The San Francisco 49ers are coming off a heartbreaking Super Bowl loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. They fell by a final score of 25-22 in overtime. For the 49ers, this most recent loss defines what this team is this generation. San Francisco is a team that has been on the doorstep but continues to come up short of the grand prize.
San Francisco 49ers Have Lost Last Three Super Bowl Appearances
Yesterday’s loss makes the 49ers 0-3 in their last three Super Bowl appearances. This includes Super Bowl LVIII, LIV, and XLVII respectively. Despite this, the 49ers have found unique ways to blow each of these games.
During Super Bowl XLVII, San Francisco was down 28-6 against the Baltimore Ravens. Despite managing to get within three points of the Ravens, the 49ers came up short thanks to a controversial no-call by the referees. The next two Super Bowl appearances had the opposite happen.
In both of their Super Bowl appearances against the Kansas City Chiefs, the 49ers had 10-point leads. During Super Bowl LIV, San Francisco blew this lead in the fourth quarter and still lost by double digits. Yesterday, the 49ers ended up falling to the Chiefs in overtime.
Many NFC Championship Appearances
Because the 49ers have not won a Super Bowl since the 1994 season, many people may forget how many times this team has made the NFC Championship over the last 13 years. Believe it or not, the 49ers have been in seven of the last 13 NFC Championship games. San Francisco ended up winning just three of those games.
During the 2012 NFC Championship game against the New York Giants, two muffed punts by Kyle Williams told the story. That arguably cost the 49ers a Super Bowl appearance while Alex Smith and Jim Harbaugh were still around. Two years later, San Francisco lost the NFC Championship to the Seattle Seahawks. Richard Sherman infamously had a postgame message to WR Michael Crabtree after that.
Before this Super Bowl appearance, the 49ers had lost their previous two NFC Championship appearances. This includes a blowout to the Philadelphia Eagles last year and a close clash against the Los Angeles Rams the year prior.
Past Success
Older 49ers fans know the team was not always like this. However, the last 13 years must feel like the days of Joe Montana and Jerry Rice are long gone. Believe it or not, the 49ers were 5-0 in the franchise’s first five Super Bowl appearances. This lasted from the 1981-1994 seasons respectively. Now, the 49ers are forced to regroup and work hard to get back to the glory days next season.
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