San Francisco 49ers (Last Year: 6-11)
2025 NFL Season Preview:
Veteran Additions:
QB Mac Jones, WR Demarcus Robinson, TE Luke Farrell, OT Andre Dillard, DE Bryce Huff, LB Luke Gifford, CB Tre Brown, CB Siran Neal, S Jason Pinnock, S Richie Grant.
Early Draft Picks:
DE Mykel Williams, DT Alfred Collins, LB Nick Martin, CB Upton Stout, WR Jordan Watkins. 49ers Rookie Forecast
Offseason Losses:
QB Joshua Dobbs, RB Jordan Mason, RB Elijah Mitchell, WR Deebo Samuel, OT Jaylon Moore, G Aaron Banks, G Jon Feliciano, DT Javon Hargrave, DT Maliek Collins, OLB Leonard Floyd, LB Dre Greenlaw, LB De’Vondre Campbell, CB Charvarius Ward, CB Isaac Yiadom, S Talanoa Hufanga, P Pat O’Donnell.
2025 San Francisco 49ers Offense:
The 49ers traded for Jimmy Garoppolo and then used the No. 3 overall selection on Trey Lance. The solution to the quarterback problem was apparently spending the final pick in the draft on the position. Brock Purdy took over for an injured Garoppolo in 2022 and never looked back. He was even the MVP frontrunner in the betting markets at one point during the 2023 season. He didn’t win the award, but he led his team to the Super Bowl, where he went toe to toe with Patrick Mahomes before ultimately falling in overtime.
San Francisco had lots of promise heading into the following year, but the 2024 season was over before it even began. It started innocently, with the 49ers announcing that Christian McCaffrey had a calf injury. He was listed as questionable heading into the opening Monday night game, so the injury didn’t seem overly serious. This, however, was completely incorrect, as McCaffrey’s calf problem somehow transformed into an Achilles injury on both feet. The All-Pro back played just four games as a result.
The 49ers were limited offensively without McCaffrey. They especially struggled in the red zone all year. That could be fixed if McCaffrey returns to full strength, and it seems as though the front office is bullish on that prospect, given that they allowed both Jordan Mason and Elijah Mitchell to leave this offseason. If McCaffrey gets hurt again, the speedy Isaac Guerendo can take over and perform well.
There’s a far greater shake-up at receiver. Deebo Samuel was traded to the Redskins, while Brandon Aiyuk won’t be available for most of the 2025 season because he’s coming off a torn ACL and MCL. All hope isn’t lost, however, given that Jauan Jennings posted some big performances last year when the top receivers weren’t available. There’s also second-year Ricky Pearsall, who had a strong finish despite getting shot ahead of the 2024 season. Of course, there’s also George Kittle, who continues to be a top-three tight end in the NFL. Age (32) is becoming an issue with Kittle, but it likely won’t impact him this year.
There is some concern with the offensive line as well. The unit was poor last year because of several injuries. This included Trent Williams’ health problems, which caused him to miss seven games. Jaylon Moore played well in reserve, but there’s no denying that San Francisco’s offense struggled as a result of Williams’ absence. Williams will be back for 2025, but he’s now 37, so there will be regression in the near future. Williams will be bookended by Colton McKivitz, who performed well last year.
The 49ers had injury issues in the interior offensive line as well, with Aaron Banks missing time. Banks is gone, so the two starting guards project to be Dominick Puni and Ben Bartch. Puni had a strong 2024 season despite being a third-round rookie, so the future is bright for him. Bartch doesn’t have the same upside as a journeyman. Center Jake Brendel is as mediocre as they come.
2025 San Francisco 49ers Defense:
It was clear that the 49ers were saving up the money to give Brock Purdy a monster extension because they allowed a number of key players to walk. We saw that offensively with Deebo Samuel, Aaron Banks, and the backup running backs, but that was nothing compared to the departures seen on the defensive side of the ball.
