It’s never just one play that makes the difference between winning and losing in football. But for 49ers fans stewing after again falling short of the franchise’s sixth Super Bowl — this loss perhaps the most painful of them all — identifying the play that cost you everything is, frankly, human.
None may have been bigger than the final play for the 49ers offense in overtime: Brock Purdy lined up with an empty backfield on third-and-4 from the Chiefs' 9-yard line. What appears to be an offensive line miscommunication killed the drive, forced a field goal and gave Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs a chance to drive down and score the game-winning touchdown, handing the Niners a 25-22 loss.