Kyle Shanahan on the 49ers: ‘We had so many guys who were playing for stuff above themselves’

Shanahan and John Lynch believe now is the time to grieve, and believe it’s necessary.

Football is a game filled with emotion. Players and coaches pour so much into it that it’s a surprise we don’t see more outbursts during postgame interviews.

When you put a microphone in somebody’s face after 60 minutes, they’re bound to erupt. The fact that players remain measured is a testament to their professionalism.

There’s nothing that tops losing the Super Bowl. Kyle Shanahan has been on the wrong end twice as a head coach. If you have an ounce of compassion, you feel for him and the San Francisco 49ers. This past Sunday was a gut-wrenching loss. The Niners were the better team but failed to execute in high-leverage situations.

General manger John Lynch said the hardest part was watching the players, coaches, and families hurt:

“People forget the sacrifice that families make in an effort to go compete at the highest level. And it’s exactly what we had an opportunity to do. That’s exactly the stage that we put ourselves on. I couldn’t be more proud of our organization, of our players, of our coaches, of our staff, because we put out an outstanding effort. And ultimately we’re going to have to live with for a lifetime the reality that we didn’t get it done this time. But I say this time because that’s this time.

It hurts. And right now everyone’s grieving. It’s not just going be okay right away, but you understand that the only thing you can do is use this fuel to propel us forward. And that’s where our mindsets are at or at least where they will arrive at some point. Right now, there’s a lot of people who are hurt because we poured it out there and it wasn’t quite enough.”

For the next half year, we’ll play the hindsight game and ask what the team could have done differently on both sides. One thing the team must do before that is step away. Get away from the game they love.

Shanahan mentioned a couple of times earlier in the week why it’s important to do so and the challenges of getting back to this point next year:

“You’ve always got to do it again. Start it over. But we had a real good team. I felt similar almost every year. ‘19 was a pretty special year, just how we played throughout that whole year. Similar in the way that I thought one of the hardest things after the game was just watching how much everyone hurt for each other. Guys are hurt for me. I hurt for them. You see your families, you see how much they hurt for you and stuff. I think that’s what was real special about this group.

Like, we had so many guys who were playing for stuff above themselves. Not to mention how talented our guys were. So I think that’s what I’m going to miss the most about it. I think that’s what our guys enjoyed the most about this year. I think they would echo that same thing. That’s not something you can just make up, but that was pretty special. I think you’ve heard our guys talk about it a little bit. But, I also know a lot of those special guys are going to be here next year.

You don’t just pick up right where you left off, you’ve got to go through some stuff. You’ve got to go through an offseason together. We’ve got to grieve this a little bit and then come back stronger from it. But can’t wait until we get to, what I told all the guys, I know I’m going to see everyone at volunteer phase one just pumped up, ready to go. So we’ll see them then.”

The next time the team comes together, it’ll be for a new defensive coordinator. Until then, Shanahan wants his team to embrace the pain they’re feeling.