The 49ers lost key players on every level of their defense. Beginning with the front line, Leonard Floyd, Javon Hargrave, and Maliek Collins all departed. They were good for 14.5 of San Francisco’s 36 sacks, so they’ll sorely be missed. Hargrave barely played last year because of injury, but he’s someone who could have rebounded back to a high level. With Floyd gone, the 49ers had to use an early draft pick to find a bookend for the dynamic Nick Bosa. There was some speculation that the 49ers would sign Joey Bosa, but they used the 11th-overall selection on Mykel Williams instead. Williams has immense upside and could be productive immediately. The 49ers will need him to be because they have no viable edge rushers outside of Bosa.
It gets even bleaker in the interior of the defensive front. With Hargrave and Collins gone, the 49ers will start Jordan Elliott and Kevin Givens until rookies Alfred Collins and C.J. West can replace them. The 49ers will hope that occurs early in the season because both Elliott and Givens were awful last year. Collins is a second-rounder who should be able to help in run support sooner rather than later.
At linebacker, the 49ers lost Dre Greenlaw, who didn’t play much last year because of an injury he suffered in the preceding Super Bowl. However, he was expected to rebound well this season. The good news for San Francisco is that Fred Warner, arguably the best off-ball linebacker in the NFL, is still there to patrol the middle of the field. Warner didn’t play his best last year because he dealt with a nagging injury, but he should be 100 percent for 2025. Warner will play next to Dee Winters, who was a liability in run support last year.
There were two significant departures in the secondary, one at each position. The big one was Talanoa Hufanga. While often injured, Hufanga was a big play-maker for the 49ers when healthy. Things wouldn’t be that bad at safety if Malik Mustapha were healthy, but he tore his ACL in the 2024 finale. The 49ers still at least have Ji’Ayir Brown, an incredibly instinctive young safety, but he’s all there is at the position. One of Jason Pinnock or Richie Grant will have to start next to Brown until Mustapha is ready, but both are poor options.
The departed cornerback is Charvarious Ward, though he did not perform well last year. The 49ers at least found a potential replacement in former Seahawk Tre Brown, who was very inconsistent in Seattle. Otherwise, San Francisco will be going with the recently arrested Deommodore Lenoir and Renardo Green. Lenoir is coming off a solid season as the team’s nickel, while Green was fairly decent as well.
2025 San Francisco 49ers Schedule and Intangibles:
The 49ers had some major kicking woes in 2024. Jake Moody was terrible, going 24-of-34, so it seemed certain that the 49ers would replace him. They signed Greg Joseph to challenge him in training camp.
Mitch Wishnowsky continued to be one of the worst punters in the NFL. He had the league’s third-worst net-punting average last year, and he didn’t pin the opposition inside the 20 very often. San Francisco signed Thomas Morstead to replace him. Morstead wasn’t great last year, ranking 26th in net punting, but he was better than Wishnowsky.
The 49ers have one of the easiest schedules ever seen. Their non-divisional foes are the Saints, Jaguars, Buccaneers, Falcons, Giants, Panthers, Browns, Titans, Colts, and Bears.
2025 San Francisco 49ers Rookies:
Go here for the 49ers Rookie Forecast, a page with predictions like which rookie will bust and which rookie will become a solid starter.
2025 San Francisco 49ers Positional Rankings (1-5 stars):
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Projection: 10-7 (2nd in NFC West)
2024 Projection: 12-5. 2024 Actual Result: 6-11.
2023 Projection: 12-5. 2023 Actual Result: 12-5.
2022 Projection: 11-6. 2022 Actual Result: 13-4.
2021 Projection: 12-5. 2021 Actual Result: 10-7.
2020 Projection: 11-5. 2020 Actual Result: 6-10.
2019 Projection: 10-6. 2019 Actual Result: 13-3.
2018 Projection: 10-6. 2018 Actual Result: 4-12.
2017 Projection: 4-12. 2017 Actual Result: 6-10.
2016 Projection: 3-13. 2016 Actual Result: 2-14.
NFL Draft Team Grade: C Grade
Goals Entering the 2025 NFL Draft: The 49ers lost tons of talent this offseason, namely at wide receiver, guard, defensive end, defensive tackle, linebacker, and safety. All of these positions must be addressed. In general, it would be best for San Francisco to draft the top player available because if Christian McCaffrey can return to full strength, the team will have a great chance of making the playoffs, given how ridiculously easy the schedule is.
