49ers schedule: Quick-take win/loss predictions for 2019

Week 5, Monday, October 7: vs. Cleveland

This will be one of the toughest tests that a hopefully up-and-coming 49ers defense will face in the early season. It’s so strange writing that about the Browns, but general manager John Dorsey has done great work over the summer, adding players like defensive linemen Sheldon Richardson and Olivier Vernon, along with the major trade of the offseason, sending OL Kevin Zeitler, DB Jabrill Peppers, a 2019 first- and third-round pick to the Giants to acquire wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (Vernon came over in that deal, too).

Suddenly, with second-year quarterback Baker Mayfield, running back Nick Chubb, wide receiver Jarvis Landry, tight end David Njoku and Beckham, the offense is looking stellar, at least on paper.

The defense, with Richardson and Vernon joining former first-round picks Denzel Ward and Myles Garrett, also appears primed to break out this year. Are the Browns actually favorites in their division? It definitely appears so.

As such, I believe that while this Monday Night Football clash should be an exciting game, the Browns will ultimately come out on top.

Record: 3-1 

Week 6, Sunday, October 13: at Los Angeles Rams

Since Sean McVay arrived, the Rams have been one of the NFL’s top offenses. And while they 49ers gave them a test in McVay’s first year (nearly pulling off the upset in that 41-39 Thursday Night thriller and actually beating the Rams, albeit mostly backups, in Week 17 of that year), the Rams crushed an undermanned 49ers team in both contests last season (39-10 at Levi’s Stadium in Week 7, 48-32 in L.A., again in Week 17).

This year, provided both teams remain at full strength, I expect the Niners to give the Rams more of a contest. This first game, however, is likely still going to end up a loss, albeit a close one than last year would suggest. The defending NFC champs are likely still among the favorites to win it again.

So until proven otherwise, this is going to be a test for a young 49ers team.

Record: 3-2

Week 7, Sunday October 20: at Washington

Remember how messy I mentioned that Tampa Bay and Cincinnati are? If possible, the Washington Redskins are in even worse shape, at least at the moment. Some of that is unfortunate, like the Alex Smith injury that has left the team without a long-term plan at quarterback. But some of it is the coaching staff (led by Jay Gruden) and front office being ill-prepared, leaving the team with Colt McCoy and Case Keenum as their current stable of QBs.

While I doubt they start the season with those being the only two options, the team’s skill position players are either older (Vernon Davis and Adrian Peterson) or unproven (Samaje Perine, Derrius Guice and Josh Doctson). At this point in the season, I see no reason that the 49ers won’t be able to handle the Redskins without much of an issue.

Record: 4-2

Week 8, Sunday, October 27: vs. Carolina

The outcome of this game depends almost solely upon which version of Cam Newton shows up in 2019. If it’s 2015 MVP Cam that led his team to a 15-1 record and a Super Bowl berth, then this will be a difficult game to predict. If the Cam of the last year or two shows up, well, then it’s actually even more difficult because the Panthers quarterback’s inconsistency makes it difficult to know what will happen.

A lot of this, too, will come down to the how much his playmakers show up. Christian McCaffery has been outstanding since coming into the league, but the rest of the team, save for veteran tight end Greg Olsen, are inconsistent and/or unknown quantities. The defense isn’t as stacked as it was during the team’s Super Bowl run, which means the pressure is on the offense to produce, something that, at least at this point in the season, is difficult to know if it’s actually possible.

I’ll give the 49ers another win here, but definitely recognize how many directions this one could go.

Record: 5-2