Christian McCaffrey sat staring into space, Trent Williams let fly a few expletives while getting dressed, and Chase Young struggled to hide the emotion behind his sunglasses.

The devastation in the San Francisco 49ers' locker room after their heartbreaking overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 58 was impossible to escape, with the Niners attempting in real time to process another heartbreaking end to a season that for so long appeared destined to end in a sixth Lombardi Trophy.

It was a trophy they had within touching distance when the Chiefs faced fourth and one from their own 34-yard line in overtime. Stop the Chiefs there, and the 49ers would have been Super Bowl champions.

Instead, Patrick Mahomes picked up eight yards on a zone read, and then subsequently drove the Chiefs down for a game-winning touchdown as Mecole Hardman delivered the dagger that condemned the Niners to a 25-22 defeat.

Miscues and missed chances

From McCaffrey's fumble on the first drive, to the failure to take advantage of Ji'Ayir Brown's interception to start the third quarter and the special teams miscues that cost the 49ers eight points, this was a loss defined by mistakes and missed chances.

Now the 49ers must reconcile themselves with the fact that, when they needed to play a clean game, they couldn't deliver, and that was something fullback Kyle Juszczyk was clearly struggling with when he took to the podium.

"It was a lot of small things," Juszczyk said. "I'm not going to say it was small things on special teams. It was small things everywhere, I thought, all three phases. We did things that weren't characteristic to what we usually do as a team and I think in the end that's what hit us and it was too much to overcome.”

“It's really hard. I don't know how to put it in perspective yet. I still haven't had all the feelings of it yet. Right now, you feel numb a little bit and you don't know what to say to your teammates other than just, you appreciate them and you love them and you did some really good things together. Just gotta finish it."

Coming back strong

If there's a saving grace for the 49ers, it is the extremely close locker room they have. Though they will all soon depart for vacations, the bond between the players will be crucial in them getting through the immediate aftermath and then successfully turning the page to a new chapter when they return to start preparations for next season.

While Arik Armstead intimated there was little that could be said to his teammates right now, the defensive tackle struck a similar chord as Juszczyk when asked what could be said going forward.

“We had an amazing season, a lot of memories formed with my teammates and we were really close," said Armstead. "Obviously, it's tough on us right now. That's when you got to lean on each other to kind of get through these moments."

And head coach Kyle Shanahan is adamant they will get through them.

“I mean, we all hurt, and everyone knows how it feels and don’t have a lot. We all hurt and don't have a lot of words for it," said Shanahan. "Obviously, we're hurting, our team's hurting, but that's how it goes when you put yourself out there. I'm real proud of our guys, no regrets with our team. I thought our guys played so hard today not everything was perfect by any means, but if I'm going to lose with a group of guys, I’d do it with those guys any time and we'll get over this and come back next year ready to go.

"I don't care how you lose when you lose Super Bowls, especially ones you think you can pull off, it hurts. When you're in the NFL, I think every team should hurt, except for one at the end. We've gotten pretty damn close, but we haven't pulled it off. 

"We're hurting right now, but it doesn't take away from how proud of our guys I am. I'm really proud of them today, too. As part of sports, as part of football, as part of life, as part of life. I'm glad we put ourselves out there. I love our team. We'll recover, and we'll be back next year strong."

The grim reality

Yet for all the talk of solidarity, there is the grim reality for a team that keeps going so close without getting over the line to face. After reaching at least the NFC Championship four times in five seasons but failing to win the title, defensive end Nick Bosa laid out that reality.

“I was speechless. I couldn’t really look anybody in the eye, especially all my teammates," said Bosa. "I could have done more. Everybody could have done more. And there's really not much to say at this point. It's going to hurt, and it's going to hit in waves, but that’s life.”

"I feel like it was hard for anybody to say much after this one. We've been so close so many times that there's only so many more opportunities that we have. We have amazing core players that are going to be back, and we have to be better."

In the NFL, the opportunities don't just keep on coming, no matter how talented you are. The 49ers know this and that is why, right now, Shanahan's words ring so hollow and why, as they sat there attempting to process what befell them, none of his players could muster much beyond silence that spoke louder than any press conference answer.

49ers starter issues painful truth after latest Super Bowl loss

He’s absolutely right.