who are all capable of being game-changing talents. These stars will win a Super Bowl in the next, let’s say, five years with the right quarterback, and they got it.
This team will be back, and they will prove the rest of the league wrong.
But that’s okay because the team learned what they needed: another weapon. Jimmy Garrapolo needs all the help to reach his potential, and lucky for the 49ers, they got their guy. Arizona State wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk had a stellar season and will slot nicely next to Deebo and George Kittle. He will definitely go down as the best wide receiver in the draft by a landslide.
Silly Vikings, drafting a sure-fire bust in Justin Jefferson.
2020-2021: San Fransisco 49ers Go 6-10, Garrapolo’s Future In Jeopardy
Okay, that wasn’t a part of the plan.
It felt like this past season was a season from hell. Everything that could’ve gone wrong went wrong. Jimmy Garrapolo had dealt with another season of injuries, starting in only six games all season. And that felt like the major issue with the team: Injuries.
It’s tough to win games when your whole squad is injured. How bad did it get?
Almost $80 million dollars were listed on injured reserve, and the team lost key pieces early in the season. Deebo Samuel only suited up for seven games, George Kittle is dealing with a hamstring injury, and losing Bosa in the second game of the season is not ideal.
And this brings up an important question: the quarterback position. The 49ers cannot be paying Jimmy G this much money to not play.
They need an answer, and fast.
2021 Draft: San Fransisco Takes The Leap Of Faith
Just one month before the 2021 NFL draft, the 49ers organization took a chance and made a blockbuster deal. They traded the 12th overall pick, a third-round pick, and two firsts in 2022 and 2023, respectively, to the Miami Dolphins.
In exchange, they acquired the third overall pick, and it was clear their intention was to go quarterback.
Headlines surrounded the QB position, as generational talent in Trevor Lawrence was set to be the first overall pick. But there were other prospects who had game-changing ability, to the 49ers had their heart set on one: North Dakota State Bison Trey Lance.
His elusive, game-breaking speed and capability to read defenses sparked joy in the club, and they made the choice to select him over Alabama star Mac Jones and Ohio State QB Justin Fields.
They gave up a lot for this risky pick, but come on, it’s not like any of these players are going to compare to the gifted athleticism of Trey Lance. I mean, who even is Micah Parsons?
This would go down in history in terms of NFL draft trades, just not in the way the 49ers had hoped…
2021-2022: San Fransisco 49ers lose to the Los Angeles Rams 2017
One play does not make a game, but it sure is an easy scapegoat.
Jaquiski Tartt made a crucial drop in the NFC championship game against the Rams when the ball went right through his hands. The game was 17-14 in favor of the 49ers in the fourth quarter, and Rams quarterback Matt Stafford aired a deep ball down the field and right into the hands of Tartt. Unfortunately, the ball went right through his hands.
This play would be a tone-shifter for the Rams, who would score two field goals to win the game.
But Tartt isn’t the only player to blame for this loss.
Jimmy Garrapolo looked almost careless with the ball in the last few drives for the 49ers, and he was the main reason why the team lost this game. Trey Lance would be announced the starter in training camp going into the 2022-2023 season, with Jimmy Garrapolo sitting behind him. Who cares about the QB3? He was the last pick in the 2022 NFL draft.
2022-2023: The 49ers Hero Emerges, But Injuries derail a Cinderella Story
The San Fransisco 49ers had a quarterback who was in their first season starting to help carry them to an incredible season.
Except it wasn’t Trey Lance. It wasn’t Jimmy G. The San Fransisco 49ers had found their very own Tom Brady-esk diamond in the rough to lead them to the promised land in Brock Purdy.
How did this accumulate? Well, going into the 2022-23 season, all eyes were on Trey Lance. And unfortunately, all eyes looked in disgust. Lance started two games with the club but was hit with a season-ending injury in just his second start. Jimmy G came in, and he also managed to get injured a few weeks later.
So in came Brock Purdy, who led the team back from the depths of hell and helped create one of the biggest threats the NFL had seen. But it wasn’t just him.
The 49ers made a blockbuster move at the trade deadline, acquiring all-pro and future hall-of-fame running back Christian McCaffrey from the Carolina Panthers. A running back only in name, CMC helped add another weapon to this arsenal of threats that any defensive coordinator would fear.
The team had no weakness on the field. On the field.
The issue is if players get injured, then it becomes almost impossible to recreate that magic. And in the NFC championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles, the 49ers got hit with the injury bug. How bad did it get? Christian McCaffrey was taking actual in-game snaps at quarterback. In the NFC Championship game.
It feels inconceivable to think that a team would lose its QB1, QB2, QB3, and QB4 in one season, yet for the San Fransisco 49ers, that is exactly what happened. Brock Purdy proved he was the real deal, and next season would be the true test.
2023-2024: Here We Are
This season was Super Bowl or bust. This was the 49ers year.
Everything added up into what was to be the recreation of the 1999 St. Louis Rams “Greatest Show on Turf” offense. A full offseason with Purdy under center, CMC looking to be a full-time workhorse, and Aiyuk on a contract season, this was their year.
And yet, here we are.
The San Fransisco 49ers lost again to the Chiefs and again, they are back to the drawing board. Nothing has worked for the organization. You can talk about all the highlighted playoff moments, all the phenomenal regular seasons, and the awards the team and players won, but that’s all you can do. This team didn’t win a ring, and it felt like this year was their best shot.
It feels impossible to tell a team who has repeatedly put out greatness that they are failing, yet that’s what has happened.
For all the success the 49ers may have had over the last five years, it’s accumulated to no rings and a lot of sorrow.