Shell-shocked 49ers left wounded by loss
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – In the long run, 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa said, he’ll remember his journey to the Super Bowl fondly. “A lot of fun,” even, the NFL’s rookie defensive player of the year said Sunday night.
But in the aftermath of a 31-20 loss to the Chiefs, the season of growth faded to back of mind for Bosa and teammates who had relinquished a 10-point fourthquarter lead.
What were Bosa’s thoughts right then and there after letting their grasp on the Lombardi slip?
“Pissed,” Bosa said, hunched over the ice pack strapped around his right shoulder.
His teammates agreed.
“It is a terrible feeling, you know?” defensive tackle DeForest Buckner said.
The Chiefs and 49ers traded leads three times Sunday, neither club’s advantage too secure for the overwhelming majority of the game.
But until 6:13 remained in Super Bowl LIV, San Francisco hadn’t trailed in two quarters. And in the third quarter, the 49ers defense wreaked havoc on Kansas City.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes minimized damage on the first of two consecutive errant plays. With 6:22 to play in the third quarter, he dropped back on second-and-5. Bosa had broken through the Chiefs offensive line and knocked the ball loose. Mahomes dove onto and recovered it. Still, the Chiefs faced thirdand-12 at their own 39. When Mahomes heaved the ball downfield toward receiver Tyreek Hill, Niners linebacker Fred Warner instead jumped in front, boxing Hill out for the interception.
“It was a third-and-long, he tried to force a throw that wasn’t there and I was in a good position and made the catch,” Warner said of Mahomes’ first interception in 164 postseason pass attempts (he’d thrown 11 touchdowns in that stretch).
Still, Warner’s
“Not that good.”
The gloom continued. How did the 49ers, despite two interceptions and four sacks, let Mahomes dance out of the pocket so ruthlessly when it mattered most? How, on third-and-15, did the same defense that had just intercepted two passes intended for Hill let him burn them for a costly 44-yard catch? How, on second-and-7, did AllPro cornerback Richard Sherman let receiver Sammy Watkins juke the 31year-old, beating him on the inside release? Watkins’ 38-yard snag carried his team to the red zone, where running back Damien Williams would score the game-sealing touchdown three plays later.
“I just knew it was one-on-one from watching film,” Watkins said, nodding to San Francisco’s NFC championship game win over the Packers. “I just thank Davante Adams because I saw him kill him on the inside release.”
A typically eloquent Sherman was left with little to say. postgame feeling: