San Francisco, CA
Shoutout to the 2025 San Francisco 49ers, a fun team despite the ending
I’m going to do something I don’t normally do and drop essentially everything I learned in journalism school in the name of stream-of-consciousness thoughts on the 2025 San Francisco 49ers (still did the full team name, word to Sac State J-School) after their divisional playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks (he did it again).
This 49ers season had no business being fun.
The Nick Bosa injury in Week 3 felt like the end of their Super Bowl hopes. The Fred Warner injury in Week 6 dashed basically everything that was left of any optimism about their chances of doing something this year. It had 2020/2024 vibes, and that was miserable.
But this season, despite a blowout loss to Seattle on Saturday, was not miserable. It was super duper fun (analytics, catch the wave), and it’s easy to forget that matters.
I’m the managing editor here at Niners Wire. I also host a podcast called Candlestick Chronicles. Both are sources of income for me which turned a thing I’ve loved my entire life (the 49ers) into a job. Objectivity becomes a necessity and fandom wanes into something different than the thing that once caused the beginning of the end of a long-term relationship to end because the person thought it would be funny to put on highlights of the 49ers losing the Super Bowl only two days after the game.
However, there’s still part of me that cares deeply about the 49ers. I grew up with my mom as a 49ers season ticket holder. I went to games at Candlestick and at Levi’s Stadium. My first core football memory is watching the Terrell Owens catch against the Green Bay Packers in the 1998 wild card game. I was at Candlestick for the 2011 divisional playoff game against the New Orleans Saints (anotha one), and the next week against the New York Giants (anotha one). I watched the 2012 divisional playoff win over the Green Bay Packers (he’s on fire!) at the San Francisco airport while I waited for my mom and grandfather, who were at the game, to come pick me up. We celebrated in the car the whole way home.
There are so many other memories in the bank that have helped shape me as a sports fan and pushed me to get into the profession I currently hold. They’re part of me, which helps put the 49ers’ loss to the Seahawks on Saturday into perspective.
Sometimes in the crush of the news cycle and trying to provide objective analysis of what’s happening, the fun of football and the reason I love the sport gets lost. This season helped me remember it.
San Francisco had no business being 12-5 and playing for the No. 1 seed in Week 18 of the regular season. They had no business going to the playoffs. They had no business winning a playoff game on the road in Philadelphia. And while a 41-6 loss in Seattle is a, um, suboptimal conclusion to the season, it doesn’t erase the ride.
It doesn’t erase the 49ers’ 3-0 start and Mac Jones’ insane run as the team’s starting quarterback.
It doesn’t erase Christian McCaffrey’s chase for another 1,000-1,000 season or Kendrick Bourne’s back-to-back weeks with 142 receiving yards.
It doesn’t erase Brock Purdy’s game-winning touchdown pass to Jake Tonges in Week 1 at Seattle, or the upset win over the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday Night Football in Week 5.
Pick a memory from this year. There was so much joy in it despite how sideways things got on the injury front.
The 2025 49ers season ruled, even if it ended with a dreadful performance in a loss to their biggest division rival. Seattle gets to move on. San Francisco doesn’t. But the 2025 49ers and all of their various backups-turned-starters will hold a special place in the deep 49ers memory bank in my head that will forever be neither closed nor locked.
More 49ers: 49ers vs. Seahawks highlights: 49ers blown out in playoff defeat
San Francisco, CA
Morning Report: McKivitz Highlights Special Connection to SF 🗞️
McKivitz Sends Clear Message on 49ers Future: ‘I Want to Be on That 10-Year Wall’
As Colton McKivitz enters his seventh season with the 49ers, he has his sights set on a milestone that represents trust and commitment to the organization: reaching the organization’s 10-year wall and joining a list of names that includes legends Joe Montana and Bryant Young.
George Kittle Catches FIFA World Cup Action | Off the Field
The 2026 FIFA World Cup is underway, and tight end George Kittle is showing his support for Team USA. Following the 4-1 USA win over Paraguay, Kittle shared his excitement on social media tweeting “4 is good right?”
5 Things to Know: Offensive Lineman Enrique Cruz Jr.
The Chicago native adds size, athleticism, and versatility to the 49ers competitive offensive line room. Here are five things to know about Enrique Cruz Jr.
San Francisco, CA
Artwork quilt unveiled at San Francisco dirt alley that was mistakenly bought at auction
In the fall of 2025, CBS News Bay Area first brought you the story of a Sunset couple that had the winning bid for a piece of property next to their home. They thought they were getting the duplex next door. Instead, they got a small patch of land known as Dirt Alley.
