This was just so cruel. So painful. So depressing. So heartbreaking.

Like a prospector who had searched for gold his whole life, panning in the river since the 1950s, growing old and tired, and then found a huge chunk of gold, and it glowed something beautiful like in “Pulp Fiction.”

Only — ugh, no, this can’t be happening — it slipped away and washed down the river and everything turned dark and depressing.

All the work seemed for naught.

San Francisco 49ers 34, Detroit Lions 31.

Ugh.

So. Flipping. Cruel.

Just because of how it went down.

At one moment in this NFC championship on Sunday, the Lions were dominating the 49ers.

Everything was working and they had all the momentum. They were running the ball and making the plays and built a 24-7 halftime lead, and it just seemed too easy. Yes, book those flights to Vegas. Yes, this was possible. Yes, this was no longer a dream. Yes, the Lions were just a half from the Super Bowl. Their first Super Bowl.

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And then? Washed away. Down the river.

Everything flipped. Suddenly, the 49ers grabbed the momentum, and Dan Campbell gambled on fourth down and it blew up in his face; Jahmyr Gibbs fumbled, and the 49ers were getting the breaks, catching a ridiculous long pass, and the Lions’ trick plays weren’t tricky anymore, and the Lions were missing tackles and blowing opportunities; and Campbell did it again, gambled on fourth down and it failed again.

No, it can’t end like this.

No.

This took heartbreaking to a new level.

Pure heartbreak

As the clock ran out, I thought of all the fans I have met over the years, who would complain about the Lions.  “This is it — I’m going Lions-free,” they would say.

But few did.

They would always come back.

They would find hope in the draft and free agency, and hope during the summer workouts, and hope during training camp. And then, for years, all hope would fizzle away.

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Some were strangers, people I would meet just about anywhere, but also friends and neighbors and my own father and children.

And I feel for them.

I thought about the fans on the Delta flight on the way to San Francisco, who were singing, “Forward Down the Field.”

I thought about all those fans on all these trips this year, who filled stadiums.

They gave this team their hearts.

They gave this team their hopes and money and bought the jerseys.

So cruel.

A season of progress

Although this loss was disappointing.

Although this loss was a waste of a tremendous opportunity.

Although this loss should scream to the front office: You gotta improve that defense, especially that secondary! You gotta get another edge rusher to compliment Aidan Hutchinson!

Although this loss should be motivation for every player on this roster.

Although this loss is a reminder of how important it is to get home-field advantage — through the entire playoffs, not just for two games.

Although this loss will cast a temporary negative feel on an amazing season, one day, we will look back and think, man, it was a great season.

Although all the focus will be on a couple of fourth-down decisions, this was a season of progress.

This team is headed in the right direction.

It won the NFC North.

It got a home playoff game.

It won a playoff game.

Twice.

But most of all, it ignited this fan base — “Ja-red Goff! Ja-red Goff!”

There’s no question this season should be remembered for progress.

But it was hard to remember that late Sunday night.

Because it felt so dang cruel.

It was like watching somebody stumble through a desert, for decades, and suddenly, they came out of it. They found flowing rivers and pools and restaurants filled with water.

But those doors remained locked.

The rivers were fenced.

The thirst remains. Maybe, stronger than ever because this was so close.

So. Flipping. Cruel.

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Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @seideljeff.

To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions cruel loss to 49ers puts damper on otherwise great year