As the start of the 2025 NFL season inches closer by the second, pro football pundits are naturally getting out as many predictions and opinions as they possibly can.
One such NFL analyst taking part in the process is The Athletic's Mike Jones, who recently constructed a list of teams that he believes to be either overrated or underrated heading into the upcoming campaign.
The underrated portion of the piece features four teams, those being the Los Angeles Chargers, Dallas Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals, and Jacksonville Jaguars.
And on the overrated side of things, you've got the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions, Cincinnati Bengals, and none other than the San Francisco 49ers.
This is how he kicked off his assessment of the Niners:
Despite their 6-11, injury-plagued 2024 season, the 49ers remain a popular Super Bowl pick. John Lynch’s talent evaluation skills and Kyle Shanahan’s ability to squeeze everything he can out of a roster combine to fuel optimism. But a quick rebound could prove more challenging than some expect.
That's a pretty solid summary and undoubtedly accurate.
49ers can't have much go wrong during the 2025 season
Jones is correct about the Niners still being a Super Bowl favorite, as DraftKings currently has them listed at +2000, tied for seventh-shortest odds alongside the Green Bay Packers and trailing only the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles (+650), Buffalo Bills (+650), Baltimore Ravens (+650), Kansas City Chiefs (+800), Detroit Lions (+1000), and Washington Commanders (+1800).
That's pretty good for a team that lost a plethora of players during the offseason, a list that includes offensive guard Aaron Banks, cornerback Charvarius Ward, defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, safety Talanoa Hufanga, linebackers Dre Greenlaw and Leonard Floyd, and wideout Deebo Samuel, among others.
And it's not as if the 49ers reloaded, as their biggest free-agent acquisitions were backup tight end Luke Farrell and backup quarterback Mac Jones. The big money they spent, of course, was on the lucrative extension for starting QB Brock Purdy.
As Jones (the writer, not the QB) pointed out, San Francisco did a decent job in the draft, but it's always difficult to know how rookies will perform.
He also pointed out last year's injuries to offensive tackle Trent Williams, running back Christian McCaffrey, and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
And while the first two are relatively healthy (for now, at least), Aiyuk could miss significant time as he continues to recover from a torn ACL and MCL in his right knee, which means Jauan Jennings, who's creating headaches with contract demands, second-year stud Ricky Pearsall, and superstar tight end George Kittle will need to step up.
What he didn't discuss much at all was the issues surrounding the San Francisco defense, which will undoubtedly be a weaker unit, given some of the departures named above. Yes, Robert Saleh is back at defensive coordinator, which is great, but he'll still need players to perform, and there are plenty of question marks in that regard right now.
Jones closed out his assessment by stating, "The Niners will have little margin for error this season," and that might be more accurate than anything else he had to say.
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