San Francisco 49ers 2023/24 Season Outlook

Consistently one of the top teams in the NFL, the San Francisco 49ers have come closer to a Lombardi Trophy than most any other team in the last few years. Can they replicate that success even with uncertainty at quarterback?

Injuries to quarterbacks ruined the 49ers' chances of reaching last season’s Super Bowl as Brocky Purdy and then Josh Johnson were knocked out of the NFC Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles, who then proceeded to pummel the quarterback-less Niners. 

Doubts over Purdy’s health linger on and cloud the picture heading into the new season for a well-coached franchise that’s made three of the last four NFC title deciders.

Click here to read all NFL Season Outlooks for the 2023/24 season.

What:	2023/24 NFL Season
When:	Thursday, September 7th, 2023 - Sunday, February 11th, 2024
49ers Odds:	To win Super Bowl LVIII +900, to win the NFC +350, to win the NFC West -175

Where did the San Francisco 49ers finish last season?

1st NFC West (13-4). Lost in NFC championship game.

What to expect from the San Francisco 49ers in 2023/24

A lot depends on who starts at quarterback for the 49ers because there’s no doubt they have the surrounding talent to go on another playoff run if the single caller is right. 

The defense gave up the fewest points and yards per game last year, topping Football Outsiders’ defensive DVOA metric. 

And while the Niners again look thin at cornerback, their defensive front has been improved with the signing of Javon Hargrave from the Philadelphia Eagles. 

For the second off-season running, they lost their defensive coordinator, but that hasn’t slowed down Nick Bosa and co before. 

On offense, they possess three elite talents in Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel and George Kittle, who operate under the watch of offensive guru and head coach Kyle Shanahan. 

They ranked fifth in total offense by the end of the season, despite a revolving door at quarterback which saw Trey Lance start the year under centre, only to break his leg two games in. 

Jimmy Garoppolo stepped in for 11 games before he got hurt, leaving the Niners with no choice but to start seventh round pick Purdy. 

Purdy was brilliant for eight games, posting a 107 QB rating, but doubts linger over whether that run was a one-off, while the elbow injury he suffered against the Eagles makes him doubtful for the start of the season. 

That leaves the 49ers with two options, start Lance, who has shown little in his two years in the league, or Sam Darnold, who did fine in Carolina last year but isn’t a Super Bowl-caliber quarterback. 

But unless Purdy can pick up from where he left off, they could have a hard time getting back to the Super Bowl.

San Francisco 49ers 2023/24 Odds Prediction

Predicting what the 49ers will do any season, much less this season, is basically a guessing game.

There always seem to be twists and turns at some point in San Francisco’s season, whether it be injuries, surprise acquisitions, players switching positions, or Shanahan calling a play we’ve never seen before. 

What’s known is that SF has one of the most complete teams in the NFL and is a co-favorite, along with the Eagles, to earn the Conference Number One Seed at +300. The Niners (-175) are also the biggest favorite of any NFL team to win their division, the NFC West.

Whether it be Christian McCaffrey, Nick Bosa, Fred Warner or Deebo Samuel, San Fran has All-Pro caliber players all over the field. 

Bosa is the +800 favorite to log the most sacks in the regular season. McCaffrey is the +500 favorite to have the most scrimmage yards in the regular season. Samuel (+3300) and McCaffrey (+1600) are among the favorites to win Offensive Player of the Year, too.

San Francisco 49ers 2023/24 Schedule, Times, TV

• Week 1: 9/10 at Pittsburgh Steelers, 1:00 PM, FOX
• Week 2: 9/17 at Los Angeles Rams, 4:05 PM, FOX
• Week 3: 9/21 vs. New York Giants (Thursday), 8:15 PM, Amazon Prime Video
• Week 4: 10/1 vs. Arizona Cardinals, 4:25 PM, FOX
• Week 5: 10/8 vs. Dallas Cowboys, 8:20 PM, NBC
• Week 6: 10/15 at Cleveland Browns, 1:00 PM, FOX
• Week 7: 10/23 at Minnesota Vikings (Monday), 8:15 PM, ESPN
• Week 8: 10/29 vs. Cincinnati Bengals, 4:25 PM, CBS
• Week 9: BYE WEEK
• Week 10: 11/12 at Jacksonville Jaguars, 1:00 PM, FOX
• Week 11: 11/19 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 4:05 PM, FOX
• Week 12: 11/23 at Seattle Seahawks (Thursday), 8:20 PM, NBC
• Week 13: 12/3 at Philadelphia Eagles, 4:25 PM, FOX
• Week 14: 12/10 vs. Seattle Seahawks, 4:05 PM, FOX
• Week 15: 12/17 at Arizona Cardinals, 4:05 PM, CBS
• Week 16: 12/25 vs. Baltimore Ravens (Monday), 8:15 PM, ABC
• Week 17: 12/31 at Washington Commanders, 1:00 PM, FOX
• Week 18: TBD vs. Los Angeles Rams, TBD, TBD

When are the San Francisco 49ers' key matchups?

