The San Francisco 49ers head on the road for their penultimate road game of the season. The 49ers face the Atlanta Falcons in Week 15 at the Georgia Dome in what could be an ugly one. The 49ers enter the game having lost 12 straight games. They lost an ugly one to the Chicago Bears in Week 13, and then blew a 17-3 lead en route to a 23-17 loss to the New York Jets. The Falcons have alternated wins and losses, and find themselves tied atop the NFC South with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The 49ers are a two touchdown underdog against the Falcons, and it should surprise nobody that the media does not see a win happening. I don’t go through anything close to a full slate of media, but I would be stunned to find anybody out there predicting a 49ers upset.
We can play the “any given Sunday” game, but it’s hard to see the 49ers figuring out a way to win this game. The Falcons have a ridiculously dynamic offense. Even with Julio Jones potentially sidelined, even with Mohamed Sanu banged up, this offense is still going to be kind of ridiculous. I expect to see a lot of Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman, and that really might be all the Falcons need.
If the 49ers are going to spring the upset, they need to get on the board early. That won’t guarantee anything because we’ve seen the 49ers get on the board first over and over again. They could easily come in and get crushed out of the gates. But I could also see the 49ers come out and get a score or two like we have seen, and then see everything fall apart in a blowout.
Here are some picks and predictions around the media.
SB Nation: 0 out of 8
ESPN: 6 out of 10
CBS Sports: 6 out of 8
FOXSports.com: 0 out of 6
USA Today: 0 out of 5
Elliott Harrison, NFL.com: Falcons 31-13
Dennis Manoloff, The Plain Dealer: Falcons 30-13
Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News: Falcons 38-14
Pro Football Talk: MDS Falcons 38-14, Florio Falcons 27-17