The 49ers to take on Lions in their first NFL match of the 2021 season
The NFL recently announced the full schedule for its upcoming season, which will kick off on September 9 with defending Super Bowl champions Tampa Bay Buccaneers hosting the Dallas Cowboys.
The rest of the teams in the league will then play their Week 1 games across September 12 and 13. With the expansion to 17 games for each team, the regular NFL season will now include 272 games as opposed to 256.
For their opening game, the San Francisco 49ers will be travelling to Detroit to take on the Lions in what will be the 68th regular-season meeting between the two franchises.
They last played each other in Week 2 of the 2018 season, when the 49ers earned a hard-fought 30-27 victory at the Levi’s Stadium. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was the standout for San Francisco, completing 18-of-26 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns.
That marked a return to form for the 49ers against the Lions after they lost their previous meeting with Detroit in 2015. Prior to that, the 49ers had one nine straight games against the Lions, a run stretching back to 1996.
Previous Results
In fact, San Francisco have won all but two of the last 17 games between the two teams, going back to 1988. Despite that impressive run, the 49ers are only 38-28-1 against the Lions in total. Detroit won the majority of their meetings from the early 50s to the mid-80s.
So, while their overall record against each other is fairly close, over the past few decades the 49ers have been noticeably dominant over the Detroit franchise.
After an excellent 2019 season which saw them crowned NFC Champions and making it to the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco entered the 2020 season with high hopes and expectations.
49ers 2020 season
However, the roster was ravaged by injuries over the course of the season and by Week 15, courtesy of a defeat to the Dallas Cowboys, they failed to make the playoffs. Their troubles were clear as early as Week 5, when a loss to division rival Seattle Seahawks meant they would not be able to match their 13-3 record of 2019.
Several players picked up injuries during the offseason prior to the regular season getting underway, and during Week 1, but it was the Week 2 game against the New York Jets which saw irreparable damage to the squad.
Nick Bosa, 49ers star pass rusher tore his ACL less than ten minutes into the match against the Jets. This game was a disaster for the 49ers with another three players also picking up injuries including Raheem Mostert, Tevin Coleman and Solomon Thomas dealing a devastating blow to the 49ers playoff hopes.
Despite the injuries to their offensive line, the 49ers were able to perform better than expected with a depleted roster thanks, in large part, to the tactical brilliance of defensive coordinator Robert Saleh.
San Francisco finished the 2020 season with a disappointing 6-10 record and came bottom of the NFC West division, and 10th overall in the NFC.
Lions 2020 season
This end-season result, however, was not as poor as Detroit’s, who finished 2020 with a 5-11 record and finished last place in the NFC North for the third consecutive season. Their defense also had one of the worst seasons in NFL history, conceding 519 points.
Their backroom staff also had a tumultuous season, with head coach Matt Patricia, general manager Bob Quinn and special team’s coordinator Brayden Coombs all being fired at various points. They finished 14th overall in the NFC.
Who is likely to win?
With the likes of Garoppolo, Bosa and Thomas all set to return from injury, the 49ers actually remain one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl this upcoming season, despite their poor form last season. Many US NFL fans now place bets on the NFL matches especially as many states have now legalised online sports betting, with New York being one of the most recent states to pass the bill.
Citizens of California will sadly not be able to place a bet on their team the 49ers however fans of the Lions will be able to place their bets with Michigan fully legalising online gambling activities. At the time of writing, the latest NFL odds have San Francisco available at +1400 to lift the Lombardi Trophy. So, could the 49ers, do it?
Jimmy G was expected by some to be traded on Draft day, but the 49ers managed to hold onto their star man and also acquired No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance.
The Lions, however, have the longest Super Bowl odds of +15000. The Lions traded Matthew Stafford for quarterback Jared Goff as well as several Draft picks in the hope of bolstering their 2021 chances.
Goff, however, will likely need time to settle into Detroit after his tenure with the Los Angeles Rams and his personal record against the 49ers (3-5) is not anything to write home about.
So, it is no real surprise that San Francisco are heavy favorites to start their 2021 season in style by beating the Lions in Detroit. This Week 1 game will be an interesting barometer for the 49ers – will they throw Trey Lance straight into action, or stick with Garoppolo?
The 49ers will also be eager for a positive start to the regular season; their stellar 2019 run began with a 5-0 record, proving that when they start hot, San Francisco can go far.
While one team is comfortably favored over the other, the Week 1 clash between the 49ers and the Lions will be an interesting one to watch. The former is looking to be in Super Bowl contention while the latter are battling against a worrying run of form.
