The 49ers' harrowing 19-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns was the team's first true test of adversity of the 2023 season.
However, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan views the defeat as a learning opportunity for a team that had won four of its first five games by double digits.
During a conference call Monday afternoon, Shanahan explained that this kind of humbling loss can serve as a stark reminder of the quality required to win in the NFL week in and week out.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
"You got to play good football in this league or you're going to get beat," Shanahan said. "And it doesn't matter who you play or when. We didn't play that good of football, and we almost were able to pull it out, which I would have been proud of them for doing that. You're not always going to play great football, and you still got to find ways to win, but rarely do the football gods reward you when you make as many mistakes as we did.
"Missed assignments, penalties, missed tackles, couple missed opportunities that are the difference between winning and losing, and when you miss those throughout the game, rarely does it work out in the end."
The 49ers accumulated a season-high 12 penalties for an eye-popping 105 yards. That included two controversial calls that resulted in automatic first downs for Cleveland's offense on what proved to be the game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter.
There was plenty to critique in all three phases of the game, with the offense sputtering for long stretches and the special teams unit having their roughest outing of the season.
San Francisco 49ers
Despite the problematic result, Shanahan stressed that the film study and reflection after a tough loss like this would be no different than coming off a dominant win.
"So either way, that happened," Shanahan said. "I think it was a good learning experience, and really all that matters is when they come in tomorrow and watch the film with us, just like all that mattered when they cam in after Dallas and watched the film, is that you watch what you did good, watch what you did bad, and you make sure you get better the next week."
The last time the 49ers lost a regular season game, they rebounded by winning their next 15 in a row. They'll look to construct another winning streak starting with next week's tilt against the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football.