San Francisco 49ers 2025 Profile
Coaching Staff
Head Coach: Kyle Shanahan
Offensive Coordinator: Klay Kubiak
Defensive Coordinator: Robert Saleh
Special Teams Coordinator: Brant Boyer
2024 Summary (W-L Record: 6-11)
The 2024 San Francisco 49ers were the embodiment of the “Super Bowl hangover.” After 4 deep playoff runs from 2019-23, including 2 Super Bowl losses, the Niners looked like a team that just needed a break.
From their numbers below, you can see that they weren’t a bad football team by any means. They certainly weren’t a 6-11 caliber team:
Instead, they were seemingly a tired and beat up team. They just couldn’t finish in 2024, losing 6 one-possession games. More so, injuries plagued this team all season.
Linebacker Dre Greenlaw, one of the heart-and-soul members of the defense, spent most of the season trying to come back from the Achilles injury he suffered in the Super Bowl. He played in just 2 games.
Defensive Tackle Javon Hargrave missed 14 games due to a torn tricep.
Safety Talanoa Hufanga missed 10 games.
Those are key players at all 3 levels of the defense. For the offense, however, it was even worse.
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Star running back Christian McCaffrey unexpectedly entered the season hurt. He would ultimately miss 13 games.
His backup entering training camp, Elijah Mitchell, missed the entire season.
Brandon Aiyuk tore his ACL and MCL in Week 7 and missed the final 10 games.
Left Tackle Trent Williams missed the final 7 games.
Quarterback Brock Purdy played through an injury to his throwing arm, and missed two games.
Their 1st-round pick, wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, missed the first 6 games recovering from a gun-shot wound!
Just about everything that could go wrong did go wrong health-wise for this team.
Key Additions
RB Jordan James (5th Rd, 147th Overall)
WR Demarcus Robinson
WR Jordan Watkins (4th Rd, 138th Overall)
TE Luke Farrell
DT Alfred Colllins (2nd Rd, 43rd Overall)
DT C.J. West (4th Rd, 113th Overall)
EDGE Mykel Williams (1st Rd, 11th Overall)
EDGE Bryce Huff
LB Nick Martin (3rd Rd, 75th Overall)
CB Upton Stout (3rd Rd, 100th Overall)
CB Tre Brown
CB Eli Apple
S Jason Pinnock
S Richie Grant
Key Losses
RB Jordan Mason
WR Deebo Samuel
TE Eric Saubert
LG Aaron Banks
EDGE Leonard Floyd
LB De’Vondre Campbell
LB Dre Greenlaw
CB Charvarius Ward
CB Isaac Yiadom
S Talanoa Hufanga
S Tashaun Gipson
Did They Address Their Holes?
The 49ers’ focus this offseason was on their defense after finishing 29th in points allowed. While some of that was likely to to the offense turning the ball over at one of the highest rates in the league, this just wasn’t the same ferocious defense we’d seen in years past.
Some of their metrics were pretty decent. They finished 8th in total yards per game and 7th in yards per play. But the D-line struggled to set the tone. The ability to win up front had been key to their success on defense, filtering through to all 3 levels. But last year, they couldn’t wreak the necessary havoc to create enough impact plays.
They didn’t get after the quarterback like they used to, finishing the year 24th in pressure percentage and 23rd in sacks. They couldn’t generate drive-thwarting plays against the run as they finished 26th in percentage of negative runs forced. They were 20th in takeaways.
And in key situations like 3rd down and the red zone, they finished 24th and 31st respectively.
The Niners addressed this through the NFL Draft. They had 5 picks in the first 113, all of which were used on the defense. Their first 2 picks were used on the D-line as they selected edge rusher Mykel Williams 11th overall and then defensive tackle Alfred Collins 43rd overall.
The Niners hope Williams will pair well with Nick Bosa. Williams has a certain level of aggressiveness and a high motor that should mesh well with new defensive coordinator Rober Saleh’s “All gas, no brakes” philosophy.
The Niners also brought in Bryce Huff to mix into the edge-rusher rotation. They’re hoping he’ll have a bounce-back year as he reunites with Saleh.
Which brings us to the other big move the 49ers made to address their defense. That is, the decision to bring back the aforementioned Saleh, who was the DC during the Niners’ first Super Bowl run in 2019. Say what you want to about the job he did as a head coach of the Jets, but he’s gotten his defenses to play well and rush the passer effectively in both San Fran and New York.
Biggest Questions Entering 2025
Health is by far the biggest question for this team. It’s the biggest determining factor in how successful they’ll be, because if they can remain healthy, there is no reason to believe the won’t be right back in the mix in 2025.
This season has all the makings of the 2021 season where the Niners bounced back from the 2020 Super Bowl hangover (where they faced the same issue with injuries), and reached the NFC Championship Game.
However, assuming health in football can be a risky proposition. On the one hand, it’s easy to say that they were just unhealthy and unlucky last season and this year everything will snap back into place. But the reality is that players who deal with serious injuries often become injury prone or don’t quite regain their form.
McCaffrey, the cog that makes the 49ers offense go, just turned 29. In running back years, he’s closer to qualifying for social security than he is to his college graduation.
What will Brandon Aiyuk look like in his return from an ACL/MCL injury? Many receivers struggle in their first year back. Deebo Samuel is gone, so the 49ers might have to lean on Pearsall and Jauan Jennings (which isn’t a bad duo, by the way).
And what about left tackle Trent Williams? He’s 37, and while he might have been the best in the business in recent years, we’ve seen younger players at that position fall off a cliff out of nowhere due to wear and tear. Can he hold it together at his age?
There’s a lot to like about this team, but health will be something to watch all season.
2025 Outlook
I’m not predicting anything, but I think it would be foolish to count the 49ers out. They still have Kyle Shanahan orchestrating the offense, which means it’s going to be one of the toughest to defend in the league no matter what.
Last year, even with all the injuries, the offense still finished 2nd in the NFL in yards per play, 4th in passing, and 12th in rushing. That’s an impressive showing that went under the radar because of the 49ers’ 6-11 record.
Despite my prior comments, I have to assume they will be a bit luckier in the health department this season. And if Saleh can get this defense back to something close to what they were during their Super Bowl runs, we’re likely to see the Niners bounce right back and be a serious contender in the NFC.