Should 49ers be OK with Losing to Patrick Mahomes in the Super Bowl?

It’s Shanahan’s fault he’s had to face Mahomes twice in the Super Bowl, because he could be Mahomes’ coach if he had any vision.

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It’s Shanahan’s fault he’s had to face Mahomes twice in the Super Bowl, because he could be Mahomes’ coach if he had any visions.

After Kyle Shanahan blew his third Super Bowl appearance after leading by double digits, he quickly pointed out to the press that he only has lost to two of the greatest quarterbacks of all time — Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes.

Is that a valid excuse for Shanahan losing? Should we give him a break because he lost to two of the best ever?

Absolutely not. First, Shanahan had a chance to get both of them. He could have drafted Patrick Mahomes in 2017 but didn’t scout him, then could have signed Tom Brady in 2020 but didn’t want him. He didn’t think they were good enough.

It’s Shanahan’s fault he’s had to face Mahomes twice in the Super Bowl, because he could be Mahomes’ coach if he had any vision.

And despite losing to two of the G.O.A.T.S., Shanahan had big leads in all three of those games. The rest of the league is 4-49 in Super Bowls when trailing by at least 10 points at any time in the game, while teams going against Shanahan are 3-0 in that scenario. Which means he’s doing something very wrong in the second half of the biggest games of his career.

Frankly, he lost this past Super Bowl in the third quarter when he called eight passes in nine plays while leading. That let the Chiefs right back in the game despite the 49ers intercepting Mahomes on the first possession of the third quarter.

Mahomes had nothing to do with Shanahan calling those plays. That was Shanahan’s fault.