The 2011 season was the San Francisco 49ers' 62nd in the National Football League (NFL), their 66th overall, and their first under head coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Trent Baalke.

After defeating the St. Louis Rams in week 13 and attaining a 10–2 record, the team clinched the NFC West and made their first playoff appearance since 2002.

In the Divisional Playoffs they defeated the New Orleans Saints 36–32 and were in the NFC Championship for the first time since 1997, where they lost to the eventual eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants in overtime by a score of 20–17, coming just short of returning to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1994.

[4] Owner Jed York announced that he would hire a general manager and the new GM would make a decision on the new head coach to replace Mike Singletary after the 49ers' loss to the St. Louis Rams on December 26, 2010, that eliminated the team from the postseason.

[5] On January 5, the 49ers promoted the vice president of player personnel, Trent Baalke, to the position of general manager.

Former Cleveland Browns assistant head coach and special teams coordinator Brad Seely was hired for the same roles with the 49ers.

Running backs (RB) Wide receivers (WR) Tight ends (TE) Defensive linemen (DL) Defensive backs (DB) Special teams Reserve Wide receiver Braylon Edwards was released after nine games.

Coming off their divisional home win over the Cardinals, head coach Jim Harbaugh and the 49ers flew to M&T Bank Stadium for a Week 12 interconference duel with the Baltimore Ravens and their head coach (Jim's brother) John Harbaugh on Thanksgiving.

San Francisco began the third quarter with a 52-yard field goal from Akers, but the Ravens opened the fourth quarter with quarterback Joe Flacco completing an 8-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dennis Pitta, followed by Cundiff nailing a 39-yard field goal.

With the shutout win, not only did the 49ers improve to 10–2, but they also clinched 1st place in the NFC West for their first playoff berth since the 2002 season.

With the win, the 49ers finished their season at 13–3 as they swept the Rams for the first time since 2009 and captured the NFC's #2 playoff seed.

Sports writers and 49ers fans have taken to referring Davis' catch as The Catch III, as it occurred four days after the 30th anniversary of The Catch – Joe Montana's famous game-winning touchdown pass to Dwight Clark in the 1981 NFC Championship game against the Dallas Cowboys, one of the most famous plays in San Francisco 49ers history as it helped propel the 49ers to their first-ever Super Bowl, with both plays occurring with the 49ers trailing with less than a minute to play and facing 3rd down and 3 yards to go.

[11] (The Catch II refers to Steve Young's game-winning pass to Terrell Owens in the 1998 NFC Wild Card Game against the Green Bay Packers.)

The Giants became the third team in NFL history to advance to the Super Bowl with fewer than 10 wins during the regular season, joining the 1979 Los Angeles Rams and the 2008 Arizona Cardinals.

With Ted Ginn Jr. injured, Rookie Kyle Williams started at wide receiver and performed punt returns in the NFC Championship Game.

He lost two fumbles returning punts, including one in overtime that preceded the game-winning field goal by the Giants.