Following a dismal and controversial 2017, the San Francisco 49ers are eager for a turnaround, although most fans are under the impression that the process has just begun.
Turns out, the Niners may actually be ahead of schedule.
Since John Lynch took over as general manager earlier in the year, the Niners have made an abundance of offseason transactions, including nabbing veterans Brian Hoyer and Pierre Garçon. And while those moves may not have impressed the fan base, according to Grant Cohn of The Santa Rosa Press Democrat, they may correlate to a different strategy.
“They (the 49ers) want to compete right now,” Cohn said. “They want veterans. They see an opportunity to go for it. When I saw their schedule, I understood.
“First of all, their division is weak. It’s not the NFC West of a few years ago. After that they’re playing the AFC South and if you look at all the opponents, their combined winning percentage is .474. There’s only four playoff teams on their schedule. They’re going for it. I think all these strategic signings, these veterans that know the system, they could definitely make a run.”
Listen to the full podcast below. To listen to Cohn’s thoughts on how the 49ers expect to compete, skip to 8:56.