SEASON PREDICTION 

Before I speak on the 49er’s offseason moves, I think it’s interesting to highlight all the events that occurred off the field this summer. San Francisco had one of the most memorable offseasons I have ever seen, and they supplied us with 4 different stories. The first story deals with Brandon Aiyuk, who first made the news in December by posting himself speeding near Levi Stadium going 100 MPH. After being issued an arrest warrant for his actions he continued on his lunacy by beginning to post IG stories and live streams claiming he was a Washington Commander. The deranged acting went as far to have him wearing Commanders gear and speak about his "new teammate” Jayden Daniels. All the while bashing the 49ers front office while still being under contract with them. Currently he is on the niners roster, but it seems like his playing days are over. The second story involved Kyle Shanhan who got in a major car crash due to his distracted driving. He claimed he was on his phone which made him drift out of his lane and cause a crash which led to him getting over 40 stitches on his body. The third story involves the owner of the franchise Jed York. York was caught soliciting a prostitute in Ohio for $140 but unbeknownst to him the prostitute was an undercover cop who promptly arrested York and charged him with a misdemeanor. The fourth and most hilarious story of them all happened recently with the arrest of Daejon Love who was role playing as a 49ers player. Love scammed 26 women out of approximately 1.3 million dollars by claiming he was an NFL player and showing fake screenshots as proof of his tenure in San Fran. He told the ladies that he ran an investment company with his agent and if they gave him money, he would triple their investment in no time. He was eventually caught in Boise and subsequently arrested for his wire fraud prosecutions.  

Transitioning into actual football matters, the niners had a pretty eventful offseason. The biggest loss they suffered was the depletion of nearly their entire receiving core with 3 wideouts leaving in free agency and Pearsall tearing his ACL in training camp. Luckily, they reloaded in free agency with the highlight move being the acquisition of Mike Evans from the Bucs. Defensively they signed Osa Odighizuwa, who will be a massive help to that decrepit D-line from 2025. As the season approaches, the main concern for the squad is getting as many players back and healthy as possible to prepare for the gauntlet of a division, they'll have to face.  

On the offensive side of the ball, it seems likely that the offense will once again be funneled through CMC. Last year he had a record breaking 413 touches and was the workhorse back in the run game while being Purdy's favorite checkdown when the pocket collapsed. Although I am writing this article on the hypothetical that no injuries occur, it is important to note that the last two times CMC had 400 touches in a season; he followed it up the next year by playing 3 and 4 games respectively. Even if CMC does miraculously stay healthy, I don't feel confident that he can maintain this level of production. The ideal scenario is that Shanahan will give Black a 30% split to lessen the burden on CMC but I'm not confident in the rookie’s abilities to jump in and produce right away. As for Kittle, he seems prone to come back for week 1 after suffering an achillies injury just 6 months ago. While watching Kittle play is a joy I feel fans of San Fran will be disappointed in his production when he returns. I have seen countless achillies injuries in my life, and the majority of players don’t come back like how they left let alone an aging star just 6 months removed from injury. Fortunately, we saw Tonges be productive in Kittle's absence last year, so if he can continue his level of play, it would lessen the load on Kittle's shoulders.   

Regarding the WR room, Shanahan will be stretched thin due to all the injuries his wideouts have suffered. The biggest loss is Pearsall, who was expected to be the WR1 and have a breakout year. To add fuel to the fire, Chirstian Kirk is projected to start the season on IR, which means rookie De’Zhaun Stribling will have to step up and fill in as the Y receiver. Deebo has reunited with the team, and is expected to fill up the Z role while Evans obviously lays claim to the X spot. I expect Samuel to be worked all across the field and in multiple sets throughout the year due to their lack of depth at the position. He showed in his previous years with the niners that he is versatile, and Shannahan will likely use him in loads of gadget plays. The glaring weakness though in regard to their receivers is that they don't have any deep threats. While it may not be problematic against lower-level teams, not being able to stretch the field against the cream of the crop squads like the Rams, and Seahawks could prove troublesome and already veered its ugly head last year in matchups vs the Seahawks.  

Defensively San Fran's biggest offseason addition was Osa Odighizuwa, and his skill will be a welcome addition to this struggling D-line. Last year, the biggest weakness of this defense was the nonexistent pass rush. They finished the season with a mightily unimpressive 20 sacks which was far and away the league's worst. Odighizuwa, on the other hand, finished top 10 in pass rush win rate last year and will help to improve those feeble pass rush stats that the unit put up in 2025. Furthermore, the niners pass rush will improve by simply getting healthy bodies back in the fold. Last year Nick Bosa went down with a torn ACL early on which dampened any hopes they had of a competent pass rush. Another hopeful pass rusher returning is Mykel Williams, who suffered a season ending injury in week 9 last year. The issue remains how quickly they will be able to return and if San Fran can manage to hold down the fort in the time their missing. The captain of the defense is also returning with Warner set to start week 1 without any injury designation. Returning an all pro cannot be stressed enough and Raheem Morris will be glad to scheme around the #1 LB room in the NFL. As for the secondary they enter this season ranked as the 24th best unit and as of August 30th nearly the entire unit has an injury designation attached to them as week 1 is less than 10 days away.  

All together I do expect Shanahan to lead this team to a winning record no matter how injury riddled their team may be. The 49ers have proven to have an elite staff that can weather any issue they face and still walk out with a competent team that can be competitive in the playoffs. However, due to their lack of depth at key skill positions, a weak secondary, and injury concerns for returning players, I have the team finishing 3rd in the division with a 10-7 record.