NFL Network analyst Cynthia Frelund joined the 49ers Webzone No Huddle Podcast and discussed San Francisco's second-half playoff push. While the loss of cornerback Jason Verrett was heartbreaking, as a whole, the 4-4 team appears to be getting healthier and gearing up for a run coming out of its bye-week break.
Frelund admits that, even with questions at quarterback before the season, she predicted the 49ers to make the playoffs as a Wildcard. That has changed. Despite their current second-place spot in the NFC West standings, the respected analyst believes the Bay Area squad will overtake the division-leading Seattle Seahawks en route to the postseason.
Frelund acknowledges that the NFC seems wide-open, and the 49ers could be in the mix at the end.
"When I'm looking to see the situation for the Niners, this feels like a very good Niners team that the only time I saw them play poorly was when the entire defense wasn't playing," Frelund told Brian Renick, Al Sacco, and Zain Naqvi. "I love to fake hate that Kyle; he doesn't owe us anything. He doesn't give us anything. He says the funniest stuff, like, 'We don't even know if we're going to be here Sunday.'"
🔥👍🏼
"This feels like a very Ninersy 'I will see you in Glendale' situation." - NFL Network's @cfrelund discusses the #49ers' 2nd-half push with @AlSacco49, @zain49ers, and @brenick77@AudacySports | #FTTBLISTEN TO THE WHOLE SHOW and SUBSCRIBE: https://t.co/rFqhyuGwo1 pic.twitter.com/180awo0DhC
— 49ers Webzone (@49erswebzone) November 11, 2022
Frelund is referring to a response Shanahan provided in 2021 when a reporter asked if the coach could guarantee quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo would be on the roster come Sunday, the day after the draft.
"I can't guarantee that anybody in the world will be alive Sunday, so I can't guarantee who will be on our roster on Sunday. So, that goes for all of us," Shanahan responded, much to the media's amusement.
Several 49ers players texted Shanahan after the draft to tell him they were alive. Like those players, Frelund finds those exchanges amusing, sharing the connection between that past Shanahan comment and what she envisions to be the motto for the second half of this season.
"This feels like a very Ninersy 'I will see you in Glendale' (for Super bowl 57) situation," Frelund added.
You can listen to the entire interview with Frelund below.
