Whilst there is a gulf in class between the good and bad teams in the conference this season, the NFC is still wide open at the top. Could we be about to relive NFL history?

The 49ers and Cowboys share 10 Super Bowls between them, with five each.

San Francisco were the team of the 1980s, with four of their five titles coming between 1982 and 1990. Dallas dominated the 90s with three Super Bowls in four seasons. 

This era also saw a historic rivalry take place between both teams. Not only did they also meet in the NFC Championship game twice in the early 1970s, they also met four times at the same stage between 1980 and 1995. 

As historic rivalries often do, this era saw one of the most famous NFL moments. Fans of the sport during the era will never forget the infamous 1981 NFC Championship game and ‘The Catch’, Joe Montana throwing to Dwight Clark late in the fourth quarter. 

However, for years, these teams never met in the big moments. Neither team has won a Super Bowl in the 21st century, with San Francisco 0-2 in Super Bowls post-2000. Dallas have not even made it to the NFC Championship since they won it all during the 1995 season. They have since gone 4-10 in the postseason. 

Before last season, these teams had not met in the playoffs since January 15th 1995. Last season’s game was a taster of what is to come. Whilst they had not met in years in the postseason, the drama never left this rivalry. A strange play call from Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy saw them run a quarterback draw with just seconds left and no timeouts. This led to a frantic rush to spike to ball from Dak Prescott ultimately fail. We could be set for another historic matchup.

And there is no reason why not. When it comes to their offenses, San Francisco and Dallas are ninth and 10th respectively for total yards per game, and both feature in the top 10 for both rushing yards and total points per game. With defenses that are both in the top five for total yards allowed per game, these two should create an explosive encounter.

As it stands, at the time of writing, the 49ers would occupy the third seed in the NFC, with a current 9-4 record whereas the Cowboys would take the fifth seed spot despite having the joint second-most wins in the conference (10-3). This is due to their division rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles, having a 12-1 record as it stands.

There is a lot of belief that the 10-3 Minnesota Vikings are a team that has a better record than they should, but they are still a team with double-digit wins before the start of Week 15. This means that they, the Cowboys, Eagles and 49ers are the best teams in the conference. 

Should the 49ers, Vikings and Cowboys all win in the Wildcard Round in the currently projected matchups, this would see the Vikings host the Niners and the Eagles host the Cowboys off the back of a playoff bye.

Provided the Cowboys and 49ers both win, then once again these two teams would meet in the NFC Championship game. Both teams already lead the NFL for most NFC Championship appearances, and back-to-back seasons with these teams meeting could reload one of the game’s greatest rivalries.

The post How The Cowboys and 49ers Could Restart A Historic Rivalry appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Jake Rajala

The San Francisco 49ers didn’t have Robert Saleh last season, but they still featured a very superb defense. The 49ers ranked sixth in passing yards allowed, seventh in rushing yards allowed, fifth in sacks, and fifth in points allowed per game.

The 49ers defense was led by the fearless pass rusher Nick Bosa, who ousted 15.5 sacks, 21 TFLs, four forced fumbles, and 32 QB hits. PFF gave Bosa an 88.3 grade for his 2021 performance. It’s safe to say that the younger Bosa brother will seek a hefty contract extension after a potential DPOY-winning season in 2022.

The 49ers defense will also lean on Arik Armstead, Fred Warner, and Charvarius Ward to be star profiles next season. Armstead had 10 sacks in 2019 and six sacks last season, but he is also a huge force against the run. Warner was an All-Pro in 2020 and he was still a stud/Pro Bowl snub last season – as he obtained 137 combined tackles, four pass deflections, one forced fumble, and seven tackles for loss. It was clear that their front seven was quite stingy last season, but they could have certainly benefited from CB help. Well, they will anticipate Ward being a force in his first season in the Bay area. He recorded 2 interceptions, 10 pass deflections, and scored a 65.7 grade by PFF in 2021.

With that enunciated, the ultimate question is: can the 49ers defense that sharped its edges this off-season be the NFL’s top defense next season?

