Ranking 49ers Teams over Last 10 Years by Strength

No. 8: The 2007 Niners

The 2007 Niners team was almost as disappointing as the previous two teams mentioned in this article. Coming off a solid 7-9 campaign in 2006, during Alex Smith and Frank Gore’s rookie seasons, the Niners were expected to possibly make a playoff push.

That year, the Niners signed cornerback Nate Clements to a record deal worth $80 million over eight years. The deal included $22 million in guarentees.

As we see every year in the NFL, big splashes by teams in free agency don’t typically pay off.

So why exactly, didn’t the 49ers make the playoffs this particular season?

No Offense

This Niner offense was probably the worst in team history. Scratch that. It was, according to Sam McPherson.

After the great Bill Walsh passed on July 30, 2007, the 49ers decided to have a franchise worst-ever offensive season. They averaged 13.7 points per game, only scoring 219 points in 16 games. Because their offense couldn’t score, their minus-12 turnover margin buried them to a 5-11 record. Gore was a bright spot with over 1,100 rush yards, but the rest of the team failed to help him out.

Bottom Line

Walsh passed away, the 49ers spent useless money in free agency and their offense was a franchise worst. Can 49ers fans just forget 2007 ever happened? Even if they could, they wouldn’t want to. Patrick Willis was drafted that year, and I clearly remember him winning Defensive Rookie of the Week honors in Weeks 1-3. He also took home Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. We miss you, Patrick, but hope you’re happy with life.

Next: No. 7, the 2005 Niners