49ers Fans' Rollercoaster Ride Crashes With Rams Rally
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX) -- The NFC Championship game delivered a crushing blow Sunday evening to Niners Faithful and bandwagon-jumpers alike. At District Six in San Francisco's South of Market, hundreds gathered at a watch party to see the 49ers take the next big step toward a Super Bowl title.
It was not to be.
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Still the night was filled with lots of highs. Niners fans danced and cheered every time the team got ahead. The 49ers dominated much of the game until things started to unravel in the fourth quarter.
"To see them go out like that it was like 'come on, we were this close, we were this close!' All we needed was, like, a first down," said Sierra Johnson of Walnut Creek.
"We're sad," said Vince Chang of Daly City.
"Good season, good season, we expect a lot for this season but ..." said Robert Marania of Daly City.
"We're proud of our team," said Orlando Novicio of San Francisco.
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Many fans were too sad and upset to speak to KPIX on camera after the Niners' NFC Championship loss to the Rams.
"It's bittersweet, you know? We were so close again, it reminds me of the Chiefs Super Bowl game where we were up and then we squandered the lead," said District Six creative director Anthony Schlander.
So many fans had been on the brink of celebration.
"It was electric. It was the first time in months that people got to go out outdoors and have a good time with their friends and family and feel safe and feel connected," said Schlander. "I think people had a fair share of good times today."
Schlander said fans lined up as early as 11 a.m. to grab a table -- two hours before District Six opened.
It was still a win for small businesses -- including food trucks like Senor Sisig Vegano.
"Obviously I felt we should have made it to the Super Bowl but I'm excited about the season -- the fact that all of our players stepped up and really did everything they could to get us to this point and so I'm excited about next year," said San Francisco supervisor Shamann Walton. "Niner Nation!"
The Rams will face the Bengals in the Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood Feb. 13.