49ers reflect on resilient 2021 campaign that brought team together

As the 49ers ripped through their January schedule, it seemed like they were a team of destiny.

The road wins got more epic on a weekly basis. The stars seemed to be aligning when the 49ers found out they'd be facing their rival Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium in the NFC Championship. Given all the red in the crowd Sunday, the 49ers essentially played a home game at Levi's South, against a team they held a six-game win streak over.

Instead of lamenting the seventh straight win that wasn't, missed opportunities and the 10-point, fourth-quarter lead that evaporated in the 20-17 loss, 49ers players have shared a collective sense of pride throughout their season-end press conferences.

"What we went through this season and the type of resolve and resiliency that we found and established as a team, that's not easy to do," fullback Kyle Juszczyk said Monday. "You have to go through things in order to do that."

Looking back on the season, it seems most considered the 31-17 Week 9 loss to the short-handed Arizona Cardinals as the nadir of the season. The 49ers were 3-5 at that point, and coach Kyle Shanahan admitted he was starting to think about pulling the parachute and developing Lance for the future.

Instead of folding into the fourth losing season of Shanahan's five-year tenure, the 49ers responded by going on a 9-2 heater before Sunday's loss. They recaptured their identity of playing Shanahan's slick but punishing style of football. The defensive line cemented and fortified the entire unit, which was one of the game's best in the second half of the season.

Who will ever forget the Week 18 overtime comeback against the Rams? Or the reprisal of the Dallas Cowboys playoff rivalry? Or the iconic win in the snow at Lambeau? This 2021 team definitely had an extra degree of oomph to it.

"Going from 3-5 to the NFC Championship game -- we were counted out," defensive tackle D.J. Jones said. "We were counted out from the jump. But perseverance, determination, coaches, players -- top-to-bottom, I'm very proud. I'm very proud of what we were able to do in the circumstances that we were in."

Annual roster overhauls are just part of the deal in the NFL, but the 49ers are sure to look a lot different in 2022, starting under center. Jimmy Garoppolo and Shanahan found a winning formula in their four-plus seasons together, but it's time to turn the franchise over to Trey Lance.

Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk said the 2021 season was one big learning experience.

"Feeling what it feels like to be on a playoff team," Aiyuk said. "Knowing and understanding what it takes to get there and how hard it is. I think one of the main things that I've learned this year -- everything that we talked about, everything that we've been through -- it obviously wasn't enough. There's even more that we have to tap in to. We have to go even harder."

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