I honestly peg the Rams defense, the Saints defense and the Bills defense as the best three defenses next season. The Rams GM Les Snead managed to get Bobby Wagner in the same front seven as a Top-3 defensive player of all time in Aaron Donald. I love the Saints addition of Tyrann Mathieu and I also believe Marcus Davenport could be an All-Pro player if he stays healthy. Of course, the Bills defense (which ranked number one last season) should witness lots of glory from the future Hall of Famer Von Miller.

I really like the 49ers direction on defense with an ascending hulk-like pass rusher in Bosa and their slightly more talented secondary (which had growing pains last season) than in 2021. The 49ers have a Top-3 front seven in my opinion, but their secondary isn’t quite up to speed. They should be a Top-8 defense next season and potentially a Top-5 defense, but I’m not convinced they can be the NFL’s top defense in 2022.

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By: Andy Davies

The San Francisco 49ers are one of the most successful franchises in NFL history. Only the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers (both 6) have more Super Bowl wins than the 49ers (5). The 49ers’ five Super Bowls all came between the years of 1981 and 1994. They have lost two since, in the 2012 and 2019 seasons. The quarterbacks that led the 49ers to the Lombardi Trophy were Hall of Famers Joe Montana and Steve Young. Three of those five wins saw Montana as the starter and Young as the backup.

Young is seen by many as the best backup quarterback in history, considering the gold jacket that he earned despite many years as the backup to Montana. He would win a Super Bowl as the starter after the franchise moved on from Montana. Ever since Young decided to hang up his cleats, the 49ers have struggled to find his replacement. Have they found the guy in Trey Lance?

Perhaps, but here is why the quarterback situation involving Lance and current starter Jimmy Garoppolo could prevent the 49ers from winning the NFC West during the 2021 season.

Struggles Since Young

Jeff Garcia was the man to come in for Young. During his five seasons in the Bay, he threw for 113 touchdowns and 56 interceptions as well as 16,408 passing yards. He had a 35-36 record as a starter for the 49ers in the regular season and a 1-2 record in the postseason, meaning he never hit the heights of his predecessor.

Alex Smith was the number one overall pick in 2005, shattering Aaron Rodgers’ dreams. However, he was a good quarterback, not a great quarterback. Colin Kaepernick replaced Smith and took the 49ers to the Super Bowl. They ended up losing to the Baltimore Ravens in a game often called the ”˜Blackout Bowl’. Kaepernick failed to live up to the standards he set that season.

He would be kicked out of the league for taking the knee in a protest against police brutality in 2016. He has not played a snap in the NFL since. Jimmy Garoppolo was traded from the Patriots to the 49ers midway through the 2017 season. He gave hope to the organization after winning all five of the games he started in 2017. The fanbase had hope going into the 2018 season.

Many non-49ers fans had San Francisco down as their dark horse for the season. A season-ending injury to Garoppolo in Week 3 saw the starting role shared between Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard. However, the 49ers finished 4-12 as they went into 2019 with the second overall pick. Nick Bosa was selected and transformed the defense of San Francisco and Jimmy G had the best season of his career. He threw for 3,978 passing yards, 27 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Despite these stats, Garoppolo saw his production limited in the NFC Championship game as the coaching staff decided to use more of their running game. This led to many questions leading to the Super Bowl. The 49ers threw away a ten-point lead in the fourth quarter as they would end up losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 54.

Garoppolo was criticized heavily for an overthrown pass to Emmanuel Sanders that would have given San Francisco back the lead. His 2020 season saw a mixture of poor form and injury. During the 2021 offseason, the 49ers traded up with the Miami Dolphins to gain the number three overall pick. They took Lance with the pick, showcasing their intentions to eventually move off from Garoppolo. There is now talk of whether San Francisco and head coach Kyle Shanahan will start Lance in week one. The other scenarios discussed are either Lance coming in mid-season or sitting out the whole campaign as the backup to Garoppolo. The uncertainty will have a significant impact on the 49ers’ season.

The Strength of the NFC West

This is a problem that will affect all four teams in the best division in the NFL. There is a chance that all four teams can make the playoffs. Los Angeles has an exciting new quarterback in 2009 first overall pick Matthew Stafford. Both the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals have quarterbacks in Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray that they would never dream of trading away. Meanwhile, the 49ers’ starting quarterback is largely unpopular by fans, due to a mixture of the overthrown pass in the Super Bowl, his poor 2020 campaign and his injury record.

