6-10 team moves back to prime time
The 49ers, a franchise without a winning season since 2013, have been deemed ready for prime time.
The details of their schedule were revealed early Thursday and the 49ers will be part of five nationally televised evening games. It’s a stunning number for a team coming off a 6-10 season and that has a 14-39 record dating to 2014.
However, it’s clearly a sign that the 49ers returned to relevance with their 5-0 finish last year, directed by quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
As a result, the 49ers have a prime-time slate that includes compelling road matchups against Green Bay (Oct. 15), when Garoppolo will face Aaron Rodgers, and against Seattle (Dec. 2), when 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman will play his first game against the team that released him in March.
The 49ers also have primetime home dates against the Rams (Oct. 21), possibly their biggest roadblock to an NFC West title, and the Raiders (Nov. 1), which figures to be the teams’ last game as Bay Area rivals before the Oakland franchise moves to Las Vegas. The 49ers also will host the Giants on “Monday Night Football” on Nov. 12.
The 49ers haven’t had five prime-time games since 2014, when they were coming off a 12-4 season that included an appearance in the NFC Championship Game. They have played three prime-time games in the previous two seasons combined, including one in 2017.
The 49ers have a tough opening slate, with three of their first four games on the road and two of the away games against 2017 playoff teams (Vikings and Chiefs). The season opener in Minnesota will mark the Vikings’ debut of quarterback Kirk Cousins, a former pupil of 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan in Washington.
The 49ers catch a break on the back end of the schedule, however: They play three of their final four games at home, don’t leave California after visiting Seattle on Dec. 2 and don’t leave the West Coast after playing at Tampa Bay on Nov. 25.