The 49ers’ season opener is nearly upon us. With that in mind, and with the questions over how the 49ers may handle their quarterback situation with a ready-to-win roster, we asked KNBR’s best and brightest minds for their hottest takes on the team’s season and what San Francisco’s final record will be.
Brian Murphy
Record prediction: 12-5
Hot take: This team is a playoff lock
The 2021-2022 Niners? I’m high on them. I’d love to be a little deeper at receiver. I’d love to be a little deeper at cornerback, but it’s an imperfect world, kids. Kyle’s got his two quarterbacks. Nick Bosa stays healthy and standing up. Niners are gonna run the ball, schedule fairly favorable, last game of the year at the Rams could determine the West. 12-5 best case, 11-6 worst case. Either way, playoffs. See you in January, baby.
Paul McCaffrey
Record prediction: 12-5
Hot take: Jimmy Garoppolo plays the best football of his career
I’m not much of a hot take guy, but as far as hot takes go, I will offer this, I am perhaps one of the few that still has some faith in Jimmy Garoppolo and given the overall health of Lance at this point, I’m not sure with the finger when we’re going to see him or how effective he’ll be throwing the ball.
Could see him in some running packages though — I expect the unexpected. But my hot take will be, I think Jimmy Garoppolo is going to play better football than maybe a lot of people are expecting or would think.
The guy has got a lot on the line and I think all of this pressure, it’s either gonna make or break him, including his future in the league. I think we’re gonna see what Garoppolo is made of when the heat is turned up and I think we’re gonna probably see his best football. That’s my hot take if you want to call it that.
And as far as predictions go? I’m looking at a 12-5, as odd as that sounds with the 17 game schedule. 12-5 just to be cautious. I think this team is capable of winning the NFC West. I think the NFC West is gonna be a dogfight, but hopefully 12 wins should be enough to get that title. And that being said, onward and upward Niners.
Larry Krueger
Record prediction: 13-4
Hot take: 49ers lead the league in sacks
The 49ers will go 13-4 and their sack total of 30, which was 22nd in the NFL last season, will nearly double to 60. They’ll be the NFL’s team sack leader; the health of Bosa, Ford, Kinlaw, the addition of Ebukam, Kerr, Key, Hurst and the added linebacker, safety, and corner blitzes in Demeco Ryans’ scheme will provide the added sacks and create the difference.
Rod Brooks
Record prediction: 11-6
Hot take: The 49ers’ defense will carry them to the Super Bowl (again)
My prediction…pain.*Clubber Lang voice*
Pain for offenses that have to go against this ‘21 Niner defense. The defense will be the tip of the spear for this team and it will be the best unit in the league in two very important categories: yards and points allowed.
You want more? Nick Bosa will be Defensive Player of the Year and Fred Warner will be a 1st team All-Pro yet again.
It’s gonna look a lot like 2019 with the Niners going back to the Super Bowl in 2021. To paraphrase the late and damn sure great Bum Phillips; Two years ago the Niners knocked on the door. This year, they gonna kick the sum bitch in. And Nick Bosa will be the first face you see coming through that obliterated portal…
Tom Tolbert
Record prediction: 12-4-1
Hot take: 49ers win the Super Bowl
There is no apparent weakness other than this team’s depth at corner. The schedule sets up nicely as their toughest non-divisional games are at home. Tennessee is the toughest of those road contests, and the only one in which they might not be the favorite. The 49ers are one of just a handful of teams that can win it, and I’ll pick em to finish what they started in 2019.
Mark Willard
Record prediction: 11-6
Hot take: Brandon Aiyuk will top 1,200 receiving yards, and both Mostert and Sermon will rush for 800-plus yards
I’m usually too optimistic, and then the team overshoots what I predict. It happened with the 49ers two years ago and it’s happening with the Giants this year. I’m going to go for the 49ers this year, I’ll go 11-6.. I think that is very, very attainable. And then beyond that, with regard to some individuals, I want to say Brandon Aiyuk will have 1,200 yards receiving and two 49ers running backs will challenge for 1,000 yards. They won’t get it, but I’m gonna go north of 800 yards for both Raheem Mostert and Trey Sermon.