San Francisco has the least trusted quarterback in the division. With the position being one of the most crucial in all sports, it does not bode well for a team when there is uncertainty in the position. Garoppolo may be benched at some point during the season for Lance. However, the 49ers would be putting a rookie that will still be learning the system into the toughest division in the NFL.

Learning From Mahomes, Jackson, Tua and Burrow

If San Francisco are to help Lance succeed, they will need to take some lessons from recent draft classes. Patrick Mahomes, widely seen as the best quarterback in the league, spent all but one game of his 2017 rookie season as a backup to Alex Smith. The Chiefs then traded Smith the following offseason and Mahomes has never looked back. In his first three full seasons as a starter in the NFL, he has reached two Super Bowls, winning one. He has also been crowned MVP and Super Bowl MVP and reached three successive AFC Championship games. All three have been at home. On the flip side, 2020 first overall pick Joe Burrow started in week one of his rookie year. He wouldn’t last the season, only playing ten games before injury curtailed his first NFL campaign. He was impressive before his injury but there are no guarantees he will be the same player when he returns.

Lamar Jackson was a backup to Joe Flacco during his 2018 rookie year but won the starting role midseason. He has since gone on to win an MVP award and is the future of the franchise. Meanwhile, the Miami Dolphins brought Tua Tagovailoa in mid-season but he struggled in his rookie season. He is seen to already be on the hot seat, with many feeling the Dolphins rushed him in. These examples all show there are reasons for the 49ers to be hasty when it comes to choosing when to bring Lance into the starting role.

Lance Or Garoppolo In 2021?

The 49ers will have to decide soon who their starter will be in 2021. Considering Lance has only played one full season (2019), he is likely to start the season as the backup. He only threw for a combined total of 31 passing attempts, two touchdowns and 1 interception across the 2018 and 2020 seasons, albeit the latter campaign being disrupted by the pandemic. He is likely to be a work in progress but his 28 touchdowns and 0 interceptions in 2019 mean that he is one for the future.

Garoppolo will likely start in week one but it was clear from the NFC Championship game that Shanahan doesn’t completely trust him.

Jimmy G is a capable quarterback but his health is a concern. Expect Garoppolo to remain as the starter provided the 49ers are winning games but for Lance to come in should Garoppolo either be injured or start the season poorly.

Should this happen, this will be the end of Garoppolo’s time in San Francisco. Depending on timing, he will then be traded either before the deadline or in the 2022 offseason.

Can The 49ers Returning Players Avoid A Repeat Of 2020?

This is key if the 49ers are to challenge for both the NFC West and the NFC. After earning the number one seed and reaching Super Bowl 54 during the 2019 campaign, San Francisco finished 6-10 in 2020 and bottom of the division. A ”˜Super Bowl Hangover’ played its part but the main cause of such a decline was down to a colossal amount of injuries the team suffered. Along with the aforementioned Garoppolo, the 49ers also saw Bosa, Dee Ford, George Kittle, Raheem Mostert, Deebo Samuel and Solomon Thomas miss large chunks of the 2020 season due to injury.

San Francisco had 33 players reported questionable and there were 186 occasions when the 49ers reported a player on injured reserve. They had the second-most injuries of any team in the NFL over the past twenty years. Should all these players come back, then this 49ers roster will be one of the best in the league. This will make life much easier for whoever the San Francisco starting quarterback is.

However, from the strength of the division to the uncertainty at quarterback, San Francisco will find it tough to win the NFC West.

The post Why the QB situation may prevent the 49ers from winning the NFC West appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

After making an appearance in the 2019 Super Bowl, the San Francisco 49ers had extremely bad luck with injuries in 2020. By week 9, Jimmy Garoppolo, Richard Sherman, Nick Bosa, Solomon Thomas, Dee Ford, George Kittle, Raheem Mostert, and a few other less notable players wound up on IR. Surprisingly, the 49ers were still able to win 6 games, with 4 of those coming in the first 8 weeks of the season. It’s very fair to say that they would have had a much better season with better injury luck, but we’ll never know just how good this team could have been in 2020. Instead, we can assume that the 49ers will have much better luck with injuries in 2021, and we can look forward to this season and speculate how good they may be this year. Below, I’ve done just that, and you can find what I think to be the Win/Loss floor and ceiling for this 2021 49ers squad. Oh, don’t forget there is an added 17th game going forward, so records are going to look weird for a bit.

