The San Francisco 49ers' 2025 season was defined by two major things: injuries to key players and the inability to beat the Seattle Seahawks when it mattered most.
The fact of the matter is that even though the Niners were without key players for large chunks of the season, if they'd managed to defeat Seattle on at least one of the two occasions near the end of the year, we'd still be talking about an upcoming matchup in the NFC Championship game.
Instead, the focus is now on 2026, a campaign that will require much of San Francisco's brass this offseason to get right back into contention in the NFC and the league at large.
Much of this comes down to Seattle just being a tough matchup for Kyle Shanahan's team, but this isn't something that is unable to be fixed over the offseason.
While there are plenty of ways the 49ers can improve with the Seahawks in mind, here are three specific things that can be done this offseason to give the Niners a better chance in 2026.
No.1: Get faster on offense
It's hard to say this conclusively, since San Francisco's offense was never fully healthy for any of the three matchups against Seattle last season, outside of the opening drive in the Niners' Week 1 victory at Lumen Field.
But the fact is that Shanahan's offense, while talented, isn't particularly fast at the skill positions. Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle are more elusive and twitchy, Jauan Jennings (who is scheduled for free agency) is a bruiser, and Ricky Pearsall has decent but not game-changing speed.
There are in-house opportunities for the 49ers to upgrade here, with Jordan Watkins and Jacob Cowing coming immediately to mind, but finding someone, either through free agency or the draft who can take the top off and stress a defense vertically would be useful.
No.2: Improve the pass rush and defensive line depth
This one could apply to the defense universally, but the pass rush was one of the NFL's worst. None of their defensive lineman even sniffed Pro Football Focus' top-30 list for win rate, and the unit as a whole managed a league-low 20 sacks.
Some of this, of course, comes down to missing Nick Bosa for most of the season, but there were concerns about the depth even before his injury, a fact that was made abundantly clear once he was out of the lineup.
Specifically related to the Hawks, they've done a good job upgrading their offensive line, and Sam Darnold showed himself capable of picking defenses apart when there's no pressure, not to mention the success in the running game.
All in all, for a front office and coaching staff that has stressed the importance of the D-line since the arrival of Shanahan and John Lynch in 2017, another season like this is untenable.
No.3: Trust a running back not named McCaffrey
McCaffrey had an unbelievable season, flirting with the second 1,000/1,000 season of his storied career before falling just short in receiving yards. He should be the runaway Comeback Player of the Year in the NFL and might even see some down-ballot MVP votes for how he often carried the offense.
But he cannot be the only trustworthy back in Shanahan's arsenal.
Brian Robinson felt like the player whom the Niners head coach trusted the most as CMC's backup since McCaffrey arrived from the Carolina Panthers a few years ago. Still, the discrepancy between CMC's 311 carries and Robinson's 92 is concerning.
No, the 49ers aren't going to find another McCaffrey, but they need to find some way to take some of the load off their star for next year, especially given how physical Seattle's defense has been since Mike Macdonald arrived.