San Francisco 49ers Are Suffering NFL's Super Bowl Curse in Nightmare Season

Many NFL teams have struggled in the season after losing the Super Bowl, but for the San Francisco 49ers, the losers' curse has turned into a nightmare.

Despite a 4-4 record, the 49ers are in last place in the NFC West. Teams have turned around .500 seasons to make the playoffs in the past, but a tough division and countless injuries make it seem like that won't happen.

Only three teams have won the Super Bowl the year after losing it, and the 2018 New England Patriots are the only team to do so since 1972. Making back-to-back Super Bowl appearances is a challenge for any team, but the 49ers were hopeful heading into 2020 given their talent and depth.

Instead, injuries have decimated San Francisco. Its Week 2 win over the New York Jets was particularly devastating, with Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas suffering torn ACLs that ended their seasons. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a high ankle sprain that he's been dealing with ever since.

Bill Kostroun/Associated Press

Injuries have particularly impacted the offense, which has struggled to find consistency without Deebo Samuel, Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman. After ranking second in scoring in 2019 with 29.9 points per game, the 49ers are a middling unit this year with 26.0 points per contest.

The offense was dealt two more blows Monday when it was reported Garoppolo and George Kittle will miss extended time. Each player has already missed two games this year, but losing both for more than a few weeks will make it even harder for the offense to pick up the pace.

That news also came at the worst possible time. San Francisco's next two games are against NFC contenders in the Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints. In fact, the 49ers have the third-hardest remaining schedule.

This year's expanded playoff format, which will allow three wild-card teams out of each conference instead of two, may still not be enough to help the 49ers sneak into the postseason. The 5-2 Arizona Cardinals and 5-3 Los Angeles Rams are in the hunt for wild-card spots despite being behind the 6-1 Seattle Seahawks in the division. The 5-3 Chicago Bears and 5-2 Tampa Bay Buccaneers also look like teams that could secure playoff spots without winning their divisions.

San Francisco will have to rely on backup quarterback Nick Mullens to make a postseason push. Though he played well off the bench Sunday against Seattle, throwing for 238 yards and two touchdowns in a loss, the Seahawks have by far the worst defense in the league, allowing 460.9 yards per game. Upcoming opponents will also have time to plan for Mullens, which will make things harder for him.

Given their list of injuries, upcoming schedule and unforgiving division, the 49ers are in the middle of an extremely unlucky season. Those factors make it unlikely they can sneak into the playoffs. Football Outsiders lists the 49ers with just a 29.9 percent chance of making the playoffs, a 12.4 percent drop from last week.

The good news for San Francisco is that this nightmare could set it up for success in 2021 and beyond if it means landing in a position to consider a new quarterback in the 2021 draft.

The front office could even part ways with Garoppolo this offseason, replacing him with a big name via free agency or the draft. According to Spotrac, the 29-year-old will count $26.9 million against the cap in 2021 and another $27.0 million in 2022. However, if the 49ers cut him, they would lose just $2.8 million in dead cap space next season, saving them $51.1 million over the next two years—which they could spend on other players.

Financially, it would make sense for the 49ers to cut their losses and begin looking for their future quarterback. There are currently only four quarterbacks who have bigger contracts, and Garoppolo has not done nearly enough to be considered one of the best five QBs in the league.

Drafting a quarterback could be a real possibility if the season falls apart. The 49ers would have the 15th pick if the season ended today, but that could change with a few losses over the next month. North Dakota State's Trey Lance could be an ideal replacement for Garoppolo in Kyle Shanahan's system given his arm talent and mobility.

Half the season is yet to be played, but things couldn't have gone much worse for the 49ers, who are well on their way to joining the 2007 Chicago Bears and 2016 Carolina Panthers as the most recent teams to get the worst of the Super Bowl losers' curse.

However, this year's 49ers likely won't go down as the worst Super Bowl loser ever. The 2003 Oakland Raiders hold that title after going just 4-12, and several teams have been under .500. The 49ers still have winnable games against the Washington Football Team and Dallas Cowboys.

The 49ers likely won't be this bad in 2021 given how badly injuries hurt them this season. Still, this is a season to forget for a team that came so close to hoisting the Lombardi Trophy nine months ago.