49ers' Win-Loss Predictions for 2023 NFL Season

The San Francisco 49ers won't be sneaking up on anyone in 2023. After finishing last season as the NFC runner-up they are once again expected to be the primary competition to the Philadelphia Eagles in the conference.

The hype is justified.

There's a lot of star power that will once again be on the field in the Bay. Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle form one of the most lethal groups of offensive skill players in the league.

They still have an elite play-caller in Kyle Shanahan pulling the right levers and pushing the right buttons to put them all in a position to succeed.

They aren't a team without flaws, though. There are questions on the offensive line. There was a decent amount of turnover on the defense and, of course, questions around the quarterback position.

Here, we'll take a look at their schedule, mull over some of their biggest questions and come to a prediction as to how the season will play out.

Week 1: at Pittsburgh Steelers, Sept. 10 at 1 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 2: at Los Angeles Rams, Sept 17 at 4:05 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 3: vs. New York Giants, Sept. 21 at 8:15 p.m. ET, Prime Video

Week 4: vs. Arizona Cardinals, Oct. 1 at 4:25 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 5: vs. Dallas Cowboys, Oct. 8 at 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC

Week 6: at Cleveland Browns, Oct. 15 at 1 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 7: at Minnesota Vikings, Oct. 23 at 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN

Week 8: vs. Cincinnati Bengals, Oct. 29 at 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS

Week 9: Bye Week

Week 10: at Jacksonville Jaguars, Nov. 12 at 1 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 11: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Nov. 19 at 4:05 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 12: at Seattle Seahawks, Nov. 23 at 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC

Week 13: at Philadelphia Eagles, Dec. 3 at 4:25 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 14: vs. Seattle Seahawks, Dec. 10 at 4:05 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 15: at Arizona Cardinals, Dec. 17 at 4:05 p.m. ET, CBS

Week 16: vs. Baltimore Ravens, Dec. 25 at 8:15 p.m. ET, ABC

Week 17: at Washington Commanders, Dec. 31 at 1 p.m. ET, Fox

Week 18: vs. Los Angeles Rams, Jan. 7 at TBD, TBD

All times ET

Expectations couldn't be any higher for the Niners. They are fourth in Super Bowl odds (+1000) and the second-favorite to win the NFC (+400) over at DraftKings Sportsbook.

It's a testament to the overall strength of their roster and the job Shanahan has done to create a dynamic offense every year, because there aren't many teams that would have these expectations despite a questionable quarterback situation.

Brock Purdy was an incredible story last season. Injuries forced the last pick of the draft into the lineup and he responded by finishing the season 5-0 as the starter before leading them to the NFC Championship game.

But there's reason to believe there will be some growing pains this season. He suffered an elbow injury that required surgery so his spring was spent recovering rather than building on his success from last season.

There's always the chance of a little bit of regression in Year 2 for a quarterback. With a lot of time for defensive coaches to watch how Purdy succeeded they will be able to tailor gameplans that force him to adjust.

There are questions about the offensive line too. Colton McKivitz will take over at right tackle after Mike McGlinchey left in free agency.

Defensively, there are going to be several personnel changes. Charles Omenihu, Samson Ebukam, Jimmie Ward, Emmanuel Moseley and Azeez Al-Shaair all left in free agency and DeMeco Ryans left his post as defensive coordinator to be the head coach for the Houston Texans.

It's a lot of turnover but the Niners have built up credibility as a team that's going to be well-coached and will still put a good defense on the field.

Despite all of the reasons previously laid out, there's still a lot of reason to believe the Niners will live up to the hype. Not only do they still have a lot of elite football players on the roster but they play in a division that is going to give them some grace.

The Seahawks proved to be less reliant on Russell Wilson than previously thought last season, but they are still depending on Geno Smith to repeat his improbable 2022 season. The Cardinals will be without Kyler Murray for a stretch of the season and are breaking in a new coaching staff. The Rams, well, they brought in nearly 40 rookies this offseason.

The DraftKings win total for the Niners has been set at 10.5 which still seems a bit low given the division and who they have coming back from a team that went 13-4.

There will be some struggles. It's difficult to lose as much as they did on defense and hit the ground running. Purdy is going to have some games where he looks more like the Day 3 pick that he was.

But this is still a team that could live up to the hype. The regular season record will be worse than it was last season but it's still going to be a team no one wants a part of come January.

Prediction: 11-6

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