Worst Case Scenario

Week 1: W at Lions

Week 2: W at Eagles

Week 3: L vs Packers (with Rodgers)

Week 4: L vs Seahawks

Week 5: L at Cardinals

Week 6: Bye

Week 7: L vs Colts

Week 8: L at Bears

Week 9: L vs Cardinals

Week 10: L vs Rams

Week 11: W at Jaguars

Week 12: W vs Vikings

Week 13: L at Seahawks

Week 14: W at Bengals

Week 15: W vs Falcons

Week 16: L at Titans

Week 17: W vs Texans

Week 18: L at Rams

For me, the worst-case scenario for the 49ers is about on par with how they performed in 2020 as I have them finishing at 7-10. Even if the 49ers have poor injury luck again, it’s likely that they are able to defeat the lowly Lions, Eagles, Jaguars, Vikings, Bengals, Falcons, and Texans. That doesn’t need much explanation, those teams are not in good shape, and the 49ers are well-coached. Now, for the non-conference losses. The Packers with Aaron Rodgers are one of the best teams in football, the Colts are a very good playoff-caliber team and this assumes Carson Wentz can return to form, the Bears at home would be a tough beat and Justin Fields will likely be starting by week 8, and the Titans are a solid and well-rounded team that would be tough to beat in Tennessee. For the conference losses, the NFC West is a very tough division full of playoff teams, and there’s a scenario where the 49ers go 0-4 against the Seahawks and Rams. 

Best Case Scenario

Week 1: W at Lions

Week 2: W at Eagles

Week 3: W vs Packers (No Rodgers)

Week 4: W vs Seahawks

Week 5: L at Cardinals

Week 6: Bye

Week 7: W vs Colts

Week 8: W at Bears

Week 9: W vs Cardinals

Week 10: W vs Rams

Week 11: W at Jaguars

Week 12: W vs Vikings

Week 13: L at Seahawks

Week 14: W at Bengals

Week 15: W vs Falcons

Week 16: L at Titans

Week 17: W vs Texans

Week 18: L at Rams

In a best-case scenario, I have the 49ers finishing with a 13-4 record. Even in a best-case scenario, I believe that the 49ers would only split the season series with the Seahawks, Rams, and Cardinals. This division is so good that it has the insane possibility of 4 playoff teams. The only other loss I have is at the Titans for the same reason stated above. Some notable changes here are wins against the Packers, Colts, and Bears. This scenario assumes that Aaron Rodgers is not playing for the Packers, Carson Wentz is still not good, and the Bears’ QB situation is too much to overcome for them.

The 49ers have an argument for having a top-3 roster in the NFL. Considering the fact that there is no way they have as poor of injury luck as they did in 2020, I believe they will enjoy a lot of success throughout the 2021 season. I would give a much higher chance of them going 13-4 than 7-10. I would be extremely surprised if they don’t make the playoffs.

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By: Steph Sanchez

A week ago, Bleacher Report released a ranking of every NFL defense after the draft. The 49ers were ranked No. 15. The grade can be argued with but you can see where they were coming from. The defense did seem to take a step back after losing several important players throughout the year. 

No player was missed on defense more so than Nick Bosa who suffered an ACL tear in just the second game of the season. Expectations for Bosa in his second year were high after a dominant rookie season that saw him earn Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. The return of Nick Bosa alone could very well be the difference between being Top 15 and becoming a Top 10 defense.

Before departing to New York for a first-time head coaching gig, Robert Saleh turned a bottom of the barrel defense around in just a few years. But it wasn’t until Nick Bosa came along that the defense reached new, Super Bowl competing heights. Robert Saleh getting to add Nick Bosa to his defense in 2019 was like Thanos getting his final Infinity Stone.

Bosa unlocks the 49ers defense’s full potential. Nick Bosa tallied 80 total pressures and seven total assists during the 2019 regular season, according to PFF. Bosa will be playing with an improved supporting cast with new DL additions Samson Ebukam and Jordan Willis, Javon Kinlaw in his second year, and Dee Ford making a return from his own injury hiatus. The attention and double teams Nick Bosa commands should open things up for his defensive lineman counterparts. They should have no problems reaping the benefits.

