The San Francisco 49ers lost 26-6 to the Chicago Bears on Sunday, marking their 11th straight loss. Stop me if you’ve heard this before: The 49ers showed signs of life in the first half, and then collapsed in the second half. It has been the same story week in and week out for three months now. The team had little trouble with the Los Angeles Rams in Week 1, but it has been downhill ever since as the team continues to grow their franchise-record losing streak.
The 49ers currently hold the No. 2 pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, and Sunday’s loss boosts their chances at that pick considerably. We have long since begun thinking about the draft and free agency. We are pondering whether or not Trent Baalke will remain around, and what the team might do to improve on this disaster.
But in terms of the current season, is there any reason to keep paying attention? Over at Bay Area Sports guy, Steve Berman wrote a piece titled, “The 49ers don’t care, so why should you?” And that got me thinking of what fans are taking from the final stretch of 49ers games, and whether or not it’s really worth watching this dreck. The 49ers are an absolute dumpster fire, and for every step they seem to take forward, they follow it with several steps back.
I got into an exchange with some Seahawks fans on Twitter in which they threw out the accusations that 49ers fans abandoning the team are just fairweather fans who deserve ridicule. I’m sure the 49ers have their share of fairweather fans, just like any franchise. But in light of what the 49ers are doing (or not doing) this season, can you blame people for not wanting to waste their Sundays watching this attempt at football? I imagine most fans still watch some or all of the games, but I really see no issue with a fan turning their focus to the draft and free agency, and just not wasting their Sundays watching the 49ers continue their second half collapses.
Some will abandon the team entirely, and given the lack of leadership the York family provides, I can understand that. It can raise a certain level of despair knowing they are not going anywhere, and for some folks, they don’t want to waste their time with any of this. But for the rest of us who at least want to try and convince ourselves there can be a long-term turnaround, it might be time to cut your losses and stop watching this team on TV (and/or at Levi’s Stadium). We can track college football and draft prospects, and just pretend the 49ers actual football-playing is done for the calendar year.
I, of course, will continue to subject myself to each week of 49ers football, and we’ll be providing news, updates, and analysis. But if you have decided that you just can’t watch any more games this season, I certainly wouldn’t blame you from spending your Sunday doing something else.