NFL
The incredible streak the 49ers extended after being eliminated from the playoffs: It’s been 22 seasons and counting!
The Niners missed out on the postseason in the same year as they reached the Super Bowl, a familiar story for the Californian franchise.
The San Francisco 49ers have endured a hugely disappointing 2024 NFL season, being eliminated from contention for the playoffs with three games to spare having reached Super Bowl LVIII earlier the very same year. Injuries to the likes of Christian McCaffrey, Brandon Aiyuk and Nick Bosa haven’t helped matters, with the Niners heading into the week 17 game against the much-fancied Detroit Lions bottom of the NFC West.
The last two seasons have continued the Niners’ bizarre ‘feast or famine’ trend, which has now been going on for the best part of a generation.
For 22 years, things have either gone really well or really badly for the Californians, with no middle ground. San Francisco have reached the NFC Championship Game…or missed the postseason completely since 2003.
San Francisco 49ers: boom or bust for 22 seasons
Here’s a rundown of those 22 seasons:
2003: Missed postseason
2004: Missed postseason
2005: Missed postseason
2006: Missed postseason
2007: Missed postseason
2008: Missed postseason
2009: Missed postseason
2010: Missed postseason
2011: Lost NFC Championship Game (to New York Giants)
2012: Won NFC Championship Game (against Atlanta Falcons), lost Super Bowl (to Baltimore Ravens)
2013: Lost NFC Championship Game (to Seattle Seahawks)
2014: Missed postseason
2015: Missed postseason
2016: Missed postseason
2017: Missed postseason
2018: Missed postseason
2019: Won NFC Championship Game (against Green Bay Packers), lost Super Bowl (to Kansas City Chiefs)
2020: Missed postseason
2021: Lost NFC Championship Game (to Los Angeles Rams)
2022: Lost NFC Championship Game (to Philadelphia Eagles)
2023: Won NFC Championship Game (against Detroit Lions), lost Super Bowl (to Kansas City Chiefs)
2024: Missed postseason
All in all, the last 22 seasons have yielded three NFC Championship titles from seven NFC Championship Game appearances, three Super Bowl appearances but no Super Bowls, and 15 failures to even reach the postseason.
What will the 2025 season hold for the 49ers? Recent history suggests they are due a run of missing out on the playoffs, which everybody connected with the franchise will be desperately hoping doesn’t occur.
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