3 reasons why SF 49ers must be ‘sellers’ at 2020 NFL trade deadline
By Peter Panacy
No. 3: SF 49ers’ upcoming schedule will be brutal
The first five weeks of 2020 were supposed to be the “easy” stretch of games for San Francisco, yet the team ultimately started off 2-3.
The win over Los Angeles was a bit misleading, as it didn’t change the NFC West standings and only gave the SF 49ers an early edge in the tiebreaker determination, should they and the Rams finish with the same record at season’s end.
As for the upcoming six games, well, they’re going to be awfully challenging:
- Week 7 @ New England Patriots, 2-3
- Week 8 @ Seattle Seahawks, 5-0
- Week 9 vs. Green Bay Packers, 4-1
- Week 10 @ New Orleans Saints, 3-2
- Week 12 @ LA Rams, 4-2
- Week 13 vs. Buffalo Bills, 4-2
Perhaps the scuffling Patriots have proverbial “holes in the armor,” although the Niners have had issues with mobile quarterbacks, and the Pats’ Cam Newton falls into that category. Meanwhile, Seattle is rolling and looks to be the top favorite for the division crown.
And the offensive firepower the Packers, Saints, Rams and Bills all have, particularly through the air, doesn’t exactly match up well with what San Francisco has been able to do, defensively, this season.
Simply put, there’s a real chance the SF 49ers go winless over these upcoming six games, which would put the team at a 3-9 mark and all but eliminate it from playoff contention.