This story has many chapters, but it ended with a community celebration.
The final chapter in the story of Dirt Alley was written Wednesday night as they unveiled the tiles of artwork on the pavement.
“I’m very happy today,” JJ Hollingsworth said. “It’s just amazing that these artists that I’ve been working with and sold the alley to have come through with this incredible art.”
JJ Hollingsworth was the original property owner. She took out $25,000 from her retirement to pay for this parcel in a city auction. She thought she got a bargain for the duplex next door. When she found out it was actually the alley, the stress led to health problems and a lot of anxiety.
“I’m trying to forget, but I caused all this,” she said. “That’s what happened. I caused all this.”
Then came an email that would help her get out of the Dirt Alley nightmare. A group of friends from San Francisco was interested in buying this 82-foot-long alley.
“I know she was really stressed out when she first bought this and kind of didn’t know what she was going to do with it,” Theo Bleier said. “It’s really lucky. We were going to buy a different parcel, and we lost the auction. It was more than we wanted to spend. We felt really lucky the coincidence worked out, and we were able to help out JJ.”
The new owners then had the idea of laying an artwork quilt on the pavement and took submissions online.
“I think we had about one million people visit the website at least,” owner Patrick Hultquist said. “1.2 million, I think is the number of people that visited the website.”
The tiles with the most votes made it onto what is now called Notion way.
“Now, it’s not an official name of the street. It’s an unofficial name, but we did get an official-looking sign,” he said.
JJ Hollingsworth, who is a music composer, wrote a ballad called Notion Way for the special occasion. What started as a horrible mistake ended up bringing the community together.
“It’s really beautiful,” neighbors Tom Goslinga & Nesha Niezrecki said. “It’s how culture gets created in a lot of ways. People kind of being creative with an interesting situation. It’s really cool.”
While Hollingsworth is grateful for how this story ended, she says she learned a valuable lesson from this whole experience.
“Read the fine print and ask a lot of questions,” she said.
San Francisco, CA
Driver of bullet-riddled car flees North Bay deputies over Golden Gate Bridge
SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — A driver in a car riddled with bullets fled a Marin County Sheriff’s Office deputy at high speeds over the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco early Tuesday morning, according to authorities. The suspect, identified as Martin Zuniga Jr., 26, was later located in Novato and arrested.
The deputy first observed the suspect driving at approximately 100 mph on Highway 101 near the Richardson Bay Bridge. After pulling over the car, the deputy “noticed approximately 14 fresh bullet holes in the vehicle,” the sheriff’s office wrote. Zuniga allegedly told the deputy that he had just been involved in a road rage incident near Novato, but he refused to get out of the car and give a statement.
Zuniga “abruptly put the car into drive and fled the scene,” the sheriff’s office wrote.
The pursuit led to the Golden Gate Bridge, where the deputy disengaged due to unsafe speeds across the span, according to authorities. The car was later found abandoned on the streets of San Francisco.
At approximately 6 p.m., detectives located Zuniga in downtown Novato and placed him into custody. The sheriff’s office said at the time of the arrest that he was in possession of a loaded .40-caliber pistol with a high-capacity magazine and suspected cocaine.
Zuniga was booked into the Marin County Jail for:
- Reckless evading
- Violently resisting law enforcement
- Felon in possession of a firearm
- Felon in possession of ammunition
- Addict in possession of a firearm
Anyone with information regarding a shooting or road rage incident in the evening or early morning hours of June 15 and June 16 is asked to contact the Marin County Sheriff’s Office at 415-479-2311.
-
Mississippi1 minute agoMississippi veterans urged to seek PTSD help during Awareness Month
-
Missouri4 minutes agoMissouri judge strikes down nearly all state abortion regulations
-
Montana9 minutes agoNewly released documents shed light on Montana PSC dispute
-
Nebraska16 minutes agoNebraska Dept. of Agriculture proposes ban on food and beverages containing any amount of THC
-
Nevada19 minutes agoWOW Carwash touts year-round water conservation with recycling tech in Southern Nevada
-
New Hampshire24 minutes agoConcord celebrates 237 years of Constitution ratification with festivities – Concord Monitor
-
New Jersey31 minutes agoIs ICE giving up on Roxbury detention center? NJ leaders laud report
-
New Mexico34 minutes agoNew Mexico leaders push funding to fight screwworm after 1 local case