The San Francisco 49ers have been to the mountaintop on multiple occasions in recent seasons, but weren't able to capture the Lombardi Trophy. As a result, 49ers star wide receiver Deebo Samuel has admitted he's suffered from depression after suffering two Super Bowl losses to the Kansas City Chiefs.
"Not gonna lie, losing the Super Bowl, it puts you in depression," Samuel said in an appearance on The St. Brown Podcast. "You go months without talking to people, wanting to be seen… Losing the Super Bowl is one of the worst feelings ever.
"Think about it in our position. We just went through camp, we just went through the whole season, and we got here, we lose, and now you back to work in three weeks. And you're about to do it all over again. Losing the Super Bowl is crazy. I lost in the Super Bowl twice to the same team."
Samuel suffered his first Super Bowl defeat in 2020 when the 49ers fell 31-20 at the hands of the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV. The Chiefs ended up scoring 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win.
The two teams faced off once again in Super Bowl LVIII in 2024 when the Chiefs got the best of the 49ers yet again. The 49ers even led the Super Bowl rematch in the fourth quarter before the Chiefs forced overtime courtesy of a last-second game-tying field goal from Harrison Butker. In overtime, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes connected with Mecole Hardman on a three-yard game-winning touchdown pass in the final seconds to lift Kansas City to victory.
Samuel came so close to winning his first Lombardi Trophy as the 49ers led in the second half of both Super Bowl matchups with the Chiefs.
However, the 49ers haven't been nearly as successful in 2024 as they're set to miss the postseason. A large amount of the 49ers' struggles can attributed to the injury bug as key offensive weapons Christian McCaffrey and Brandon Aiyuk suffered season-ending injuries.
Personally, Samuel has also had his share of struggles this season. The veteran wideout has tallied just 51 receptions for 670 yards and three touchdowns.
