The 49ers will benefit from a last-place NFL schedule in 2021, yet that doesn’t mean the upcoming calendar is without its tough spots.
After months of waiting and anticipation (not really, unless you’re nuts about the NFL schedule), fans finally know when each one of the San Francisco 49ers‘ regular-season games will be in 2021.
The opponents have been known for a while now, yes. But to be able to actually plan around the Niners calendar and make gameday preparations is a bit of a relief.
And it always leads to some early predictions, question marks and the proverbial “uh oh” or two along the way.
San Francisco will have its two games against NFC West opponents, as per usual, while the NFC West will square off this year against the NFC North and AFC South. The 49ers also get a last-place schedule in the at-large games, one of them including the road contest against the Cincinnati Bengals.
For those who have yet to see the full 17-game schedule, here you go:
- Week 1: @ Lions on Sunday, Sep. 12 at 1 p.m. ET
- Week 2: @ Eagles on Sunday, Sept. 19 at 1 p.m. ET
- Week 3: vs. Packers on Sunday, Sept. 26 at 8:20 p.m. ET
- Week 4: vs. Seahawks on Sunday, Oct. 3 at 4:05 p.m. ET
- Week 5: @ Cardinals on Sunday, Oct. 10 at 4:25 p.m. ET
- Week 6: BYE
- Week 7: vs. Colts on Sunday, Oct. 24 at 8:20 p.m. ET
- Week 8 @ Bears on Sunday, Oct. 31 at 1 p.m. ET
- Week 9: vs. Cardinals on Sunday, Nov. 7 at 4:25 p.m. ET
- Week 10: vs. Rams on Monday, Nov. 15 at 8:15 p.m. ET
- Week 11: @ Jaguars on Sunday, Nov. 21 at 1 p.m. ET
- Week 12: vs. Vikings on Sunday, Nov. 28 at 4:25 p.m. ET
- Week 13: @ Seahawks on Sunday, Dec. 5 at 8:20 p.m. ET
- Week 14: @ Bengals on Sunday, Dec. 12 at 1 p.m. ET
- Week 15: vs. Falcons on Sunday, Dec. 19 at 4:05 p.m. ET
- Week 16: @ Titans on Thursday, Dec. 23 at 8:20 p.m. ET
- Week 17: vs. Texans on Sunday, Jan. 2 at 4:05 p.m. ET
- Week 18: @ Rams on Sunday, Jan. 9 at 4:25 p.m. ET
Understandably, despite the last-place schedule and opponents having a Niners-favorable win-loss percentage from last year, there are still going to be some awfully tough challenges ahead for San Francisco.
With that as a backdrop, Niner Noise ranks out the five most challenging games the 49ers will face this upcoming season based on what we know now.
No. 5: Week 11 — 49ers at Jaguars
Jaguars record in 2020: 1-15, fourth place in AFC South
Yes, you’re going to be thinking, “how can this game possibly be on the ‘difficult’ list after the Jacksonville Jaguars had one win last year and picked first in this year’s draft?”
Excellent point. And, yes. Jacksonville should be bad this year.
But the No. 5 tough game on this list isn’t necessarily about the opponent. Rather it’s about the context. Traveling back east for what would be a 10 a.m. start time on the players’ body clocks is never easy, and having to do that on a short week following the Niners’ Monday Night Football tilt the previous week makes it even tougher.
One less day to prepare already, and the added coast-to-coast travel would make this a bigger challenge than it needs to be.
And by that point in the season, rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence might have some footing underneath him rather than being the untested first-year player with a franchise’s full expectations upon him in Weeks 1 or 2.
This is going to a tougher bout than most San Francisco fans think, although it’s almost entirely due to the travel on a short week.
Good thing it’s against the Jags.
No. 4: Week 3 — 49ers vs. Packers (SNF)
Packers record in 2020: 13-3, first place in NFC North
It’s almost by default since any Green Bay Packers team will be a major threat as long as quarterback Aaron Rodgers is actually playing and hasn’t forced himself out of town yet.
But for now, despite all the talk, he’s still going to be there. And perhaps, not unlike last year, he’ll have a fire in his belly to prove Green Bay’s front office just how valuable he is to that franchise.
Yes, the Packers beat the Niners 34-17 on Thursday Night Football last year. But San Francisco was shorthanded, both because of COVID-19 and all those injuries piling up late in the season. The hope is the 49ers will revert back to what happened in 2019 when they demolished Green Bay twice, first in the regular season and then again in the one-sided 37-20 NFC Championship game in a contest where the score made it seem closer than it actually was.
