San Francisco 49ers Head Coach Kyle Shanahan has been one of the NFL’s most successful coaches and offensive playcallers in recent years, but has not been able to deliver a Super Bowl victory to San Francisco.
Shanahan’s inability to win the big one has led to a widespread reputation that Shanahan lacks some sort of clutch factor.
On an episode of The Herd with Colin Cowherd, football expert and writer of the Monday Morning Quarterback Albert Breer joined host Jason McIntyre to talk several stories in the NFL. At the end of Breer’s interview, McIntyre brought up the 49ers.
He mentioned that the 49ers are 0-43 when trailing by 8 or more points in the 4th quarter during the regular season under Kyle Shanahan then asked Breer why the 49ers have so much trouble mounting 4th quarter comebacks in the Shanahan era.
Breer’s response was insightful for 49er faithful – because it touched directly on Shannahan’s offensive philosophy.
“So much of the strength of that offense is based on the marriage of the run game and the pass game,” Breer said on the show. “So much is making 8 different things all look the same and it’s incredibly hard to defend because you have to defend every inch of grass out there because of the way the offense sets up structurally…what happens when you’re in third and long?”
Essentially what Breer said is that the 49ers offense works well early in games and when the 49ers are winning because the run plays and pass plays in the Shanahan offense are difficult to decode when the 49ers are clearly in a situation where they can either pass or run.
But he goes on to explain that in situations like a third down with lots of yards left to gain to convert the first down, or late game situations or come-from-behind situations, opposing teams know to expect the pass – and therefore the main advantage of the Shanahan offense is taken away because the defense can ignore the deception and expect the run.
Shanahan Also Struggles With A Lead in Big Games
Something that Breer didn’t touch on however is that part of Shanahan’s reputation for lacking a clutch gene has to also do with play calling when his team is winning – and this has especially come into focus during his Super Bowl losses.
Of course, Shanahan was the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons during their famous collapse against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI, blowing a 28-3 lead.
Shanahan’s 49ers also led the Kansas City Chiefs 20-10 heading into the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LIV in 2020 and lead the same Chiefs 3 different times in the fourth quarter or overtime of Super Bowl LVIII in 2024.
Perhaps if Breer joins the show again, McIntyre will have to ask him about his insights on the 49ers offense with playoff leads.
Can the 49ers bounce back in 2025?
The 49ers are coming off their worst season since 2020, as they stumbled to a 6-11 record in 2024.
This offseason, they doubled down on their belief in quarterback Brock Purdy, signing him to a 5-year, $265 million extension, and retooled the talent around him.
49er fans hope that with a seemingly easy schedule and a still very talented roster, they will be headed back to the playoffs in 2025.
And that when they get there, Purdy or Shanahan will solve the offense’s historic struggles in clear passing situations and lead the 49ers to their first Super Bowl win since 1995.
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