There are a few more significant offseason moves for the 49ers to make with free agency mostly winding down and the NFL draft coming up at the end of April. Their roster could look significantly different once all the dust settles by Week 1, but they find themselves in a pretty good spot in the post-free agency power rankings released by ESPN.
San Francisco with free agency mostly finished ranks No. 13, down four spots from their spot in ESPN’s ‘way-too-early’ rankings earlier this season.
Placing the 49ers in the NFL hierarchy is difficult to do given how their last two seasons went. Their roster looks largely the same as it did last year when injuries to a slew of key players throughout the season derailed their NFC championship defense. There’s an argument to be made that their offense looks better than it did in 2019 when they went to the Super Bowl, while their defense could have trouble reaching the elite level it hit that same season.
Given a clean bill of health though, their roster before the draft looks like one that can contend in the NFC. The biggest question mark is under center though, which is what pushes them out of the top eight range, and is what will keep them from being a consensus Super Bowl contender.
The draft still has to shake out, and depending on Jimmy Garoppolo’s future, the 49ers could wind up moving either up or down a few spots by the time the season starts. The good news is they’re in a position to win it all should things break their way in 2021, but the bigger story will be their future at quarterback and how that player helps them be in a position to win championships for years to come.
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