As things stand, the San Francisco 49ers have arguably the most talented roster in the NFL. They also, of course, have a starting quarterback who is recovering from major surgery on his elbow.
That begs the question, despite the uncertainty at quarterback, where does San Francisco stand in the NFC West and the NFL in the big picture.
Mike Silver joined Tolbert and Copes on Thursday to try to take aim at that question.
Silver was asked first about the NFC West pecking order. The Cardinals are at the bottom, likely with the Rams next, followed by the Seahawks.
On the Cardinals:
The Cardinals are a complete train wreck on paper. We’ll see. New coach, I think Kyler is going to take a while to get back. But the Cardinals scare nobody on paper.
On the Rams:
Sean McVay, essentially he’s gonna try to coach his way out of a little bit of a hole. But in fairness, if you ask most fans and coaches and GMs, ‘Hey, would you take putting yourself in a little bit of a hole for a couple of years in exchange for a Lombardi trophy?’ I think most would say yes.
And so, because the Rams with the celebrated ‘F them picks’ strategy and really prioritizing the present, manipulating the salary cap, aggressively trading draft capital, because they parlayed that into a ring, I think they’re at peace with that. But on paper, the Rams are not nearly on the level that they were two years ago.
Seattle is an interesting case. They are obviously the most compelling contender in the 49ers’ own division and had what many believe was a compelling draft haul by drafting Illinois corner Devon Witherspoon fifth overall and Ohio State wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba 20th overall.
Silver still doesn’t see them as a major contender:
And I do think there’s a sense with the Seahawks that as cool and heartening as last year was, when they were expected to be a nonfactor and made the playoffs and came to Levi’s [Stadium] and all that, they may not be as poised to take that next step as commonly believed. Though I do think they hit on some guys at the top of the draft in their mind based on early returns.
That leaves the 49ers.
Silver said he expects them to win the NFC West and went far beyond that… with the caveat being Brock Purdy looking like Brock Purdy of last season.
“It should be their division,” Silver said. “It shouldn’t be close. But of course, there is a question at the most important position of all. If you told me Brock Purdy is going to be Brock Purdy and is gonna come back and play all season and it’s all going to be good, I would say we’re looking at the favorite to win the Super Bowl, but obviously that is a big if.”
San Francisco has come up just short in the NFC Championship for the past two years after losing to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl in 2019. This sets up for a major year for their core, most of which are in their prime.
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