Not only does Bosa’s impact allow other members of the defensive line to do more, it allows defensive backs to do less. Nick Bosa’s quick get off and high motor forces quarterbacks to get the ball out quickly. In 2019, Bosa accounted for 52 total hurries. The faster opposing quarterbacks have to get the ball out, the less time corners have to cover. This helps their stat sheet as well, as it’s more likely that the quarterbacks make an errant throw, resulting in interceptions or incompletions. It’s also great for overall playtime endurance. 

We can expect that with a new defensive coordinator in DeMeco Ryans, and some new chess pieces on defense, the 49ers defensive scheme may be more aggressive than we’ve ever seen it. I expect blitz packages to be dialed up more often. This will play well to Bosa and the rest of the defensive line’s strengths so they can get loose and wreak havoc on opposing offenses.

On the first day of mandatory OTAs, head coach Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers expect Nick Bosa back and ready to go by training camp. This is great news for the outlook of their season. His impact is unmatched and could only rival that of teammate Fred Warner. Barring any setbacks, Bosa’s presence on the field will be the reason this defense will be climbing power rankings come season time.

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By Rod Villagomez

Former San Francisco defensive coordinator Robert Saleh was poached by the Jets to be their next head coach. That move left a giant void in the 49ers coaching staff. Lucky for organization, there was someone qualified and groomed to take the job. Within days, John Lynch announced Saleh’s successor would be their linebackers coach, DeMeco Ryans. The promotion from within was met with praise from his current players. He was also praised by players he has dealt with in the past including J.J. Watt.

All of the excitement notwithstanding, this is the young coaches’ first assignment coordinating an entire defense alone. To that end, little is truly known about what his overall plans are, or what type of scheme he plans to implement. That said, there are at least a few things we can expect in year one of the DeMeco Ryans era of the 49ers defense.

He’ll Still Have One Of The Top Defenses In The League

There is something to be said about walking into a house that already has most of what you want. Ryans will do exactly this. He will step in to lead a defense that was far and away the saving grace of San Francisco’s 2020 season. They were led by Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw, both of which were part of the linebacking corps he coached. Both of which enjoyed outstanding years. 

As a unit under Saleh, the 49ers ranked safely inside the top-10 in total yards allowed per game, and both rushing and passing yards allowed per game. As impressive as that is, Ryans will get Nick Bosa back for the 2021 season. Bosa’s absence on the line was noticeable. That said, the fact that the defense was able to hold its own was impressive. His return next season is like gaining a first round pick to an already strong team.

Not Much Should Change In Overall Scheme

This point draws from the old saying, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Ryans is not an outsider to the team or the defensive scheme he’s inheriting. It’s certain that he won’t conduct business exactly the way his predecessor had before him. Even still, he witnessed first hand the effectiveness of Saleh’s approach. He would be wise to allow a majority of the philosophy to stay in place at least for his first season at the helm. 

That’s not to say that he shouldn’t attempt to put his own stamp on his unit. It would just be better overall to slowly implement any changes he sees necessary rather than to make wholesale changes right away. You could also figure that one of the reasons San Francisco decided to promote Ryans was his familiarity with the defense the 49ers want to continue using in the 2021 season. 

He Comes With Great Acclaim

A favorite designation when it comes to coaches is that they are a, “player’s coach.” This of course implies that he understands and relates with his/her players. Ryans fall firmly into this camp. As a former player himself, he knows exactly what his players are going through and speaks from his own experience. High praise has been showered onto him by not only Warner, but also former teammate J.J. Watt. They both played a part in a Texans team that won the AFC South and came within a game of the Super Bowl. 

Leadership shared in their enthusiasm. This was evident by their naming him as the new defensive coordinator so quickly after the position was vacated. Not to mention the fact that there seemed to be no one else in the running for the job. It appeared to be his and his alone from the outset.

There is little doubt there will be an impact on the San Francisco defense without Robert Saleh. What the 49ers are hoping to accomplish with their new coordinator is a continuation of a formidable defense. It may take some time for Ryans to get his bearings in his new role. That said, he’s proven he has the potential for this increased responsibility and to build on the success of Saleh into the future.    

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