After a 4-12 record in 2018, the San Francisco 49ers went on to reach the Super Bowl in 2019 after a 13-3 record.
They could not make that final hurdle, losing 31-20 in Super Bowl 54 to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.
The question now looms as to how San Francisco progress from here. They have not lost too many of their big performers from the 2019 season but will the 49ers be the next victims of the ‘Super Bowl Hangover’.
This has been a curse for many years for losing teams in the Super Bowl.
We saw it most recently in the 2019 season. The Los Angeles Rams reached Super Bowl 53 after an impressive season in 2018 but lost 13-3 to the New England Patriots in Atlanta. They then went on to miss out on the play offs altogether, after finishing 9-7.
The Carolina Panthers went 15-1 in the 2015 season but ultimately lost Super Bowl 50 in San Francisco to the Denver Broncos in Peyton Manning’s swansong. The Panthers went on to go 6-10 in 2016 and 2015 MVP Cam Newton has never recovered from that loss.
The Atlanta Falcons and Denver Broncos both went 5-11 in the season after their losses in Super Bowl 33 and Super Bowl 24 respectively.
Will this happen to the 49ers?
The one cause for concern is the fact that they were 20-10 up in the fourth quarter with six and a half minutes left.
Will the 49ers swoon in 2020?
Can the 49ers get over this factor? Will teams use that as encouragement in games to help them in games in 2020?
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has been hugely criticised for how he performed in the Super Bowl, particularly for overthrowing the pass attempt to Emanuel Sanders.
Will that affect Jimmy G just as the Super Bowl 53 loss seems to have affected Jared Goff, who was also heavily criticised for his Super Bowl 53 performance.
Kyle Shanahan has also been criticised for his play calling, just as he was in the Falcons’ heartbreaking Super Bowl 51 loss to the New England Patriots.
Will Shanahan be able to overcome a second heartbreaking Super Bowl loss.
Overall, i feel that the San Francisco 49ers are not going to be affected by the ‘Super Bowl Hangover’.
I do not feel that they will make it all the way to Super Bowl 55 in Tampa Bay but i still back them to make the play offs and go at least to the divisional round.
Whilst this is also the same opinion that i had a year ago with the Rams, i feel that San Francisco have gone about their business in a much better way.
The 49ers have lost offensive Tackle Joe Staley to retirement and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, who was traded to the Indianapolis Colts.
The 49ers have also lost wide receiver Emanuel Sanders to the New Orleans Saints via free agency.
The 49ers’ first three draft picks were a defensive tackle, wide receiver and then an offensive tackle.
This shows the intent of the 49ers to replace what they lost. This is not something that was done quite as well as the Rams in the 2019 off season.
The 49ers chose defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw, wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and offensive tackle Colton McKivitz.
The 49ers also have the best tight end in the game in George Kittle.
The 49ers may have not won it all in Super Bowl 54 but with the way head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch have gone about the off season and the draft, the 49ers are in a good place to be able to compete for the next few years.
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