Where do 49ers rank on NFL's list of most complete teams?
By Peter Panacy
The 2023 49ers are going to be a good team, yes. But how complete are they? NFL.com provides one answer.
There is no such thing as a 100-percent complete team in the NFL. In fact, the league has all kinds of measures in place to ensure teams don't reach that level. The salary cap, Super Bowl-winning teams picking last in the NFL Draft, etc.
That said, there are teams that are significantly closer to being complete than others. And luckily for their fans, the San Francisco 49ers are one of those teams.
Granted, the Niners have some roster questions heading into the 2023 season. Big ones. The right side of the offensive line looks shaky, and there's not a ton of proven depth at cornerback either.
And there's that whole quarterbacking situation. Will the 2023 starter be Brock Purdy coming off a serious elbow injury? Can Trey Lance reclaim the job for which he was essentially crowned back when San Francisco drafted him No. 3 overall in 2021? Or will it be the reclamation project, Sam Darnold?
All good question marks. It's hard to have a complete team when there is such shaky ground at the game's most important position.
That said, San Francisco is still pretty complete. NFL.com thinks so, at least.
NFL.com says 49ers are No. 3 'most complete' team entering 2023
NFL.com's Eric Edholm broke down his list of the 10 most complete teams heading into the 2023 season, and it's not a big surprise to see the 49ers on the list.
Where did they land, though?
Edholm has them at No. 3, behind only the Kansas City Chiefs (No. 2) and Philadelphia Eagles (No. 1) in a list that'd likely mirror a lot of NFL power rankings out there.
Not surprisingly, Edholm cites the Niners' quarterbacking dilemma but actually turns it on its head by suggesting it could be a potential strength:
"The 49ers’ biggest question right now could end up being a relative strength. Quarterback remains a concern of sorts following Brock Purdy’s elbow injury, which keeps his timeline to return to action murky. If Purdy can come back and prove that his late-season run was no fluke, the 49ers will be in great shape.
Trey Lance’s trajectory has changed wildly in the past nine months or so, but he’ll still have a chance to rewrite his path and start if Purdy can’t go Week 1. There’s also Sam Darnold, who has 55 career NFL starts to his name, which is pretty good insurance. "
Read More: Predicting every game the 49ers will play in 2023
On one hand, having three quarterbacks who can all start is a good thing. But it's also nice to know the roles, and no one has any clue how this particular competition will pan out this summer.
Edholm does admit some question marks at right tackle in the wake of Mike McGlinchey's free-agent departure, while the defensive line has some concerns aside from the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Nick Bosa.
Aside from that, though, San Francisco is stacked.
Rounding out the top five, Edholm placed the Cincinnati Bengals at No. 4 and the Dallas Cowboys at No. 5.