49ers players support Shanahan despite SB loss: 'I love playing for him'

Although the San Francisco 49ers and Kyle Shanahan fell short in Super Bowl LIV, Niners players had nothing but praise for their head coach.

"It was tough for everybody, obviously," fullback Kyle Juszczyk said postgame, according to NFL.com's Michael Silver. "You don't picture it ending this way. The good thing is, I know Kyle (Shanahan) does such a good job of blocking out the noise. He understands it's a process, that things don't always go your way no matter how hard you do work.

"I have so much love and respect for Kyle," Juszczyk continued. "He's the best coach that I've ever played for. He's the same guy every single day, no matter what happens. He always looks to himself first when it comes to blame. And he takes our ideas and suggestions and will really listen, and think about implementing things after the fact. It sucks just because of how much everybody respects and loves him, and because we hate to hear any negativity about him, and we know it's coming."

Up 20-10 entering the fourth quarter, Shanahan's squad surrendered 21 unanswered points to the Kansas City Chiefs in San Francisco's 31-20 defeat.

The 40-year-old bench boss was criticized for clock management and abandoning the run during the game's most critical points. However, 49ers players displayed unwavering support for their leader.

"It was brutal," star tight end George Kittle said. "I don't know how to describe it. It just sucked. Kyle was great, though. That's one thing I do like about Kyle, he keeps it real all the time. I love playing for him."

Despite enduring a difficult loss, Shanahan maintained his composure during his postgame press conference and expressed optimism in his team's ability to make another Super Bowl run.

"They're just hurting," Shanahan said. "Guys put it all out there. They've done it all year from the first game to the last game. It's a real close team. Everyone is disappointed, and they should be. I wouldn't expect anything different. Guys put their heart into the season and came up one game short. Extremely proud of us and everything, but this is going to take a little time to get over - but we'll be alright."