Down and Out: Where I've Been (And Maybe You've Been Here, Too)

My wife tried to console me after the loss by saying they’ll be back to the Super Bowl soon. But then the pessimist in me came out and said. " do you know how hard it is to even get this far?" this was their shot. And nobody knows when they will do it again.

Soon. I hope.

it still hurts

It’s been rough but I’m coming around. I’ve boycotted NFL Network and ESPN until at least a week after that pointless game they are having this Sunday. One thing that has helped me through this loss was telling myself that I didn’t expect the Niners to even make it to the playoffs this year when the season started. I’m so proud of what this team has accomplished this year and I no longer get laughed at when I tell people around here that I’m a proud Niners fan and will be till the day I die.

Keep your chin up, Tre. I’m giving you a long distance man hug.

It’s hard to even look on the net at all this Giants/Pats junk without vomiting

That’s what made this season so exciting…and what makes the end of this season so painful.

If the Kubler-Ross model does anything to explain my experience the last few days, it breaks down like this:

Denial—I was here in between the Overtime muff and Weatherford’s punt sailing through the uprights
Anger—I was here for about 2 days after Weatherford’s punt sailed through the uprights. Seriously, the Niners went 3-and-out what, 5 times in the 4th quarter and overtime? The 3-and-out that involved 3 straight incompletions with 1.35 left on the 4th quarter clock was most brutal of all. They were running the ball with success, had all 3 timeouts, and they don’t run the ball or run a play-fake and pass or anything. Nope. Just three straight drops and three straight incompletions. Ugh.
Bargaining—This is the start of the up-tick in my sentiments. The 49ers still have Harbaugh, right? And they could get Peyton Manning to solve the QB problem? ZOMG! This is obviously a still-immature stage in my coming to terms with the loss. Because there’s no guarantee that a) Peyton is actually healthy or b) Peyton would choose the 49ers if he were, or c) that Peyton’s arrival in San Francisco would establish the kind of dynasty I really want to get started here.
Depression—This is where I’ve been at for most of the last week. Especially as we’re ramping up to Super Bowl kickoff time. Usually around this time of year I’m excited to see big-boy football. This year it just depresses me because the Niners were playing big-boy football and should be playing in this game. But alas.
Acceptance—This is the stage where you start making fan videos and posting on Ninersnation again. I’m not sure I’m all the way to this stage. I probably won’t be able to shake the anger at the NFC Championship game loss even when I’m watching the game on Sunday. But I sure have made a fan video of Aldon Smith’s 16 sacks…

It’s a sign of the level of emotional investment we put into the team this year. After so many years of wanting to believe, and waiting for a reason – always holding out hope, this year was it. The team finally managed to not only meet expectations, but exceed them.

We were relunctant though. We saw the wins, which were good. But we also saw struggles, which pained us. We held back, but hoped.

We saw more wins. Games that would test “us”(..it was now “us” and not simply “them”), which we won, and we started to believe but we had doubts. It looked too good…we’ve seen this before.

We had some serious injuries, and we fretted. Would…could…the next man up fill the void and keep the momentum? They did, and we did.

We secured a playoff spot. It was real. WE were going back to the post season! But could we get a first round bye? Are we really “for real”? We did. We were.

Then there was the Saints. One of the Juggernauts. Deemed almost unstoppable on any surface. Could we match their firepower? Could we shut them down? Could we WIN? YES!

And so there we were. One game away from THE GAME. We were all-in. OUR Niners were back! It seemed like maybe it was destiny. The NINERS HAD RETURNED!!!

And then it ended. Suddenly. Uncharacteristically. It was over. WE were done. WE fell short.

A build-up of many years, a hope of returned glory, a ‘promise’ not quite fulfilled. There will be next year, but right now it still hurts.

sitting there in the dark next to me—stewing.

I’ve been reading only Niner related content in terms of the NFL.

I look away, change the station, just plain all out avoid any media coverage related to the SuperBowl. I refuse to watch the SuperBowl because I taste the bitter gall of defeat, and feel the fire burning inside, when I think of missed opportunity. I will simply not watch it.

Then I think, If I feel this way I imagine our Niners feel it WAY more than we do. That being said, I would not want to be any team lining up against the Niners next year because I think they will DESTROY everyone that stands in between them and what they (and we) feel they rightfully deserve—the Lombardi Trophy.

Get yer fix for six! GO NINERS!!!

Definitely echo a lot of my sentiments. A lot of 49er fans I know were telling me after the loss to not worry about it, there will be next year.

Yeah, next year with no guarantee we’ll be a boneheaded punt returner away from a Super Bowl berth.

I’m still not watching ESPN.

I am not even sure I am watching the superbowl this year..Somehow, I wonder which would hurt more..losing in the NFC champoionship game, or losing in the Superbowl.

I’m still in shock. We were SO close!

I do want to say this though. Hoping the Giants win the SB. One, their fans (most of them) treated me pretty well after the loss. Much respect for them at Big Blue. Two, pretty boy Brady needs a faceplant. Giants are very capable of that, and hoping for it! Three, it will hurt a tiny bit less to have lost to the eventual SB champs.

Pre-Season expectations aside, this team quickly showed it could do some damage in the Playoffs. After the thrilling win versus the Saints and GB’s loss, it seemed like everything was aligned in the 49ers favor. Hosting the NFC Championship game against a team they’d previously beaten was the ideal setup to advance to the Superbowl, but then it all fell apart. If you play that game 10 times, I’d wager the Niners win 7 out of 10. They are the better team, but it came down to a few huge plays here and there (Kyle Williams’ fumbles, dropped INT’s, fumble blown dead, etc.) and the offense’s inability to capitalize when the D kept getting them them the ball back w/ time to score.

The worst part is that I believe the Niners would’ve beat New England and brought a 6th Lombardi back to SF. The team blew a prime opportunity, one that doesn’t come around very often no matter how consistently the team is in the Playoff race. Every year is different and you can’t bank on going 13-3, being +28 in turnovers, playing in a down division, and generally just catching a lot of positive breaks. To me, that’s what hurts the most—This was a SB winning team that lost to an inferior team and blew it’s opportunity. I’m sure Harbaugh knows this and it’s what will fuel his offseason drive to make the 2012 Niners even better.

Then we can really concentrate on looking ahead.

They all hurt about the same regardless how you lose. Won’t start to feel better till the SB is over.

As much as I hope that Kyle Williams can overcome this I’m afraid that this will be his legacy.

Best and worst that could happen actually happened back to back like not even the greatest novel writer could have written of. Hurt will linger.

Next year our offense will lead the way…And our defense will dispose of the remains-

I’m so apathetic towards sports right now I can’t even watch it on TV. This thread is serving as a great support group though. Stay strong NN, the future is bright!