The San Francisco 49ers may be eliminated from the playoffs, but there are still some former Niners remaining among the final four teams who could make an impact for the rest of the postseason.
One ex-49er is not currently on a team, but special teams ace Taybor Pepper is still holding out hope that he could potentially join a team even with the NFL season nearly reaching its end.
Pepper took to social media to write the following: "It’s highly improbable, but not impossible that I could play in the Super Bowl in SF this year lol."
It’s highly improbable, but not impossible that I could play in the Super Bowl in SF this year lol
— Taybor Pepper (@TayborSnapping) January 18, 2026
The long-snapper was asked in the comments about how it would be possible for him to be part of the Super Bowl, and he responded by saying that he could potentially be an emergency snapper for a playoff team.
Long-snappers arguably have the least glamorous position of any player on a football roster, but Pepper knows that he could be just one injury away from having to fill in or serve as a backup.
He acknowledges the odds are low as he himself called it "highly improbable," but many would have argued that San Francisco going 12-5 with all of the injuries it sustained this season was highly improbable.
So, maybe this season is the right one for something unlikely like that to happen.
Pepper was with San Francisco from 2020 to 2024 after countless practice squad stints and tryouts with other teams. His NFL journey is fairly remarkable and it speaks to his determination that he tried for so long before settling with the Niners.
Pepper was unceremoniously cut after the 2024 season as the Niners brought on Brany Boyer as the new special teams coordinator and he brought in veteran Jon Weeks to be the long-snapper. It was a shame to see Pepper go after so many years in the red and gold, especially after an infamous kerfuffle between he and wide receiver Deebo Samuel after the wideout was trying to pump up kicker Jake Moody during a rough game.
It would be funny to see Pepper be a small part of the festivities in Santa Clara when the Super Bowl is held there in a few weeks. Maybe some team will bring him on as an insurance option. The Niners know how important it is to have an emergency quarterback, but no team wants to find out how badly it needed an emergency snapper.
Just don't expect the Rams to come calling after Pepper took a shot at them for piping in crowd noise during the NFC Championship game between the two sides in 2022.