SANTA CLARA — Coach Kyle Shanahan conceded Wednesday there’s a certain amount of post traumatic stress that comes with reviewing the game film of last Feb. 11 in Las Vegas, but it was a necessary step for the 49ers to go back in time and review how and why they lost 25-22 in overtime in Super Bowl LVIII.
With that behind them, the 49ers (3-3) began preparations to host the two-time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs (5-0) Sunday at Levi’s Stadium.
“It’s definitely a little emotional, but at this point it’s just a game so we’re just looking at the tape, trying to learn from it,” defensive end Nick Bosa said. “A lot of similarities from last year. A few new guys, but a really good defense and the offense obviously has No. 15 (Patrick Mahomes) back there, so always dangerous.”
Linebacker Fred Warner, with a deadpan lilt to his voice, said of the film session, “It’s been fun to go back and relive that, see where we went wrong and try to fix it this time around.”
And while the 49ers are viewing the loss critically in its totality, they’ll never forget the fleeting moment when they were one outstanding defensive play away from leaving Allegiant Field with their first Super Bowl championship since the 1994 season.
Here’s a recap:
The 49ers, after stalling at the 9-yard line, settled for a 27-yard field goal by Jake Moody to take a 22-19 lead.
Isaiah Pacheco was stuffed for no gain on third-and-1 at the Kansas City 34 by Javon Hargrave and Oren Burks, bringing up fourth-and-1 with 6:05 to play. A stop by the 49ers would have meant an ending unlike any in Super Bowl history.
Mahomes lined up in the shotgun, with tight end Travis Kelce motioning right to left. The ball was snapped, and Mahomes play-faked to Pacheco, who was running in the same direction, while Kelce reversed his pivot and went left to right.
As Bosa crashed from the outside, Mahomes ran around him on a zone read and gained eight yards and a first down — the key play in a game-winning touchdown drive that ended in a 3-yard pass to Mecole Hardman. Mahomes was tackled by Warner, whose eyes may have been with Kelce on the play, and safety Logan Ryan.
“You want to be great in those critical situations to ultimately win the game, but there are little plays throughout the entire game you could have said, `Aw, that was the one. That could have won it,’ ” Warner said. “You’ve got to look at all of ’em.”
Bosa was a little more expansive.
“Yeah, that was tough because we have calls that can negate that,” Bosa said. “They ran the zone read a few times and we didn’t find an answer to it. I definitely thought he was going to keep it, but I’ve got to do my job, especially in a big moment like that. But we definitely have a plan for the zone read this time. Hindsight is 20-20.”
Shanahan said defending fourth-and-1 is “50-50” and that may be generous considering who the Chiefs had at quarterback.
“It’s one of the tougher spots in football,” Shanahan said. “You want to start out with sneaks. You’ve got to defend the edges, you’ve got to defend the dive, every rollout pick play . . . you can’t defend every play. They got us in a good situation and they ran their quarterback and we had one guy on him, had a chance to stop it, but it’s not an easy stop.”
Shanahan wasn’t willing to pin the loss on a single play, even one that could have brought the 49ers their sixth Lombardi Trophy.
“There are other plays that are worse, but that’s your opportunity,” Shanahan said. “You get a stop for one yard and it’s over and you know you’re Super Bowl champs. It’s hard when it comes to that.”
Pearsall update
Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, in a friendly and informal chat with reporters in the locker room, said he’s feeling ready to roll and is not sure what the 49ers’ activation plans are for him.
After practicing Monday for the first time since surviving an Aug. 31 gunshot wound through his chest, Pearsall looked smooth and joyful in Wednesday’s warmups that included work as a wide receiver and punt returner.
The 49ers can activate him off the reserve/non-football-injury list ahead of Sunday’s game, and his three-week evaluation window closes Nov. 4, after the bye.
Shanahan said everyone was excited to see Pearsall practice Monday and then break down the team huddle, when he was “out of breath” having to talk right after a two-minute drill.
Walking wounded
Running back Jordan Mason (shoulder) and wide receiver Deebo Samuel (wrist) were limited and wearing blue non-contact jerseys at practice.
Wide receiver Jauan Jennings came out of the Seattle game with a hip injury and didn’t practice, nor did place kickers Jake Moody (ankle) and Matthew Wright (shoulder, back). The 49ers have yet to place Moody on injured reserve, perhaps hoping he can make it back within four weeks of the injury.
Defensive tackle Maliek Collins did not practice with a knee injury while veteran defensive end Leonard Floyd got a veteran’s day off. Safety Malik Mustapha (ankle) and defensive tackle Jordan Elliott (knee) were limited.
Kicking conundrum
The 49ers signed former Green Bay kicker Anders Carlson to the practice squad as insurance in case Wright can’t go against the Chiefs. Wright, like Moody, was injured making a tackle on a kickoff return — plays that wouldn’t be necessary with a touchback.
Only one of Wright’s kickoffs against Seattle was a touchback. Laviska Shenault ran one back 97 yards for Seattle to spark a comeback from a 23-3 deficit to 23-17. Carlson had just a 43 percent touchack percentage last season with Green Bay.
Shanahan, however, is not inclined to bring a board a heavy-footed kicker to simply get touchbacks.
“That could always be a possibility, but that does take a toll on the roster big time,” Shanahan said. “If you ever had one injury at the wrong spot, that would be a big regret. But that is an interesting decision, but probably something we won’t do.”
Chiefs’ red zone woes
Stop of you’ve heard this one before. One of the most creative offensive minds in football, who also happens to have a mobile quarterback who can strike with either spontaneity or efficiency, can’t seem to find the end zone from the red zone.
After going 3-for-5 scoring touchdowns from the 20 or closer against Seattle, the 49ers improved their touchdown percentage to 44.4 percent (12-for-27) and rank 25th in the NFL after being No. 1 last year at 68 percent.
Kansas City, meanwhile, is ranked 29th at 38.9 percent (7-for-18), and Mahomes is saying some of the the same things Brock Purdy has espoused for weeks as the 49ers look to avoid point-blank field goals and score more touchdowns.
Before the bye, the Chiefs offense gained 594 yards, but was just 2-for-7 in the red zone. Mahomes lamented a missed opportunity in Week 3 against Atlanta when he didn’t make a back-shoulder attempt and Kansas City wound up not scoring.
“You’ve got to pick and choose when to take those chances,” Mahomes told reporters Wednesday. “Obviously with our defense you don’t want to necessarily put the ball in harm’s way when you’re in the red zone. But when you get the opportunity to and you can throw a ball where it might be him or nobody and the guy can make catch, that’s something I’ll work on as the season goes along.”
While Purdy has found tight end George Kittle for touchdowns of 7, 12, 4, 10 and 9 yards, Mahomes’ top target, Travis Kelce, has yet to score a touchdown.
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