Kyle Shanahan explains why he didn’t tell players about new OT rules before Super Bowl 2024

Kyle Shanahan’s decision to take the ball at the start of overtime continued to be one of the biggest talking points after the 49ers lost Super Bowl 2024 to the Chiefs.

And the confusion about the overtime rules — new rules installed in 2022 — only added to the narrative after players revealed after the game they were not aware of things.

But Shanahan told reporters Tuesday that while he didn’t have any meetings about overtime in the lead-up to the game, though he said he went over the new setup with his coaching staff and that they relayed the message to the players ahead of the Super Bowl.

“We told everyone as we were waiting for the coin toss to review everyone to make sure they’re sure before we go out,” Shanahan said at a press conference. “So, we asked position coaches to do that. But I didn’t cover it in a meeting on the Super Bowl week. I don’t think that changes anything.”

The updated rules allowed for both teams in overtime to get an offensive possession regardless of what the team that gets the ball first does. 

That only changes if the defense recovers a turnover and that team scores. 

But Sunday proved to be a perfect storm for the 49ers, who had never been in an overtime playoff game since the rule change went into effect, and multiple San Francisco players said they weren’t aware of the overtime setup. 

Quarterback Brock Purdy did acknowledge that QB coach Brian Griese did advise him of the overtime rules when regulation came to a close. 

“He explained the rules to me and everything so I had an understanding of it,” Purdy said, according to ESPN. 

Shanahan’s decision to start the OT period with the ball has drawn plenty of Monday morning quarterbacking from fans and pundits alike. 

The Niners only were able to muster a field goal, and the Chiefs marched down the field on their possession to cap off their second consecutive Super Bowl title and third in the last five years. 

“I always make [the decision] in the heat of battle with that information,” Shanahan said. “If it was like the Super Bowl the year before the one that seemed more like a shootout, I think I might have felt a little bit differently but having that information going in and the way ours was going, I didn’t feel differently.

“I felt accurate with what they recommended.”