San Francisco 49ers Turn to Navy SEALS To Get Help Rebounding From Disappointing 2024 Season

Kyle Shanahan knew something was wrong with his San Francisco 49ers almost from the start of the 2024 season. And the season's disappointing 6-11 record and last-place finish in the division indeed proved something was amiss.

So this offseason, the 49ers have reached for help to regain the form that got them to the Super Bowl at the end of the 2023 season.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - FEBRUARY 5: Head Coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers (L) and Head coach Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs (R) greet each other on stage behind the Vince Lombardi Trophy during Super Bowl LVIII Opening Night at Allegiant Stadium ahead of Super Bowl LVIII on February 5, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Robin Alam/ISI Photos/Getty Images)

Super Bowl Hangover Derailed 49ers

They transformed significant parts of the roster, with the trade of Deebo Samuel and the release of Javon Hargrave and Trump-dancing linebacker Leonard Floyd being among those moves.

And, oh yeah, they renewed their call for help from a Navy SEALs training team. 

The 49ers spent four days last week undergoing Navy SEALS type training, which included a lot of mental toughening to go along with the requisite rigors of their offseason program. 

(Automatic weapons and scuba gear apparently were not included in the fun).

"This is my first time going through it and just obviously hearing their stories and what it's like, being on a SEALs team unit and how that translates to us being a football team and doing stuff that's not ordinary and everything like that," is how quarterback Brock Purdy described it on Wednesday. 

"So, it was pretty special for me and eye-opening for sure."

This is not new for the 49ers. It's the third time since 2017 when Shanahan became the coach and John Lynch was hired as the general manager that the 49ers bring in retired SEALs to train players to have stronger minds and bodies as well as cast iron wills.

SEALs Training No Stranger To 49ers

The fact of the matter is, several teams every year turn to the retired SEALs or other parts of the military to help them prepare for a season.

Last year, coach Dan Quinn brought in the SEALs to speak to his Washington Commanders players and help him set the culture for his new team. 

The Commanders turned things around and went from a team that had fired Ron Rivera the previous year, to a team that went to the NFC Championship game under Quinn in his first year.

The Jaguars on Wednesday brought Navy Vice Admiral Mike Boyle , the director of the Navy Staff, to practice, and he visited with some players, including Rayuan Lane III, a Naval Academy graduate.

And obviously the 49ers did their sessions with the retired SEALs because Shanahan is looking for a spark -- anything to avoid an exit meeting with the club like he had in January.

Shanahan Expects Different Approach 

"I just told the guys, I talked about how the season ended the year before and how when I felt them all come back, I felt guys weren't ready to come back," Shanahan said recently. "And I understood that. But I told them how I won't really understand it this year. Not that that was right or wrong, but I couldn't comprehend it because we're off five weeks earlier.

"We all know how disappointed we are and a lot of us have played a lot of football here. But we're going to have a team that doesn't know what we've done in the past or how you guys have earned a lot of stuff, we need to show them. 

"And the first meeting when we get back, I expect our whole team to be here, and it be important to guys. And I thought the coolest thing was everyone being there on the first day. We had every guy show up, and I didn't have to call anyone and beg them, which said a lot. They all knew what I said on the last day and I wanted to see if they really meant something to them, not to where I had to call them and remind them and I didn't. 

"And they all showed up and they've all been working and to me that's something I really appreciated and know I got the right guys."

Purdy: Time With SEALs ‘Special’

Maybe the 49ers have the right guys. But those guys need to be honed. Trained. Molded.

And the sessions with the SEALs are part of that.

"We had some Navy SEALs come in and sort of just do this week of presentations and what it means to have a standard and a culture and all that," Purdy said Wednesday. "And I think just the events and things that we did with each other were pretty cool and the conversations that we've all had because we're with guys that are on defense talking about what it means to be a Niner and like what it takes.

"So, I think that was a pretty special moment."

Will it all make a difference for the 49ers this coming season? That's hard to predict.

But camaraderie shouldn't be a problem for this team.