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San Francisco 49ers: Full Predictions for the 2016 NFL Season

By Peter Panacy

Oct 18, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Carlos Hyde (28) rushes for a gain against the Baltimore Ravens during the first quarter at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 18, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Carlos Hyde (28) rushes for a gain against the Baltimore Ravens during the first quarter at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 22, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett (72) celebrates after a sack against the San Francisco 49ers during the fourth quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Seattle Seahawks defeated the San Francisco 49ers 20-3. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 22, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett (72) celebrates after a sack against the San Francisco 49ers during the fourth quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Seattle Seahawks defeated the San Francisco 49ers 20-3. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /

Win/Loss Predictions for 2016 Season

The 49ers are coming off a 5-11 season, have a completely new coaching staff and, somehow, the NFL granted the Niners the league’s toughest schedule in 2016?

Yeah, that happened.

San Francisco owns the toughest strength of schedule this year, with opponents’ 2015 winning percentages rounding out to .555, according to CBS Sports’ John Breech.

Nov 29, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Torrey Smith (82) catches the ball against Arizona Cardinals free safety Tyrann Mathieu (32) during the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Arizona Cardinals defeated the San Francisco 49ers 19-13. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 29, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Torrey Smith (82) catches the ball against Arizona Cardinals free safety Tyrann Mathieu (32) during the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Arizona Cardinals defeated the San Francisco 49ers 19-13. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /

Playing in the NFC West doesn’t help much. The 49ers will have to deal with likely playoff-bound rivals like the Arizona Cardinals and Seattle Seahawks twice. There’s a full 25 percent of the regular-season schedule right there.

And it doesn’t help to see opponents like the Carolina Panthers and New England Patriots on the calendar either.

So it shouldn’t be as much of a surprise to see Pro Football Focus’ Nathan Jahnke predicting a 4-12 finish for the red and gold this year.

But if we look at San Francisco’s schedule, there are more than just a handful of games that could go either way. A lucky bounce here, a missed tackle there and, suddenly, the Niners may find themselves holding onto a late-game lead.

The ball isn’t round, remember?

I’m going to be a little more optimistic than Jahnke. Not much, but I’d be willing to go with a six-win season.

San Francisco may still wind up finishing last in the NFC West this year, but the record isn’t all that important anyway. The 49ers need to focus on building the foundations before concerning themselves with being better than a 6-10 record suggests.

Next: Predicting the Recap of 2016