Will the 49ers go on a winning streak following their Week 9 bye?
Donte Whitner certainly believes so.
After San Francisco's 30-24 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night, the NBC Sports Bay Area analyst explained on “Hitner’s Hot Take” why the 49ers are about to dominate the NFL.
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“It’s that time of year again,” Whitner said. “And all 49ers fans know what I’m talking about. It’s that time of the year when the 49ers go on their seven- to eight-game win streak. Now, hear me out.
“You have [running back] Christian McCaffrey returning after the bye week. When you look at the past 49ers teams under [coach] Kyle Shanahan, they’ve always started slow in the first eight games of the season; almost as if they’re accumulating information [and] going through it with a fine-tooth comb to come out the second half of the season and dissect defenses.”
No lies detected.
The return of San Francisco’s All-Pro running back immediately will help the offense. Regardless, the 49ers are in familiar territory under Shanahan at 4-4.
San Francisco 49ers
In 2021, the 49ers started 2-4 before finishing 10-7. In 2022, they began 3-4 before going on a 10-game winning streak. And last season -- quarterback Brock Purdy’s first as a full-time starter -- San Francisco started 5-3 before winning six consecutively en route to a 12-5 finish.
Whitner is confident 49ers history will repeat itself during the 2024 NFL season. He also is excited to see how McCaffrey can shake things up.
“With the return of Christian McCaffrey, you’re able to dictate what defenses call, and you’re able to get Deebo Samuel and a lot of the run-after-the-catch players open,” Whitner said. “Similar to Sunday night when [Cowboys defensive coordinator] Mike Zimmer deviated away from his normal zone-heavy defense and tried to play man-to-man on the 49ers, and George Kittle sliced and diced them.
“That complete 49ers team that you saw Sunday night vs. the Dallas Cowboys is the team that I fully expect to see the rest of the season.”
San Francisco looked very complete against Dallas.
On offense, Samuel had four receptions for 71 yards in his return from pneumonia, Kittle put a bow on National Tight Ends Day with six catches for 128 yards and a touchdown, and Purdy and running back Isaac Guerendo combined for 141 rushing yards in place of Jordan Mason, who suffered a shoulder injury.
Cornerback Deommodore Lenoir and safety Ji'Ayir Brown collected an interception apiece off Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott to lead the 49ers’ defense. Linebacker Fred Warner, as expected, led with eight tackles, and edge rusher Nick Bosa and defensive tackle Sam Okuayinonu each sacked Prescott once.
Whitner clearly enjoyed San Francisco’s outing.
And now he is convinced it is time for the 49ers to run the league.
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