The San Francisco 49ers are no strangers to success. Their glory days in the 1980s and early 90s saw the team bring home five Super Bowl wins back to the golden coast, most notably under iconic head coach Bill Walsh.
However, with the team not lifting the Lombardi trophy now for over 30 years, the question still lingers every year, will the niners finally get over the line and make their return to Superbowl glory?
Head coach Kyle Shanahan has been in charge for 7 years in San Francisco after leaving the Atlanta Falcons in 2017. In this period, the niners have suffered two heartbreaking Superbowl defeats, both of which to the Kansas City Chiefs under superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
This year Shanahan will be hoping to go one step further, with the offense led by quarterback Brock Purdy.
Labelled as ‘Mr Irrelevant’, being the final pick in the 2022 draft, it’s fair to say that Purdy wasn’t expected to be the next Joe Montana by fans. However, after a few injuries to other quarterbacks, Purdy found himself as the starting quarterback entering last season, and since then, he’s been anything but irrelevant.
Purdy led an outstanding 49ers offense, throwing for 4280 yards and 31 touchdowns in 2023. In addition, he had the support of Christian McCaffrey at running back, who totalled up 1459 rushing yards, the most in the NFL. On top of the offensive flair of the niners, they hold some crucial defensive weapons, with the all-pro duo of Nick Bosa and Fred Warner standing out in a solid defensive line.
So, the question remains, can the 49ers life the Lombardi trophy in New Orleans next February?
Well, although they currently top the NFC West, it hasn’t been the most encouraging start for niners fans in 2024. It has been reported that star running back Christian McCaffrey will miss multiple weeks with Achilles Tendonitis, a huge miss on offense.
And the absence of McCaffrey has seemed to take a toll on some of the niners’ performances, with them suffering disappointing defeats to the Vikings, Rams, and Cardinals already this season, and being overshadowed by some other teams after the first few weeks.
Reigning champions Kansas City Chiefs are unbeaten going into week 7, where the 49ers will face off against them, with the Chiefs being one of the favourites to go all the way.
However, if the 49ers want a chance at even reaching this year’s Superbowl, it’s the Minnesota Vikings who seem to be the team to beat from the NFC at the moment, placing number one in the power rankings and being host to generational wide receiver, Justin Jefferson, who scored an incredible 97-yard touchdown in the team’s match-up in week 2.
The niners without a doubt will have to up their game before post-season if they want a chance at Superbowl glory, but they most definitely have the quality to do this.
Despite having some tough match-ups approaching, fans can rest easy with the roster they have at hand, which already has so much experience in play-off football. If the 49ers can maintain their lead in the NFC West, they will be a force to be reckoned with in the play-offs, and there is no reason why this year can’t be the year that Superbowl glory makes its long-awaited return back to San Francisco.
