The 2021 season got off to an abysmal start for the 49ers. They lost four in a row after winning their first two, and capped the first half of the year with a 31-17 loss at home to Colt McCoy and the Cardinals. After a dreadful first nine weeks, the 49ers flipped their season on its head and won seven of their final nine regular season contests before chalking up a pair of postseason wins to punch their ticket to the NFC championship game.
A host of factors played a role in the 49ers’ sudden turnaround. They got healthier, some balls bounced their way, and overall they started executing at a higher level than they had in the first half of the year.
There were some moments and plays over the course of their bounce back to relevance that stand out above the others though. We went back through each 49ers game since that loss to the Cardinals and picked out 10 plays that encapsulate San Francisco’s second-half turnaround and jaunt to the NFC championship game.