It’s four days until 49ers training camp-week begins! We want to look at each opponent and provide a reason for and against the San Francisco 49ers beating them. We’ve included a poll for the community to vote on whether they expect a win or a loss. We’ll see what kind of prediction this provides at the end.
Week 1 @ Minnesota Vikings
Week 2 vs. Detroit Lions
Week 3 @ Kansas City Chiefs
Week 4 @ Los Angeles Chargers
Week 5 vs. Arizona Cardinals
Week 6 @ Green Bay Packers
Week 7 vs. Los Angeles Rams
Week 8 @ Arizona Cardinals
Week 9 vs. Oakland Raiders
Week 10 vs. New York Giants
Week 12 @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 13 @ Seattle Seahawks
Week 14 vs. Denver Broncos
The 49ers face off against the Seahawks twice in three weeks. The last time that happened was in 2014. The first of those two Seahawks games set the 49ers tumbling toward Jim Harbaugh’s eventual departure. This year, the 49ers will close out their Seahawks series at home. The game up in Seattle is not a must-win, but if the 49ers are going to compete for a wild card berth, they have to beat Seattle at home. Last year, they lost 12-9 in Seattle and 24-13 at home, with the latter also marking Jimmy Garoppolo’s first appearance of the season.
Reason For: Seattle’s offensive line
The Seahawks’ offensive line has been a regular Achilles heel for this team. They have invested to improve it, but the unit has struggled to take a significant next step. The departure of Tom Cable might actually help this group, but if not, this is where the 49ers need to take advantage to get a victory. Russell Wilson remains one of the best quarterbacks in the league, and he can make magic even with a poor offensive line. But if the 49ers can keep him scrambling, and potentially closing the deal on some sacks, this is a very winnable game.
Reason Against: Russell Wilson
Even if the Seahawks offensive line struggles, it still is not necessarily going to be enough to stop Russell Wilson. The Seahawks defense is likely to take enough of a step back that Wilson can’t win this on his own, but if there’s a quarterback who can put his team on his back to get a crazy win, it’s Russell Wilson.
If you can’t see the poll, click here.