The 49ers are considered an NFL powerhouse by many after making deep playoff runs and two Super Bowl appearances in their last five seasons, but one pundit thinks things will be tougher for San Francisco in 2024.
On Friday's episode of "The Herd with Colin Cowherd," the FS1 host predicted the Los Angeles Rams will win the NFC West next season -- not the reigning division champs in the Bay. And while that might not surprise some, Cowherd's analysis of the 2024 49ers could be shocking to the Faithful.
"[The] Niners are good, but they're an old, expensive football team," Cowherd said (h/t 49ers Webzone). "Watch out for injuries and the Brandon Aiyuk noise."
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The 49ers have won the NFC West in three of the last five seasons, but the Rams took the crown in 2021 and appear to be on the up-and-up again heading into 2024. So while it isn't completely out of the question for Matthew Stafford and Co. to win the division, San Francisco's age, payroll and Aiyuk's contract saga can't cancel out its status as one of the NFL's most dominant rosters.
Even after Aiyuk reportedly requested a trade out of San Francisco amid stalled extension negotiations, it isn't new territory for the 49ers. Star wideout Deebo Samuel did the same before the 2022 NFL season began, and the team ended up working things out with him before winning the division and reaching the NFC Championship Game. Distraction avoided.
But without Aiyuk, could the 49ers be in trouble? ESPN's Dan Orlovsky recently implied as much, making comments similar to Cowherd's that San Francisco's divisional reign could be in jeopardy next season.
San Francisco 49ers
"As of right now, the San Francisco 49ers are the favorite to win their division and their conference, rightfully so," Orlovsky said during "NFL Live" on Tuesday. "If Brandon Aiyuk is not a San Francisco 49er, I would not take them to win their division, I would take the Los Angeles Rams. I think he's that important to this offense."
And while the 49ers don't have the league's youngest roster, they only have four starters over the age of 30 with plenty of youthful All-Pro talent, including Nick Bosa (26), Talanoa Hufanga (24) and Fred Warner (27), to name a few. Injuries always are a concern for any team, however, and San Francisco is no different.
It's no secret that the 49ers' Super Bowl window is now -- they employ plenty of top-dollar talent, and they're paying their players like it. And if being old and expensive produces similar results to the campaigns San Francisco has posted in the past, the franchise has a good chance at another attempt to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy this season.
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