Reporters didn't wait long to ask Kyle Shanahan the question that had people on social media scratching their heads: Why didn't he use a timeout towards the end of the first half?
With 1:53 left in the first half of Super Bowl LIV, and the score tied 10-10, the 49ers stopped quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs' offense on third-and-14. The 49ers had all three of their timeouts, but Shanahan opted not to use one.
The clock went from 1:47 to 59 seconds left as the Chiefs drained 48 seconds and punted the ball into the end zone. To no surprise, Shanahan was thinking of Mahomes and the Chiefs' electric offense when making his decision.
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"They had three timeouts, and it was 10 to 10. The last thing we're going to do there is allow them to get the ball with three timeouts left, especially with their quarterback and the offensive speed, and go down and score before half, Shanahan told reporters after the 49ers lost to the Chiefs, 31-20. "Felt good at 10-10, especially with us starting with the ball [in the second half]."
Shanahan called two run play for only five yards on the 49ers' first two plays after the punt. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo did later connect with tight end George Kittle on a perfect 42-yard pass, but the referees called a controversial offensive pass interference on Kittle.
"I thought it played out all right," Shanahan said. "I thought we should have got points, but they ended up calling that PI on [George] Kittle."
The Kittle penalty ultimately changed plenty for Shanahan and the 49ers. Had running back Raheem Mostert gained big yardage on his first run after the touchback, Shanahan would have went into full two-minute drill mode.
San Francisco 49ers
But Mostert rushed for only 3 yards on his first carry when the 49ers got the ball back, and 2 yards on his next run.
"We did consider it, but where we got the ball and the fact it was 10 to 10 and they had three timeouts -- if we would have gotten an explosive run on the first one, we would have," Shanahan further explained.
Clearly, Shanahan's general manager John Lynch didn't agree with the 49ers coach's decision. Lynch was calling for a timeout from his luxury box, but Shanahan wasn't in sync with the GM.
[RELATED: Kittle, Shanahan react to controversial Super Bowl PI call]
In the end, Shanahan and the rest of the 49ers will have to accept their decisions from the Super Bowl loss. There will be sleepless nights, there will be second-guessing, however, none of it will make a difference.
The 49ers still are searching for their first Super Bowl title since January 1995.