2025 NFL Draft Accomplishments: The 49ers had a golden opportunity to draft the best player available when Tyler Warren and Jalon Walker fell to them when they slipped out of the top 10. Instead, they settled for Mykell Williams. While Williams should be an effective pass rusher for them, it was disappointing to see the front office pass on top talent.
The rest of San Francisco’s draft class was equally underwhelming. The 49ers made 11 draft selections, and yet none of them scored higher than a B+. Two of the grades were a C-, and there was even a dreaded Millen (F) grade when the 49ers used a pick on a UDFA talent at No. 138 overall.
The one good thing that can be said about the 49ers’ draft class as that the team largely focused on the important positions. The top two choices were used to address the defensive line, while other early selections addressed other weak areas of the defense. The offensive line, however, was neglected until late on Saturday.
This draft class echoes the rest of San Francisco’s offseason. The 49ers disappointed their fans with what transpired in free agency, and the draft was just a continuation of that.
NFL Draft Individual Grades:
11. Mykel Williams, DE, Georgia – B- Grade
I thought there was a chance Mykel Williams would slip because he was deemed as safe, but not as someone who had a lot of upside. This pick makes sense from a needs perspective, but it would make so much more sense if the 49ers didn’t have Jalon Walker or Tyler Warren available.
43. Alfred Collins, DT, Texas – B+ Grade
It comes as no surprise that the 49ers have used their first two picks on their defensive line. They got their pass rusher with their first pick, and now they have their run stuffer. Alfred Collins fits the range in the middle of the second round and potentially fills a big need.
75. Nick Martin, LB, Oklahoma State – C- Grade
Nick Martin was expected to be a value pick later in the draft because of his injury history. He’s a tackling machine when healthy, but the 49ers reached for him, as they could have taken him in the fifth round. They’re filling a need potentially, but there were better value options.
100. Upton Stout, CB, Western Kentucky – C- Grade
Upton Stout is a small cornerback who projects as a slot cornerback in the NFL. He’s a gritty player, but I had him projected late in the draft, and I didn’t hear of anyone slotting him in the third round. The 49ers needed help for their secondary, but this is a reach.
113. C.J. West, DT, Indiana – B+ Grade
The 49ers need as many defensive linemen as possible, and they got a solid one. C.J. West is a very strong defensive lineman who will be able to stop the run. I thought he would be chosen in this range.
138. Jordan Watkins, WR, Ole Miss – MILLEN Grade
This is the second player drafted I didn’t have in my mock draft. In fact, I didn’t have him in consideration. This is a colossal reach. San Francisco could have made this pick in Round 6 or 7.
147. Jordan James, RB, Oregon – B+ Grade
Surprise, surprise, the 49ers drafted a running back. Kyle Shanahan loves adding to the position, and he was able to snag a solid runner who was projected by some to be a fourth-round prospect. I had him a bit later, but this is still a solid pick, especially given Christian McCaffrey’s durability issues.
160. Marques Sigle, S, Kansas State – B+ Grade
The 49ers lost Talanoa Hufanga, so safety was an area they needed to address. Marques Sigle has high upside as the fastest player at the position at the combine. He makes sense in this range, so I like this pick.
227. Kurtis Rourke, QB, Indiana – B- Grade
Kurtis Rourke was a borderline draftable prospect. He has plus size, but doesn’t have an NFL skill set. It’s the seventh round, however, so I can’t grade anything too poorly.
249. Connor Colby, G, Indiana – B Grade
Connor Colby makes sense in this range. He has plenty of experience and should be able to compete for a backup job for the 49ers, who have offensive line issues.
252. Junior Bergen, WR, Montana – C Grade
Junior Bergen was not expected to be drafted, but we have six picks remaining. I would have wanted to see the 49ers address something other than receiver here, but it’s not a big deal.
Follow me @walterfootball for updates.
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