When the clock struck zero at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, the Kansas City Chiefs’ 25-22 overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers found them hoisting a third Lombardi Trophy in five seasons.
Two of those three Super Sunday triumphs have come at the expense of the Niners and their head coach Kyle Shanahan, who’s now been on the losing end of three Super Bowls, two as a head coach and one as the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons.
Kyle Shanahan Chokes Super Bowls Away Like Marvy Levy
In many ways Shanahan has now become this era’s Marv Levy, the former Buffalo Bills head coach who from 1990-93 led the Bills to four consecutive Super Bowls, only to lose all four. While Shanahan hasn’t been there as frequently, his multiple losses have been just as painful, leading by at least 10 points in every instance, only to come up short by night’s end.
His most notorious choke job came as an offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI. The Falcons lead the Patriots 28-3 in third quarter and kept passing the ball, instead of eating the clock. Atlanta averaged 5.8 yards per rush during the game, but they barely ran the ball. Before you know it, Shanahan became a footnote in one of Brady’s signature career moments, the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history.
Shanahan Earning Unwanted Reputation
With the way he’s losing Super Bowls, Shanahan is beginning to earn the reputation as a choke artist in the big moment.
What’s wild is Chiefs head coach Andy Reid held that distinction until he broke through with the 2019 Super Bowl 54 win over the Niners. It’s also something that the aforementioned Levy will never live down as he was never able to get that elusive Super Sunday win during his amazing run in western New York.
Why Is A Mastermind Like Kyle Shanahan Choking In Super Bowls?
There have been a ton of factors in all three losses for Shanahan, but the biggest has been his unwillingness to stick with the running game (where he’s made his name) while protecting double-digit leads. In each loss he inexplicably tried to win playing cute, and each time it came back to haunt him. Which is odd when you consider his dad, Mike Shanahan, a two-time Super Bowl winner with the Denver Broncos, ran Hall of Famer Terrell Davis at will in both wins.
For Levy, it was the fact that his Bills just weren’t physical enough to deal with the three NFC East opponents they faced in their four Super Bowl appearances losing to the Giants and Redskins once, and Cowboys twice.
In Wake Of Loss Dejected Shanahan Focuses On Players
As he took the podium in the Super Bowl media room following the gut-wrenching loss, Shanahan made sure to focus on how his players felt. The seven-year Niners head coach, who’s now 0-2 in Super Bowls as a head coach and 2-2 in NFC Championship Games, talked about all the hard work and sacrifices it takes to get to this point only to come up short.
“I hurt most for the players. Our guys — I hurt for them the most,” Shanahan said after the stunning Super Bowl 58 loss.
Unfortunately that’s become a recurring theme for Shanahan and the Niners, who’ve not hoisted a Lombardi Trophy since 1994, losing its last three Super Bowl appearances (2012, 2019 and 2024).
If there is a silver lining in the midst of heartache, it’s that this team has a great chance to be in the same position next season. In fact, DraftKings Sportsbook list them as the favorites at (+550).
But for now that’s a moot point, as in most Niners players’ eyes losing Sunday means it was a lost season. The loss also kept Shanahan from joining his aforementioned father Mike in becoming the only father-son duo to ever lead teams to a Super Bowl victory. The father and son combo are both known for their coaching prowess, but Kyle’s legacy of losing in the big game is much different than his dad’s.