Kyle Shanahan missed his first Super Bowl appearance as the Falcons’ offensive coordinator after the 2016 season. And he’s already lost two Super Bowls as the 49ers’ head coach. And that 0-3 Super Bowl start is something no coach or coordinator before him overcame to win a Super Bowl.
Shanahan is the fifth coach or coordinator in NFL history to start his career 0-3 in Super Bowls, and none of the others have ever won a Super Bowlaccording to NFL Research.
Marv Levy went 0-4 in Super Bowls as Bills coach.
Bud Grant went 0-4 in Super Bowls as head coach of the Vikings.
Jerry Burns went 0-4 under Grant as the Vikings’ offensive coordinator and never made the Super Bowl as a head coach after that.
Ted Marchibroda lost one Super Bowl as offensive coordinator at Washington and lost two more as offensive coordinator at Buffalo, and became head coach of two different teams but never returned to the Super Bowl.
Shanahan’s well-documented Super Bowl struggles include his team holding double-digit leads in all three Super Bowls in which he coached. With an impressive 49ers roster entering this season, Shanahan’s team could return to the Super Bowl again in seven months, but his story could cast a dark cloud over any future Super Bowl appearances.