Jake Hutchinson, 49ers beat writer, KNBR.com
Record prediction: 12-5
Hot take: Trey Lance becomes the first rookie quarterback to win the Super Bowl
Remember how Andy Reid went for it on fourth down with Chad Henne in the playoffs last year to lock down the Chiefs’ win over the Cleveland Browns? You don’t beat that guy, or whoever else makes it to the Super Bowl (maybe it’s the 44-year-old grim reaper again) by being cautious. And you aren’t going to beat them with Jimmy Garoppolo, unless the other team’s starting quarterback is injured — which, if that’s the case, how did they make the Super Bowl?
The 49ers have shown they can get very close to winning the Super Bowl with Garoppolo, and nearly did. He just absolutely choked at the end of the game, and there’s really no way around that.
Garoppolo may well have a career year, but Lance fundamentally changes what the 49ers’ offense is. His running ability opens up another part of the playbook which Mike McDaniel and Shanahan said hasn’t been cracked open since the RG3 season in 2012. But Lance is a humbler person, and better thrower than Robert Griffin III was back then, and in that season, those offensive minds said they were literally figuring it out on the fly.
They’ve had an entire offseason to plan for the Trey Lance offense, and yes, it’s going to take him a bit of time to become comfortable, especially as a pocket passer. But this team is built to run and can design myriad plays to complement his skillset and with a last place schedule, there should figure to be plenty of opportunities for him to work through his issues during the regular season.
It’s a hell of a lot of pressure to put on a 21-year-old rookie, but being bold pays off, and it’s a risk that could make the difference the 49ers need. It’s the guy Kyle went way out of his way to get, and if you can’t play him when it matters most, maybe it wasn’t worth paying that much.
Jake Montero, managing editor, KNBR.com
Record prediction: 12-5
Hot take: Jimmy Garoppolo will not cede the starting QB job
When healthy, this roster is at least as good as the group that was a quarter away from hoisting the Lombardi in Miami two seasons ago. The weapons are legit, the first-team o-line is solid and, most importantly, the d-line should be able to get pressure consistently. Remember how that made the entire defense look last time around?
I also think we’ll see the best version of Jimmy Garoppolo; one that is more consistent than the 2019 version. Now, in his fourth-plus year with Shanahan, I expect he will be more polished, and possibly more focused with Trey Lance essentially eliminating any margin for error.
Therefore, I don’t think it’s unreasonable that Garoppolo remains the starting quarterback for the entire year. If Jimmy is simply able to execute Shanahan’s offense, it seems to me San Francisco will be one of the better teams in the league. Is Kyle Shanahan really going to change starting quarterbacks when the team is 6-2 just because Jimmy isn’t lighting the world on fire? Honestly, maybe he will, but I think the leash is going to be quite a bit longer than most assume, as long as the record is good. This will be especially true if the 49ers win their first two home games vs. the Packers and Seahawks.
If San Francisco sputters out of the gate, sure. Heck, the switch could be made quickly if they are anything less than 3-1 after the first four games. But I think even with an inconsistent Garoppolo they’ll be better than that, and I think Shanahan will stand pat until the team as a whole starts faltering.
Bonus hot take: An LA fan will run onto the field during the primetime Rams-49ers clash on Nov. 15 at Levi’s Stadium.
After security fails to apprehend the individual, Sourdough Sam will calmly walk onto the field, remove his hat, and throw it like a frisbee, knocking the fan unconscious from 25-yards out, a la Odd Job in the 1964 James Bond film “Goldfinger”. As the crowd erupts, Sourdough will run to midfield, put his hands on his knees, and violently whip his head around to the beat of “Bang Bang Niner Gang,” now blasting through the speakers.
Sam Hustis, lead video producer, meme lord, KNBR.com
