The 2024 season is officially a wash for the San Francisco 49ers. They were eliminated from playoff contention before their Week 16 match-up against the Miami Dolphins even kicked off and the team played like it knew it was eliminated.
The offense scored 17 points while allowing the Dolphins to score 29 points and racking up 11 penalties that cost them 90 yards (compared to the Dolphins' six penalties for 65 yards). It was a gross game for the Niners and Kyle Shanahan didn't hold back when addressing his team following the defeat.
"No matter what's going on when you have penalties like that, you don't deserve to win."
Kyle Shanahan blasts 49ers for racking up too many penalties in Week 16 loss
Shanahan isn't wrong with what he said and it's clear that this team is ready for the offseason to get here. Fortunately for them, there are just two games remaining and neither of them matter now for the Niners, who will be missing the postseason for the first time since the 2020 season.
The last time the 49ers missed out on the playoffs, injuries were a massive reason why. This time around, it's been a combination of injuries and really inconsistent play from the guys the team needs to step up the most. Oddly enough, the last time the 49ers put together a bad season was coming off a Super Bowl appearance so to solve these "hangover" seasons, the Niners just need to go to the Super Bowl and not lose. Easy enough, right?
Back to this game, it was a sloppy outing for a 49ers team that had Super Bowl aspirations coming into the season. Once the playoffs officially were off the table, however, there wasn't much to play for in this game and it showed with this team.
Fans will be rooting for the team to get the best possible draft pick moving forward so that the Niners can add an impact player to help them return to the playoffs next year.