The 49ers in 2019 emerged from the clutches of NFL mediocrity to punch their ticket to Super Bowl LIV in Miami.
San Francisco’s fall from grace was rapid. They went to their third consecutive NFC championship game in the 2013 season, then went 8-8 and fired head coach Jim Harbaugh. The following year they went 5-11 and fired head coach Jim Tomsula. The next year they went 2-14 and fired head coach Chip Kelly.
2017 brought a breath of fresh air when CEO Jed York hired head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch and gave them six-year contracts. The 49ers went 6-10 in Shanahan’s first season thanks to a 5-0 finish from new starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. Garoppolo’s torn ACL in the third week of 2018 was the catalyst for a 4-12 campaign.
Then it all turned around in 2019 with Garoppolo healthy and a slew of moves from the front office to put the finishing touches on an almost completely overhauled roster.
The players and coaches weren’t the only ones rewarded with a trip to Super Bowl LIV. York wanted to ensure the entire organization had the opportunity to watch the team play for its sixth Lombardi Trophy.
“We’re taking a lot of people,” York told ESPN’s Nick Wagoner and assembled media Friday in a makeshift press conference. “We wanted to make sure our entire staff had the opportunity to go. From everybody from Kyle and John all the way down to interns, everybody has played a part in this. We want to make sure that they’re there to help and also celebrate the moment but hopefully help us get over the hump.”
Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group reported as many as 1,500 people are being flown to Miami by the organization, including staff members, interns and their families.
This is a pretty far cry from where York found himself after the 2014 season when he sat in a press conference justifying the firing of the head coach after a remarkable four-year stretch. He became even more maligned by the fan base when he was very publicly visible in the hirings of Tomsula and Kelly.
The team’s CEO took a more hands-off approach when Lynch and Shanahan arrived, and the plan resulted in a rapid turnaround. York was in a very tough spot three years ago, and now his work behind the scenes has put the 49ers in a spot to take the whole organization to the Super Bowl.
The road to get there was tough, but a trip to South Beach will surely be worth it.