San Francisco 49ers: Ranking the 5 Most Infamous Plays in Franchise History
By Peter Panacy
No. 4: 49ers Come Oh-So Close to Winning Super Bowl XLVII
Some might feel this infamous play should go higher on this list.
San Francisco 49ers
Perhaps. After all, the 49ers had never lost a Super Bowl before appearing in Super Bowl XLVII at the tail end of the 2012 season. That’s quite a feat, considering the five Super Bowl victories previously.
And yet the Niners did themselves no favors, falling behind 28-6 in the opening seconds of the third quarter.
Give San Francisco credit though. Quarterback Colin Kaepernick and Co. dug themselves out of the hole in the second half, eventually finding themselves on the Baltimore Ravens’ 5-yard line with 1:50 left to play and trailing 34-29.
On a do-or-die fourth-down play, Kaepernick tried a fade-route pass to wide receiver Michael Crabtree. It sailed over his head.
Sure, some may argue Crabtree was held. Or maybe the Niners should have given the ball to running back Frank Gore instead of three-straight pass attempts to Crabtree.
Nevertheless, San Francisco endured its first Super Bowl loss in franchise history.
But in reality, the 49ers lost that game in the first half by putting themselves in such a precarious situation, which keeps this play a bit lower on the list.