San Francisco’s fixture list might be the fifth-easiest based on strength of schedule, but it does involve a lot of travelling with the 49ers set to clock up 29,958 miles. 

After playing their first two games on the road, the Niners have a three-game home stand between Week 3 and Week 5 when they’ll face the Giants, Cardinals and Cowboys. 

Following the week eight clash with another playoff team, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Niners have their bye week. 

They face their toughest stretch between Week 12 and Week 14, taking on the Seattle Seahawks twice, either side of a return trip to Philadelphia to face the Eagles in an NFC Championship game rematch.

Who is the San Francisco 49ers head coach?

With three NFC Championship Game appearances and a trip to the Super Bowl in his first six seasons as head coach, the Niners must be delighted they chose the former Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan to be their HC in 2017. 

Shanahan had some bad luck with injuries to key players in his first couple of years at the helm before overseeing dramatic improvement in 2019 as the 49ers finished top of the NFC West with a 13-3 regular season record and went on to lose to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV. 

The Niners have since been to the NFC Championship game twice in the last three years, and yet questions have been asked of Shanahan’s decision-making and scheme at key moments in games, believing he’s made costly mistakes.

Which players have the San Francisco 49ers signed?

IDL Javon Hargrave (Philadelphia Eagles) 
Edge Clelin Ferrell (Las Vegas Raiders) 
QB Sam Darnold (Carolina Panthers) 
LT Matt Pryor (Indianapolis Colts) 
LG Jon Feliciano (New York Giants) 
CB Isaiah Oliver (Atlanta Falcons) 
WR Chris Conley (Tennessee Titans) 
IDL Austin Bryant (Detroit Lions)

Which players have left the San Francisco 49ers?

S Jimmie Ward (Houston Texans) 
QB Jimmy Garaoppolo (Las Vegas Raiders) 
Edge Samson Ebukam (Indianapolis Colts) 
CB Emmanuel Moseley (Detroit Lions) 
RT Mike McGlinchey (Denver Broncos) 
LB Azeez Al-Shaair (Tennessee Titans) 
RG Daniel Brunskill (Tennessee Titans) 
IDL Hassan Ridgeway (Houston Texans) 
S Tarvarius Moore (Green Bay Packers) 
Edge Charles Omenihu (Kansas City Chiefs) 
CB Jason Verrett 
WR Jordan Matthews

Who are the San Francisco 49ers' key players?

Offensive MVP	Christian McCaffrey
Defensive MVP	Nick Bosa
Top rookie	Ronnie Bell (seventh round)
Breakout star	Jordan Mason

Christian McCaffrey decided being traded mid-season to the 49ers as “the best thing that ever happened to him” and with good reason. 

McCaffrey is a perfect fit for Kyle Shanhan’s system and slotted in seamlessly, ending the season averaging over 110 all-purpose yards per game and scoring ten touchdowns. 

On defence, Nick Bosa enjoyed another monster year and deservedly picked up the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year prize after registering a league-high 18.5 sacks. 

He also had a joint-high 90 pressures and registered 48 quarterback hits as the leader of an impressive Niners defence. 

When it came to the draft, the Niners didn’t have a pick in the first two rounds and when they did get to the podium, they made some intriguing choices. 

One of which was a seventh-round pick, Michigan wide receiver Ronnie Bell, who showed elite ball skills in college before suffering a serious knee injury in 2021. 

If San Fran can get him right, they may have a draft steal on their hands. 

It’s become a running joke about how many running-backs the 49ers have on their roster at any one time. 

Now they have McCaffrey, the pool of running-backs has shrunk slightly with Jordan Mason third on the depth chart. 

That’s a position with limited breakout potential, but given McCaffrey and Elijah Mitchell’s injury history, Mason, who showed flashes of what he can last year, could see some snaps in an offence designed to show off running-backs.

Odds displayed within this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.