San Francisco 49ers land in Miami for Super Bowl 54 hoping to join an exclusive club
The San Francisco 49ers’ cross-country trip for Super Bowl 54 ended at Miami International Airport just after sunset on Sunday to the sounds of “California Love” blaring on a speaker outside the plane.
They hope the return trip to the Bay Area in a week’s time comes with as much excitement and some hardware to go with it.
As Miami hosts its record-setting 11th Super Bowl on Feb. 2, the 49ers could join an exclusive club of their own. A win over the Kansas City Chiefs would be San Francisco’s sixth Super Bowl victory, tying them with the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers for most in NFL history.
San Francisco hasn’t waited as long as the Chiefs for a moment like Sunday. The 49ers were in the Super Bowl seven years ago. Kansas City hasn’t played for a championship since Super Bowl 4.
But one has to go back 25 years, to Super Bowl 29, to find the last time the 49ers hoisted the Lombardi Trophy.
That title, and two of their five overall, fittingly came in Miami. San Francisco also won Super Bowl 23.
Hard Rock Stadium was called Joe Robbie Stadium back then and has had seven name changes since. Star rookie defensive end Nick Bosa, a St. Thomas Aquinas alumnus, wasn’t born the last time San Francisco won a Super Bowl.
But they’re back now, and their emotions were evident coming off the plane.
General manager John Lynch, a key cog in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers winning Super Bowl 37, pumped his fist in the air as he and 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan stepped off the plane.
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and cornerback Richard Sherman laughed on their way to the team bus.
San Francisco’s success this year has come thanks to an efficient offense and one of the league’s best defenses.
The 49ers held opponents to 281.8 yards per game, the second-lowest mark in the NFL during the regular season behind only the Patriots. They held five teams to 10 points or fewer, including the Minnesota Vikings in the divisional round of the playoffs.
On offense, San Francisco ranked second in rushing (144.1 yards per game) behind only the Baltimore Ravens.
They won 13 regular-season games for the 10th time in the franchise’s 75-year history. This time, it came after winning 12 total games over the three seasons prior.
But one more chance for one more win is still in front of them.
This story was originally published January 26, 2020 at 7:43 PM.
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