Super Bowl losses aren't the only painful memories 49ers have about Chiefs

The 49ers can view the Chiefs as their new nemesis, but the pain extends far beyond the two Super Bowl losses.

The Kansas City Chiefs have hurt the San Francisco 49ers in a number of ways in recent years.

And it's not just on the Super Bowl front.

Sure, KC has handed the Niners their two most recent Super Bowl losses, the first at the tail end of the 2019 season and then again in February of 2024.

Those San Francisco defeats highlight the misery, yes. But there are plenty of other cases where head coach Andy Reid's squad has deflated the 49ers' hopes. Fans can quickly recall that Week 3 road matchup in which quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a season-ending ACL tear at Arrowhead Stadium that derailed what looked to be a promising 2018 campaign.

Then, there was the shellacking the Niners took by quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Co. midseason in 2023.

However, the pain extends much, much further than what happened on the field.

Chiefs have caused 49ers plenty of pain, especially in the NFL Draft

One could make the argument the Chiefs have been greatly aided by the Buffalo Bills in the NFL Draft, including some odd Buffalo decisions in the 2024 class.

In a roundabout way, though, San Francisco has also helped KC in the draft, too. Multiple times, as Josh Dubow of the Associated press reminded the Faithful:

Yes, much of the 49ers' misery at the hands of Kansas City has come via the draft, and it dates back to 2013 when the Niners opted to grab tight end Vance McDonald, who flamed out with the squad before being jettisoned to the Pittsburgh Steelers right before the start of the 2017 season.

Not long after the McDonald pick, the Chiefs grabbed future Hall of Fame tight end Travis Kelce, who has tormented San Francisco in both Super Bowls the two teams have played against each other.

Likewise, as Dubow pointed out, one of the picks KC got in the wake of the 49ers' trade-up to land a bust of an offensive lineman, Joshua Garnett, was used on perennial Pro Bowl defensive tackle Chris Jones, who has also wreaked havoc on the Niners in both of those Super Bowls.

Garnett, meanwhile, saw action in just 22 games over a three-year span before being waived in 2019.

And San Francisco fans need no reminder of passing on Mahomes in the 2017 draft, opting to grab defensive end Solomon Thomas instead. That might go down as one of the greater "what ifs?" in franchise history.

True, the Chiefs' successes over the 49ers stem largely from the latter's own draft whiffs and mistakes, and no team is immune from such gaffes.

As for the Niners, though, many of the recent whiffs seem to have gone to KC's benefit, and the end results have been awfully painful for San Francisco fans everywhere.

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