Former NFL OC Breaks Down Why the 49ers Lost Super Bowl LVIII

The 49ers still don’t seem to know exactly why they lost Super Bowl LVIII.

They were the favorites. Their quarterback was healthy. They had the lead late in the fourth quarter and in overtime. And they still lost.

To find out why, I asked former Raiders offensive coordinator and play caller Tom Walsh, who won both Super Bowls he was in.

ME: Which team was better in the Super Bowl, the 49ers or the Chiefs?

WALSH: “I hate to say it, but it’s not which team was better, it’s which coach was better? Not to be cruel to Kyle Shanahan, but the bottom line is Andy Reid was the better coach that day. Whether it’s Patrick Mahomes or Brock Purdy or Travis Kelce or George Kittle, there were great players on both teams. You have to have a great coach that day to win the game, and Andy Reid was better. He found a way to win the game.”

ME: So you’re saying on that day, the gap between Reid and Shanahan was larger than the gap between Mahomes and Purdy?

WALSH: “Correct. I go back to the third quarter. The 49ers had a chance after Mahomes’ interception (to put the game away). The destiny of the rest of that ballgame rested in the hands of the Niners offense and the play caller, because they had the ball back. They got a turnover. You have to capitalize. Throwing 10 passes and completing only 4 of them while running just 4 times, I’m sorry but from a coaching perspective, when you’re ahead and you’re not burning clock and you’re not exerting your force and momentum on the opponent, there’s the ball game right there.”