49ers (

22.5) at
Hawks (

20.0)

GAME Overview ::

BY mike johnson >>

• The 49ers look to extend their Super Bowl window after a down year in 2024, thanks in large part to a rash of injuries.
• San Francisco’s offensive scheme is unlikely to change much as Kyle Shanahan returns for yet another season running things.
• The 49ers defense had a down year by their standards in 2024, but they are hopeful that the return of defensive coordinator Robert Saleh will get them back on track in 2025.
• Seattle’s new offensive coordinator, Klint Kubiak, is a disciple of the Shanahan coaching tree and many of his concepts will look similar to what we see from the other side of the ball.
• Despite a career year in 2024, Sam Darnold is set to begin a journey with yet another new team and scheme this season.

HOW San Francisco WILL TRY TO WIN ::

The 49ers offense will operate in a clear, consistent, and predictable manner in 2025. Perhaps the biggest factor is the return of a healthy Christian McCaffrey, who this offense is built around and opens up everything else that they try to do. A true match made in heaven of player and scheme, CMC can do everything on the football field and Kyle Shanahan has no issues asking him to. The 49ers lost Deebo Samuel in the offseason and Brandon Aiyuk will miss the first few weeks as he recovers from last season’s devastating knee injury. Meanwhile, the status of Jauan Jennings (calf/contract) is uncertain for Week 1 and veteran free agent acquisition Demarcus Robinson is out due to suspension. This leaves the 49ers offense extremely condensed with three talented players likely to account for most of the touches.

CMC is obviously the focal point here, while veteran all-world tight end George Kittle is set for a massive role to start the season with their wide receiver situation in shambles. Kittle has had massive notable splits throughout his career without Deebo Samuel on the field and now his target competition is the weakest it has ever been with Brock Purdy as his quarterback. Expect the 49ers passing game to be focused on Kittle, especially to start the season with all this time they have had to plan for the players they will be without. This is also a situation that is hard for an opposing defense to take him away as it is different from an elite wide receiver who you can easily “shadow” with a cornerback or rotate coverage towards. Kittle’s versatility and size make him a matchup nightmare. We should expect him to have a 25 to 35% target share until further notice. The final piece of the equation is second-year wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, a 2024 first round pick who ended his rookie season strong. Pearsall will likely be utilized in a variety of ways, although when at full strength, he profiles as a player who they will likely deploy similarly to how they used Samuel in past seasons.

How SEATTLE Will Try To Win ::