Familiar Playoff Opponent Gives 49ers Uncomfortable Wild Card Vibes

The San Francisco 49ers enter the 2025 NFL playoffs with one of the league’s most talented rosters, a top-three offense, and a defense that has quietly returned to elite status. Yet as the No. 1 seed in the NFC, they will host a familiar and dangerous Wild Card opponent: the Dallas Cowboys.

The Cowboys clinched the NFC East title on Sunday with a 27–24 victory over the Washington Commanders, securing the No. 6 seed. For the third consecutive season, San Francisco and Dallas will meet in the playoffs—and for the third straight year, the Cowboys enter the matchup as the Wild Card team visiting Levi’s Stadium.

The history is uncomfortable for 49ers fans. Dallas has won two of the last three postseason meetings (2021 and 2022), both in Santa Clara. The most recent clash, the 2023 NFC Divisional Round, ended with a 19–12 Dallas victory that still stings in the Bay Area.

The Ghost of January 2024: Cowboys 19, 49ers 12

On January 14, 2024, the 49ers entered the Divisional Round as the No. 1 seed with a 12–5 record, riding a six-game winning streak and boasting the NFL’s top-ranked offense. Brock Purdy was in the middle of a breakout season, Christian McCaffrey was the runaway MVP favorite, and the defense featured Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, and Talanoa Hufanga at their peak.

Dallas, meanwhile, limped in at 12–5 but with significant injuries: Dak Prescott had missed four games with a thumb injury, and the defense had allowed 30+ points in three of their last four contests. Most analysts picked San Francisco by double digits.

What followed was one of the most frustrating playoff performances in recent 49ers history.

Key moments that still haunt Santa Clara:

• First quarter turnover chain Purdy threw an interception on the opening drive. Dallas answered with a touchdown. On San Francisco’s next possession, McCaffrey fumbled at the Dallas 16-yard line. The Cowboys turned both turnovers into 10 points and led 10–0 less than 10 minutes into the game.
• Red-zone failure The 49ers reached the Dallas 18, 15, and 10-yard lines on three separate first-half drives but came away with only one field goal. They finished the day 1-for-4 in the red zone.
• Punt return disaster Late in the third quarter, with the score 16–12, Brandon Aubrey’s 44-yard punt was returned 53 yards for a touchdown by KaVontae Turpin. The score was overturned on replay due to a questionable block-in-the-back call, but the momentum shift was undeniable.
• Fourth-quarter collapse Trailing 16–12, the 49ers drove to the Dallas 24 with 7:34 remaining. On 4th-and-4, Kyle Shanahan elected to go for it. Purdy’s pass to Deebo Samuel was broken up by Jourdan Lewis. Dallas ran the clock down and kicked a 33-yard field goal to go up two possessions.

Final score: Cowboys 19, 49ers 12. San Francisco managed only 287 total yards and zero offensive touchdowns.

Why the 2023 Loss Still Lingers

The defeat was particularly painful because it came at the height of the 49ers’ Super Bowl-or-bust expectations. They had lost the previous year’s NFC Championship Game to Philadelphia at home. Many believed the 2023 team was the best roster Shanahan had ever coached.

Instead, Dallas exposed vulnerabilities that have reappeared in recent years:

• Struggles to finish drives against aggressive, blitz-heavy defenses
• Inability to overcome early turnovers
• Difficulty generating explosive plays against man coverage

The Cowboys’ defensive performance that day—led by Micah Parsons (2 sacks, 2 TFL), Daron Bland, and DaRon Bland—remains one of the most dominant playoff performances against the Shanahan offense in the last decade.

How Both Teams Have Changed Since January 2024

What Makes This Rematch So Uncomfortable

1. Playoff precedent The Cowboys have won two of the last three meetings and are 3–1 against the 49ers in the Shanahan era (including regular season).
2. Micah Parsons factor Parsons has 4.5 sacks in three career playoff games against San Francisco. He has consistently beaten Trent Williams and terrorized Purdy.
3. Dak Prescott’s mastery Prescott is 4–1 against the 49ers since 2021, throwing 13 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions in those five games.
4. Red-zone and turnover issues The 49ers still rank outside the top 12 in red-zone touchdown percentage and have struggled to protect the ball in critical moments.
5. Dallas’s hunger After missing the playoffs entirely in 2024 and watching San Francisco win Super Bowl LIX, the Cowboys enter this game with revenge on their minds.

Can the 49ers Flip the Script?

The 2026 version of the 49ers has tools the 2023 team didn’t:

• A healthier Nick Bosa and returning Dre Greenlaw
• The emergence of second-year receiver Ricky Pearsall
• A deeper defensive backfield with Charvarius Ward and rookie Domani Jackson
• A more experienced Brock Purdy who has faced Dallas twice since the 2023 loss

Shanahan has repeatedly said the team has “studied the tape” from that January night and made adjustments, especially in red-zone efficiency and protection schemes against Parsons.

Still, the Cowboys remain one of the few teams that consistently give San Francisco problems—both schematically and emotionally.

The 49ers are favored. They should win. They have the talent edge, home field, and motivation to avenge two painful playoff defeats.

But the Cowboys have history on their side, a quarterback playing at an MVP level, and a pass rush that has consistently exposed San Francisco’s biggest weaknesses.

When the NFC’s top seed hosts its longtime postseason tormentor in the Wild Card round, the vibes are anything but comfortable.