With a 10-3 advantage at the start of the second half, Shanahan failed to run the ball frequently enough to exert pressure on the Kansas City defense. Then, with them stuck in the red zone during overtime, he was unable to think of a play that would result in a touchdown. If they had, that would have put pressure on Patrick Mahomes to react appropriately. Furthermore, rather than finishing the game, the score that proved to be the winning one would have only prolonged it.

It also implies that the 1995 Lombardi Trophy victory by the San Francisco 49ers is their only Super Bowl victory from the previous century. They have dropped three title games since then. They have now dropped two to the Kansas City Chiefs under Kyle Shanahan, with one coming from the Baltimore Ravens. They have given up the lead to their opponents in both games due to blown leads.

As a result of everything, 49ers supporters on X, formerly known as Twitter, naturally demanded that the head coach be dismissed. A selection of some of the remarks is provided here.