In my last post, I gave you guys my initial thoughts on the San Francisco 49ers’s 2021 schedule. Today, I will build off of that and provide my record prediction! Let’s get into it.
Week 1: San Francisco 49ers @ Detroit Lions
The 49ers are better than the Lions in every meaningful category: talent, coaching, and experience. Many of the starters are the same players who were in the Super Bowl in 2019. While injuries decimated the 49ers’s 2020 campaign (and turned winnable games into losses), the 49ers will be coming into the 2021 season fully healthy, with players such as Nick Bosa, Deebo Samuel, and George Kittle all ready to go. Detroit meanwhile, has a new coaching staff led by Dan Campbell, and a new quarterback, Jared Goff, who the 49ers have historically played well against. While they are playing at home, there are too many factors against them in this game, which leads me to believe that the 49ers will comfortably beat the Detroit Lions in Week 1.
Week 2: San Francisco 49ers @ Philadelphia Eagles
This is the second of back to back East Coast games to start the season for the 49ers, meaning they will most likely stay and practice on the East Coast during the week to avoid excessive travel and fatigue. Like the Lions, the Eagles have a new coaching staff led by Nick Sirianni, and a second year quarterback who hasn’t played much at the NFL level in Jalen Hurts. While the 49ers could potentially be fielding third overall pick Trey Lance at quarterback, leading to a matchup between two young quarterbacks, the story against the Eagles is similar to the one against the Lions. The 49ers are better coached than the Eagles. While the Eagles do have talented players such as rookie Devonta Smith, Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham, and Darius Slay, I believe the 49ers are the more talented team from top to bottom. In 2020, the 49ers lost key players in Week 2 to injury against the New York Jets, and I do not anticipate that unlikely scenario happening here, and hence, believe the 49ers will start off the 2021 season 2-0 with a win against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Week 3: Green Bay Packers @ San Francisco 49ers
After two road games to start the season, the 49ers will have their 2021 home opener in Week 3, with the Green Bay Packers coming to town. While the 49ers aren’t the same team that ran over Green Bay twice in 2019, they are also not the same injury riddled team that got crushed by Green Bay last year. As long as Aaron Rodgers is still on the Packers when this game rolls around, the Packers will have a significant advantage at quarterback. Couple that with star wide receiver Davante Adams, star left tackle David Bakhtiari, and top 10 running back Aaron Jones, and the Packers will provide the first real test for 49ers first year defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans. However, San Francisco brings back a majority of the defensive players from 2019, and their 2021 offseason additions on offense indicate a run heavy offensive philosophy (more than we have seen in previous years). This run-first mentality should be able to offset the pass rush generated by the Packers’s star pass rushers Zadarius and Preston Smith. This is the first must watch game for 49ers fans, with a lot of stars on display, and home field advantage will certainly play a role in the final result. I anticipate the 49ers to come out on top in this Sunday Night Football thriller, moving their overall record to 3-0.
Week 4: Seattle Seahawks @ San Francisco 49ers
After a hard fought victory over the Green Bay Packers, the 49ers stay at home to face their rivals, the Seattle Seahawks, in their first divisional game of the year. The Seattle Seahawks have historically played well against the 49ers, at home or on the road. They, like the Packers, hold the advantage at the quarterback position, with Russell Wilson who has constantly given the 49ers’s defense problems. I believe the Seahawks hold an advantage at wide receiver too, with the 49ers having no real answers for how to contain D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. However, the 49ers hold the advantage in the trenches, with significantly better players on both the offensive and defensive lines. While one might say that the 49ers are coming off a tough game against the Packers, it is the Seahawks who come into this game having played the tougher schedule up to this point. They will come to San Francisco in Week 4 having played Week 1 @ Colts, Week 2 vs. Titans, and Week 3 @ Vikings, all three of whom are potential playoff teams. If the 49ers are able to use their advantage along the offensive line to effectively run the ball and extend offensive possessions, it will keep Russell Wilson off the field and give the 49ers the best chance to win. I believe they will do exactly this and come out on top in another entertaining football game, moving their record to 4-0.
Week 5: San Francisco 49ers @ Arizona Cardinals
The 49ers lost to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1 in 2020, due to excellent performances from Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins. While I don’t consider the Cardinals to be a very good team, they, like the Seahawks, have always seemed to give the 49ers trouble defensively. Kyler Murray is a dual threat quarterback, and his speed and agility when running the ball are two things the 49ers haven’t been able to stop. Containing Kyler Murray and keeping him in the pocket will be a big component that dictates how the 49ers play on defense. Jason Verrett matched up well against star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins in the teams’ second matchup in 2020, but the Cardinals have plenty of other talent at wide receiver, with players such as A.J. Green, Rondale Moore, and Christian Kirk. The 49ers will be on the road in this game, and will be coming off of tough wins against the Packers and Seahawks. I think this, and the fact that the Cardinals play well against the 49ers, will result in the 49ers suffering their first loss of the 2021 season. Their record now stands are 4-1, which I think most fans will be happy with heading into the BYE week.
Week 6: BYE Week
Week 7: Indianapolis Colts @ San Francisco 49ers
This is my favorite matchup of the year. The 49ers will be well rested after the BYE week, coming into this game having had two weeks to prepare. The Colts were a playoff team last year, and I expect them to have that same level of play this year. They, like the 49ers, field excellent offensive and defensive lines. The Colts’ offensive line is led by Quenton Nelson, arguably the best guard in the NFL, and also has Pro Bowl center Ryan Kelly, who was just made the highest paid center in the NFL. Their defensive line has former 49ers Pro Bowl pass rusher DeForest Buckner, a fan favorite, as well as rookie Kwity Paye, who the Colts selected with the 21st pick in this year’s NFL Draft. Both teams have top 5 linebackers in Fred Warner for the 49ers and Darius Leonard of the Colts. Finally, Colts quarterback Carson Wentz, who played well against the 49ers last year, had the best year of his career when him and current Colts head coach Frank Reich worked together in Philadelphia. These are all promising points to hear if you’re a Colts fan. However, the 49ers will be playing at home and are coming off of a BYE week, meaning they will have had two weeks to prepare for this game and will be the fresher of the two teams. This is a significant advantage when playing quality opposition, and it will certainly play a role in the outcome. While both the 49ers and Colts have outstanding talent and coaching, I think the 49ers, playing at home, will come out on top in a run-heavy, grind it out type of game, moving their record to 5-1.
** PS, could this be the game where Trey Lance makes his NFL debut? Teams have been known to field their rookie quarterbacks after their BYE week, as it gives the rookie an extra week to prepare. If this does happen, it would be a tremendous storyline of two potential playoff teams with two former North Dakota State quarterbacks, both of whom were top 3 draft picks and one of whom is making his NFL debut, going head to head on Sunday Night Football. What more can you ask for? **
After the first seven weeks of the 2021 NFL season, I predict that the San Francisco 49ers will have an overall record of 5-1, which might be optimistic to some, but also doable given the talent of the squad. Stay tuned for Part 2 of my schedule predictions, in which I will predict the outcomes of Weeks 8 – 13 of the 49ers’s 2021 schedule!
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