49ers schedule: Early win/loss predictions for 2021 season

Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 19 vs Falcons, 4:05 p.m. ET

During their 2019 run to the Super Bowl, the 49ers ran into a bona fide trap game, losing to a poor Atlanta Falcons team at Levi’s stadium in a mid-December matchup. The loss made the final weeks of the season much more tense for Niners fans.

That game ended on a last-second Matt Ryan to Julio Jones touchdown pass, as San Francisco’s defense couldn’t hold up in the fourth quarter, allowing the Falcons to score on two consecutive drives after the offense took a 19-10 lead early in the quarter.

While the 29-22 final flatters Atlanta (they scored on a the ensuing kickoff when the 49ers attempted to pass the ball around to keep the clock running), it was still a disappointing loss in the middle of a fantastic season.

The Niners will have to be careful not to let history repeat itself, as a loss to the Falcons would once again drop their record to 11-3 with just a few games to play, two of which are against expected playoff contenders.

Hopefully they did learn from past mistakes and will grab a win against a rebuilding Falcons team with a first-year head coach.

Record: 12-2

Week 16: Thursday, Dec. 23 at Titans, 8:20 p.m. ET

2021 is like revisiting many of Jimmy Garoppolo’s greatest hits as quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers. And yet, ironically, there’s a small chance he may not even be the starter by this point in the season.

Sure, if he starts all the games leading up to this and the 49ers are winning and in contention as we predict, then there’s little reason to expect Trey Lance to see starting snaps in 2021. But Garoppolo isn’t exactly winning any Iron Man awards so Lance seeing the field isn’t out of the question.

For now, let’s assume Garoppolo is under center like he was the last time these two teams back in 2017 at Levi’s Stadium. The 49ers won the game 25-23 in Garoppolo’s third start as the 49ers’ quarterback.

But Tennessee is coming off an 11-5 season in 2020, its third under head coach Mike Vrabel, and has improved each year since the former Patriots’ linebacker took over as their coach. They were great on offense last year, but poor on defense, something the defensive-minded head coach will want to improve in 2021.

They’re expected to fight with the Colts for the AFC South crown, although much of that depends on quarterback Ryan Tannehill continuing to be successful in Nashville. As is the case for most NFL teams, as he goes, so go the Titans.

This feels like the game where the scheduling and travel finally get the best of the 49ers. After an afternoon game at home, they have to fly to Nashville for this Thursday Night Football matchup, not an ideal recipe for success. This stretch is tough, but this feels like all the elements lead to another loss.

Record: 12-3

Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 2 vs Texans, 4:05 p.m. ET/1:05 PM PT

The Houston Texans are possibly the biggest dumpster fire of an organization in the NFL at the moment.

They appear to be aware that DeShaun Watson will not be playing football for them in 2021 based on their offseason signings and draft day moves and the skill on both sides of the ball leaves a lot to be desired.

When the Texans visit Levi’s Stadium with only two weeks remaining in the 2021 season, there’s a good chance they’ll be in the running for the no.1 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft as they’ll look to draft their next quarterback of the future.

The 49ers, on the other hand, will either be looking to wrap up a no.1 seed or ensuring another NFC West division crown, meaning they’ll have a lot to play for as the season heads towards its final days.

Look for the 49ers, who have only lost once to the Texans in four regular-season meetings, to run their tally to four straight against Houston and get them to 13 wins on the year.

Record: 13-3

Week 18: Sunday, Jan. 9 at Rams, 4:25 p.m. ET

It is bizarre to consider a team with three losses that also wins 14 games, but this is the new NFL with its 17-game schedule.

The way this schedule works out feels an awful lot like the NFL expects the two best teams in the NFC West to be the 49ers and the Rams and that, just like in 2019, this final game of the season could be decisive in terms of who wins the division.

Hopefully, 13 wins are enough so that the Rams wouldn’t be able to catch the 49ers and the Niners will have wrapped up the no.1 seed in the NFC and will have nothing to play for. Maybe that means a Trey Lance start, provided he isn’t already the starter due to either the early slate not going as well as predicted or a Garappolo injury.

In this scenario, I’m predicting 13 wins will be enough to lock up both the division and the no.1 seed in the conference heading into Week 18, rendering this matchup meaningless for the 49ers, who’ll rest their starters either for all of or most of this game.

If it matters, they have a solid chance of winning it because, as previously mentioned, Shanahan has a knack for beating his old buddy Sean McVay.

If not, they’ll lose and it won’t matter, although it would be cool to potentially be the first 14-3 team in NFL history.

Record: 13-4

Final Thoughts on 49ers schedule

The 2020 season was a forgettable one almost from the start because of the injuries that piled up en masse starting on that fateful Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium in a win over the Jets.

But expectations remain high for a 49ers team that doesn’t look all that different from the one that was in the Super Bowl in Miami in February of 2020. If they can avoid costly injuries, they have a real shot to be competitive in all 17 of their games this season and make noise in the playoffs.

If healthy, they’re among the small list of Super Bowl contenders heading into the season. There are other variables, of course, such as who the quarterback might be throughout the year, but there’s little doubt this is a team built to win now and it very well could be among the NFL elite in 2021.