In 16 days, the San Francisco 49ers will finally hit the football field – albeit during the preseason. That's when experts can finally start analyzing actual football and see how this revamped 49ers team plays together. Until then, we have to settle for endless predictions.
The latest comes from senior writer Pete Prisco of CBS Sports, who actually projected the results, including scores, for all 512 regular-season games. He has the 49ers finishing the 2018 season 7-9, second in the NFC West behind the Los Angeles Rams, and missing the playoffs. Below is Prisco's week-by-week predictions for the 49ers during the upcoming season.
Week 1: Vikings 20, 49ers 17
Week 2: 49ers 28, Lions 27
Week 3: Chiefs 23, 49ers 13
Week 4: Chargers 29, 49ers 18
Week 5: 49ers 17, Cardinals 13
Week 6: Packers 27, 49ers 23
Week 7: Rams 21, 49ers 17
Week 8: Cardinals 31, 49ers 21
Week 9: 49ers 27, Raiders 20
Week 10: 49ers 21, Giants 18
Week 12: Bucs 28, 49ers 20
Week 13: Seahawks 30, 49ers 23
Week 14: 49ers 21, Broncos 18
Week 15: 49ers 17, Seahawks 13
Week 16: 49ers 21, Bears 18
Week 17: Rams 30, 49ers 29
Prisco has the 49ers starting the season 2-6 but finishing strong by winning three of their last four games. He also has the team going 2-4 against division opponents with wins coming at home against the Cardinals and Seahawks. The Rams sweep San Francisco in this projection. The 49ers go 2-2 against the AFC West with home wins against the Raiders and Broncos.
Even with four straight predicted losses to open the season, NFL Network's David Carr and Michael Robinson still had the 49ers finishing the season 9-7 with 10-6 being a possibility.
Below are Prisco's predicted standings for the NFC West.
Rams: 11-5
49ers: 7-9
Cardinals: 7-9
Seahawks: 5-11
Prisco also included playoff and Super Bowl predictions. The Rams, whom he has as the third seed in the NFC, are defeated by the New Orleans Saints in the Wildcard round. Prisco has the Green Bay Packers beating the Jacksonville Jaguars 27-20 in Super Bowl 53.
H/t to Patrick Tulini for the find.