Golden Nuggets: Finding Ten Wins In 2019

usa_today_10499037.0-ad114f25822576fef9529b6f6d28169b567181a5

San Francisco 49ers links for Saturday May 11, 2019

With both free agency and the NFL Draft in the rear view mirror the 49ers roster has seen drastic improvements on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. And yet, their over/under win total in Vegas continues to hover around 8 wins. But safe to say eight wins won’t satisfy a fan base that has suffered through two injury riddled seasons under the new regime. And while some might be happy with a cool nine wins, the magic number for most is ten. But are there ten wins on the schedule? Let’s see if we can find them..

The Sure Things: 3

Bucs, Bengals, and Redskins. Ok, so there really is no such thing as a ‘sure thing’ in the NFL. Any given Sunday and all that. But these are three games that should be easy wins. Vegas has all three of these teams pegged for under 7 wins and for good reason. Let’s go ahead and count them.

The NFC West: 3

The bad news: the 49ers have finished 1-5 in the NFC West for the past two seasons. The good news: they are 2-2 with QB’s not named Hoyer or Beathard – and neither should be on the roster this year. So whether it’s two wins over the Cardinals and one out of four from the Rams/Seahawks, or one win from each team, or some other combination, let’s split the difference in the NFC west this year and add three more wins to the total.

Digging Deeper: 2

The 49ers had 4 wins total in the 2018 season, and all four were at home, which shouldn’t be a surprise. Most teams play better at home. Which is why in games that appear to be evenly matched, Vegas tends to give the home team the edge. So I will too. The Panthers and Falcons both finished below .500 last season, and will be traveling cross country for the games. Add two more to the total.

The Optimist: 2

The pessimists probably stopped at six. The realists most likely jumped off at eight. So these last two are for the optimists. The fact is, the remaining games are all tough, and not the type of games that we’ve grown accustomed to the Niners pulling out in recent memory. But I see two in there.

The Browns: At home, Monday night football. The 49ers coming off a bye week, the Browns coming off a tough road match against the Ravens. Far from easy, but these are the types of games you have to win to get to ten.
The Packers: Another home game. Green Bay was 1-7 on the road last season and 4-12 over the past two. They will be coming off of their bye week which gives them a slight advantage, but the game is also the third in a 3 game homestand for the Niners, so they should be well rested. Another close one, but I’m taking the 49ers here.

And there you have it. Just like that. A path to ten wins. Is there a path to 11? 12? More? Less? How many wins do you see on the schedule?

And now, onto the links:

Davis waits on reinstatement to revive football career (Maiocco)