The San Francisco 49ers entered the offseason motivated by February's Super Bowl defeat. Maybe that wasn't enough because the team gained some extra motivation the hard way on Sunday after the Arizona Cardinals pulled off the upset 24-20 win at Levi's Stadium.
The loss forces San Francisco to play catchup with the rest of the division. It is the only NFC West squad that suffered a defeat during Week 1.
The 49ers are back to work this week and beginning preparations for their two-game road trip to the East Coast, where they will face the New York Jets and New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in back-to-back weekends.
The team's focus remains on the opponent ahead. As for how last season ended, the 49ers are ready to move past that heartbreaking defeat.
"I don't think anybody's thinking about what happened last season after today," right tackle Mike McGlinchey said after Sunday's game. "Today is the first day of moving forward, moving past all that.
"Obviously, it doesn't feel good losing any football game, but we understand it's Week 1. We have a long season to go, and we have a lot of things to clean up, and things that are in our control that we can clean up that might have turned the outcome of that game better for us."
The 49ers may have Week 16 circled on their calendars. That's the next time the team will face the Cardinals. That matchup, however, will be on the road at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
Added McGlinchey on Sunday: "It's just a matter of getting back to work tomorrow, watching the tape, being honest with yourself, assessing what went wrong, and making sure it doesn't happen again."
While Week 16 may be circled, that is down the road. For now, everyone's focus is on Week 2 and the Jets. The 49ers have to rebound if they hope to reach their goal this season.
