Last week, as the San Francisco 49ers were preparing for their first preseason game, CBS Sports analyst Pete Prisco decided to go through and predict every single game on the regular season schedule. It’s a fool’s errand, but it’s more fun for national media to do that than talk about third and fourth string players they have no insight on.
Prisco took things a step further and offered up scores. The only thing more useless than picking every single game at the beginning of the season is picking scores. But hey, why not go all the way with it, right?
Here’s a look at the 49ers results, and it’s not pretty:
Week 1: Panthers @ 49ers - 28-25 Loss
Week 2: 49ers @ Seahawks - 23-13 Loss
Week 3: Rams @ 49ers - 17-13 Loss
Week 4: 49ers @ Cardinals - 30-20 Loss
Week 5: 49ers @ Colts - 34-23 Loss
Week 6: 49ers @ Washington - 24-13 Loss
Week 7: Cowboys @ 49ers - 31-23 Loss
Week 8: 49ers @ Eagles - 27-14 Loss
Week 9: Cardinals @ 49ers - 30-17 Loss
Week 10: Giants @ 49ers - 33-21 Loss
Week 11: BYE
Week 12: Seahawks @ 49ers - 28-7 Loss
Week 13: 49ers @ Bears - 14-13 Loss
Week 14: 49ers @ Texans - 23-7 Loss
Week 15: Titans @ 49ers - 19-17 Loss
Week 16: Jaguars @ 49ers - 19-16 Win
Week 17: 49ers @ Rams - 10-9 Win
Um, no, I don’t see the 49ers losing 14 straight games to open the season. I don’t think the 49ers are going to make the playoffs, and I do think a 6-10 season would be on the high end of my expectations, but 2-14 with 14 straight losses out of the gate? No, I don’t see it.
There are so many changes to this team, we can’t say with certainty what exactly will happen. The 49ers face a tough schedule before the bye, and an easier schedule after the bye. In that final five-game stretch, three or four wins is not entirely out of the question.
Maybe the 49ers do lose a ton of games, but I just can’t see 14 straight. I think we see at least a 2-4 divisional record. I don’t expect a win over Seattle, but I see two wins in their four games with the Rams and Cardinals. I do think they go in and beat the Bears, although Prisco is suggesting that’s possible with such a close loss. That Titans game is going to be an intriguing one. There are high expectations in Tennessee, but who knows what this will look like when December rolls around.
How do you see it shaking out?