2024 San Francisco 49ers State of the Franchise

With the NFL season approaching quickly, it is time to evaluate the 2024 San Francisco 49ers state of the franchise. The team is coming off of a Super Bowl loss and trying to turn things around quickly. Is this the year they can win it all? Do they have time to achieve these goals with this group of players? Here is a look at the 2024 San Francisco 49ers state of the franchise.

2024 San Francisco 49ers

It is safe to say things are set up fairly well for the 49ers heading into the 2024 season. Here is a look at where both the offense and defense stand heading into the 2024 NFL season.

The Offense

The 49ers offense is pretty set up for success already. They have the majority of their offensive weapons returning to the team this season. The status of where wide receiver, Brandon Aiyuk stands with the team is still up for debate, but he is under contract this year. What happens with his contract extension remains to be seen.

The 49ers also have potentially strengthened their offensive line with drafting offensive lineman, Dominick Puni. Even if he does not play at first, he is someone who could possibly strengthen what has been a weakness for this team.

Aside from the addition of Puni and a returning offensive line, the team will have wide receivers Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings returning. Jennings is one of the most clutch players on the team, stepping up big-time in the Super Bowl. Samuel is a versatile playmaker for the 49ers. San Francisco also drafted Ricky Pearsall in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. It is to be determined how much he plays with the offense, but they potentially have a strong young receiver who will be with the team on a rookie contract for the next couple of years. Of course, the team will also have George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey, Kyle Juszczyk returning, and a range of depth players coming in or coming back.

Offensive Questions

The biggest question on the 2024 offense, outside of the status of Aiyuk, is what is happening with the tight end position. It is pretty questionable outside of Kittle, but may have been solved for the time being. The 49ers signed veteran tight end, Logan Thomas which should help strengthen the position. San Francisco also has Brayden Willis and Cameron Latu, who are heading into their second year in the league. The reason this position is questionable is that not much has been seen of them at all. Perhaps fans will be surprised and the two players could be really good, but this position is the most questionable when it comes to depth on the offense.

The 49ers offense is in a good place overall. Quarterback Brock Purdy is in the process of having his first offseason and preseason training as a starter, compared to his rookie year, and 2023 when he was rehabbing his injury. With this group of players, while they have a tough schedule, they should be able to score at least 20 points in each game. The 2024 San Francisco 49ers offense should be able to pick up where they left off, potentially stronger.

The Defense

The San Francisco 49ers defense will be intriguing to watch this year. To start with the state of the defense, the team did let go of defensive coordinator Steve Wilks. The defense lacked communication last year and is looking to improve on that this year. In Wilks’ place, the 49ers hired Nick Sorensen, who has worked with the team for a couple of years now. Sorensen is looking to bring the defense back to where it was while DeMeco Ryans was the defensive coordinator.

As for player losses, the biggest one is Arik Armstead. Armstead was set to cost too much cap space in 2024, and it saved the team money to release him post-June 1st. Armstead has been with the 49ers since the beginning of the Shanahan-Lynch era. He has been a solid player for the team, but the injuries began to keep him off the field too often. The 49ers asked for a pay cut but was denied, resulting in the team releasing him. Something to watch will be what the team is like without him. On the other hand, in 2023, he was out with an injury from the first weekend of December until playoffs, where he played injured. The team can still succeed without him, they were just better with him.

Linebacker Dre Greenlaw will start the season out with an Achilles tear that he sustained in the Super Bowl. It is unknown when he will return. The 49ers signed De’Vondre Campbell to help fill in for an injured Greenlaw. There will be some competition for his spot until Greenlaw can attempt a return. Safety Talanoa Hufanga should be back in week one, but that will depend on his recovery from the ACL tear he sustained in 2023 against the Tampa Bay Buccanneers. The young safety is still looking to compete for the starting spot despite his injury.

Defensive Gains

The 49ers will still have several returning stars in 2024 such as Nick Bosa and Fred Warner. They also made some key additions such as Leonard Floyd to bolster up the defensive line. The defense can be just as strong as they have been, they will just need to get on the same page early and stay healthy. The team has young players who have a chance to step up this year. The 49ers may finally have solid depth at the cornerback position with drafting Renardo Green. There is still strong potential for this defense and the team did gain players.

The defense overall should still be the 49ers defense everyone knows. Enough players are returning, they just did not add as many big-time players. The defensive unit may just have to adjust to the changes such as a new defensive coordinator and some players potentially out week one still recovering from past injuries. The good news is Nick Bosa will be returning from a full offseason this year, and should not have the slow start that he had last year due to contract negotiations.

How Much Time Is Left?

While discussing the 2024 San Francisco 49ers, the next question is, how much time will be left with this group? This is a team full of stars, which can be expensive. Next season, the team will need to extend Purdy. There will also be players whose extensions end in the next couple of years. The business decisions have already begun with releasing Armstead.

Realistically, this will be the year to win it all, but they have young players who should be able to develop and keep this team competitive. This is football though, and the last time the 49ers made the Super Bowl, it took them four years to return. In 2024, they have to at least make it to the NFC Championship Game if they are healthy.

Time is running low for this team and the pressure is high. Right now the state of the franchise in 2024 is powerful.