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The hits keep coming for the San Francisco 49ers, who got positive injury updates for Christian McCaffrey and offensive tackle Trent Williams. Also, ESPN gave the 49ers the best chance of a turnaround along with the Bears and Patriots.
The 49ers were tabbed as the team most likely to go from worst to first in the 2025 season. They finished 6-11 in 2024 and have a 35.8% chance of winning the NFC West, according to espn.com.
“The 49ers have by far the best odds to go from worst to first for three main reasons: schedule, health, and they weren’t really that bad last season,” Aaron Schatz wrote. “San Francisco finished the 2024 season ranked ninth in FPI. DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average) ratings at FTN didn’t have the 49ers quite that high, but they were still 14th despite a losing record. Their DVOA of 6.7% was easily the best ever by an 11-loss team, going all the way back to 1978.”
San Francisco isn’t hurting for star-level players. They just need some guys to get healthy. McCaffrey, wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, and Williams are all coming off injuries.
“The 49ers led the NFL in adjusted games lost to injury,” Schatz wrote. “That’s a clear indicator for improvement in 2025.”
Also, the 49ers have the league’s easiest schedule. It doesn’t always work out that way in the long run, but the 49ers have a chance to make hay.
Shanahan said he understood that guys weren’t ready to come back after the long season in 2023 and the heartbreaking finish, according to a post on X by KNBR.
“I understood that, but I told them how I won’t really understand it this year,” Shanahan said. “Not that is was right or wrong. But I couldn’t comprehend that we were off five weeks earlier. We all know how disappointed we are. And a lot of us have played a lot of football here.
“The first meeting, when we get back, I expect our whole team to be here. And for it to be important to guys. I thought the coolest thing was everyone being there the first day.”
Schatz said he views the Bears as an above-average team in 2025.
“That’s because Caleb Williams should improve in his second year under center, and the Bears added a lot of talent on the offensive line to give him better protection,” Schatz wrote. “There’s also a lot of optimism about new coach Ben Johnson, but it’s important to remember that teams with new coaches and coordinators tend to take a small step back in the first season.”
Schatz added that the Bears have a much tougher schedule than the 49ers, ranking as the second toughest in the league. That’s thanks in part to a very tough division.
It starts at the quarterback position, according to Schatz.
“ESPN’s...
