The San Francisco 49ers have enjoyed incredible success under head coach Kyle Shanahan. He’s led the team to the playoffs five times since taking over and has made it to the NFC Championship game four times, winning twice before losing in the Super Bowl.
He has a 9-5 record overall in the playoffs, and we recently ranked San Francisco's five best playoff victories under Shanahan.
Now it’s time to rank the losses.
Playoff losses always hurt, but some sting more than others, so let’s rank all five of those losses from least to most heartbreaking.
No. 5: 2026 divisional round at Seahawks
It is never fun to lose to your arch rival as the 49ers did when they got smoked by the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC divisional round 41-6. Yet, even diehard Niners fans went into that game knowing it was going to be hard to win.
It was a borderline miracle that San Francisco beat the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card game the week prior, so it basically felt like the Niners were playing with house money, considering how banged up they were and how well-rested Seattle was after getting a bye.
It certainly still stung, but the loss did not come as a huge shock.Â
No. 4: 2023 NFC Championship at Eagles
This game will always be remembered as the one where the Niners didn’t have a quarterback to throw the ball for a good chunk of it. Brock Purdy went down with an elbow injury and literally couldn’t throw, and backup Josh Johnson got concussed and had to leave the game.
It was sickening to watch the Philadelphia Eagles dominate that game knowing there was no way possible for the 49ers to come back. What makes it hurt even more is knowing the two times the Niners have gone back into that building, they’ve come out victorious.
So if Purdy hadn’t gotten hurt, there’s a decent chance they would have won that game and advanced to the Super Bowl.
No. 3: 2022 NFC Championship at Rams
This one stings for a few reasons.
The 49ers had a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, so it counts as a Shanahan choke job. Everyone remembers safety Jaquiski Tartt failing to intercept a ball that hit him right in the numbers. There were still 10 minutes left in the game, and the Niners were only up by three points, so to say Tartt cost them the game would be overstating it. But maybe if he catches that ball, and the Niners took five minutes to score a touchdown and go up by 10 points, they win that game.
It hurts even more knowing San Francisco would've faced the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl, had they won the game, which was the 49ers' only realistic shot to avoid the Kansas City Chiefs, who've had their number for years now.
The Niners beat the Bengals in the regular season so that may have been their best chance.
No. 2: 2019 Super Bowl vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Speaking of blown 10-point leads, who could forget this one?
The 49ers had a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter as well before a few quick touchdowns from quarterback Patrick Mahomes gave the Chiefs the lead, and they did not give it back.
The Niners had a great defense that year, but it wasn’t strong enough to stop that dreaded Mahomes magic.
No. 1: 2023 Super Bowl vs. Kansas City Chiefs
As if the first Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs wasn’t heartbreaking enough, the next one was even worse.
The Niners got as close as a team could get to winning a Super Bowl without winning one. In fact, they would’ve won, had the Super Bowl been contested anytime prior to the 2022 season when it was sudden death and whichever team scored first won.
The Niners took the lead on a field goal in the closing minutes of regulation, but the Chiefs tied it up. Then, San Francisco got a field goal in overtime, but the Chiefs scored a touchdown to beat the 49ers again.
That was San Francisco’s best chance to win it all under Shanahan. The Chiefs defense simply thwarted him and his play calls too much in the second half, and he was unable to adjust.
The 49ers still could win a Super Bowl under Shanahan, but that 2023 season was when his team was at its strongest overall on both sides of the ball, and the Niners just couldn’t get the job done.
That’s a lot of heartbreak this decade, but that’s what being a sports fan is all about. Only one team’s playoff run doesn’t end in disappointment, so both Shanahan and Niners fans have become well-versed in heartbreak over the last six-plus years.
Add us as a preferred source on Google