In fact, the Niners have won six out of their last nine contests against the Packers dating back to 2012.
At the same time, though, Green Bay’s 13-3 finish last year along with Rodgers’ MVP campaign is reason enough to worry about this game in a big way.
True, it’ll be San Francisco’s home opener and the first time fans are back in the stadium since that NFC Championship bout two seasons ago. And EDGE Nick Bosa returns, too.
Yet that won’t be enough to prevent the 49ers from circling this as a major hurdle this upcoming season.
No. 3: Week 5 — 49ers at Cardinals
Cardinals record in 2020: 8-8, third place in NFC West
The Arizona Cardinals have given the Niners some serious fits in the last two years. And outside San Francisco’s surprising upset win over Arizona in Week 16 last year, all the games over that span have been awfully close, including the 49ers’ season-opening loss to the Cardinals in Week 1 last year and the come-from-behind victories head coach Kyle Shanahan’s squad had to engineer in 2019.
Much of that was predicated on trying to defend quarterback Kyler Murray, who easily made good use of wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins in Week 1 a season ago.
Whether or not the Niners can contain Murray and Hopkins as they did in Week 16 last year is anyone’s guess. But with some notable defensive reinforcements on the Arizona side of the ball, namely veteran EDGE J.J. Watt, this Week 5 tilt at State Farm Stadium could be just as big a nailbiter as many of the other contests these two NFC West rivals have faced.
Granted, head coach Kliff Kingsbury still has a long way to go to develop as a quality NFL-level head coach. But the talent he has available on the field is good enough to make a run into the postseason, and however the Cardinals match up against San Francisco in this particular game could say a lot about their chances.
Oh, and it doesn’t help the 49ers are coming off a game facing one of their biggest archrivals, the Seattle Seahawks, the previous week.
No. 2: Week 13 — 49ers at Seahawks (SNF)
Seahawks record in 2020: 12-4, first place in NFC West
Ah, yes. Nothing like a prime-time matchup between the Niners and Seahawks. If only this was a Week 18 game to close out the regular season with the playoffs on the line.
Playoff implications could still be huge, though, as the Seahawks still figure to be a top contender within the NFC West despite a shoddy NFL Draft class, so-so offensive line and a still-questionable defense.
But quarterback Russell Wilson is still there. And just like Aaron Rodgers, Seattle remains a playoff favorite merely on the shoulders of Wilson. Wide receiver D.K. Metcalf, too, who could continue giving San Francisco fits.
The 49ers’ legendary Week 17 win over the Seahawks to close out 2019 was pretty epic, yes. And fans can certainly hope for a similar outcome in this divisional bout at Lumen Field in Seattle. Yet one has to recall that game was the first time the Niners won up north since 2011, and no San Francisco squad has had any particular length of luck playing the Seahawks at their home turf.
Perhaps that trend will start to change. And doing so again under the bright lights would be a great way to see it happen.
No. 1: Week 16 — 49ers at Titans (Thursday Night Football)
Titans record in 2020: 11-5, first place in AFC South
East Coast trips always raise a good deal of concern for any team traveling from the West Coast. And while the Niners only need to travel two time zones to take on the Tennessee Titans in Week 16, having to do so on a short week after hosting the Atlanta Falcons still makes for an incredibly tough challenge for Kyle Shanahan’s squad.
San Francisco 49ers
Remember, a shorthanded San Francisco team was walloped at home by the Packers on Thursday Night Football last year, and now the added travel makes things that much more difficult.
And TNF games are often weird anyway.
Teams typically like to have their Thursday night games early in the season when their rosters are mostly fresh and the injuries haven’t piled up yet. And while it’s not a crucial conference standing-determining game, one can assume both the 49ers and Titans will be vying for a key playoff berth in this bout.
Of course, the biggest projected challenge for the Niners will be facing off against Titans All-Pro running back Derrick Henry, who led the league last season with 2,027 rush yards and 17 touchdowns. Henry is one of those players who seemingly gets stronger as a year moves along, and more than a handful of other NFL squads know too well he can put up yards in bunches.
Even if it was a regularly scheduled game, Henry would be a massive threat. The fact the defense will have to prepare for him on such a short week in a time zone two hours ahead doesn’t make for an easy challenge at all.
In fact, it ranks out as the toughest one San Francisco has this season.