Pro Football Focus Ranks the 49ers' Roster 6th Best in the NFC
This might seem harsh, but it's fair.
Pro Football Focus just ranked the top five rosters in the NFC and did not include the 49ers. San Francisco ranked just outside the top five in the conference at No. 6, which may come as a shock, considering the 49ers made it to the NFC Championship game last season, but it accurately reflects how things have changed this then.
Here are the top six rosters in the NFC according to PFF:
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
2. Los Angeles Rams.
3. Green Bay Packers.
4. Philadelphia Eagles.
5. New Orleans Saints.
6. San Francisco 49ers.
Tampa and L.A. clearly are in a tier by themselves. Then there are the Packers, who lost Davante Adams this offseason, but still have a great defense, an excellent offensive line, excellent running backs and a Hall of Fame quarterback. If their wide receivers are merely average, the Packers could win their division again. They're all in.
Then there are the Eagles, who made the playoffs last season, then made a big splash this offseason trading for A.J. Brown, an elite wide receiver who will make their team significantly better. They're all in.
Then there are the Saints, who lost head coach Sean Payton to retirement, but he doesn't factor into their roster ranking. The Saints still have an elite defense, a terrific offensive line and an elite group of skill position players, plus they signed Tyrann Mathieu this offseason. Plus they were 9-3 last season when their quarterback wasn't Trevor Siemian or Ian Book, and the Saints replaced them with Andy Dalton, who will back up Jameis Winston. They're all in.
And then there are the 49ers, who are not all in. If they were, they would have released Jimmy Garoppolo and used his cap space on other players such as Tyrann Mathieu, who was available. But the 49ers kept Garoppolo and his $27 million cap hit, which allowed other teams to pass them up for the time being.
Maybe the 49ers aren't done. Maybe they'll get rid of Garoppolo soon, either via trade or release, and then spend money to bring in additional impact players. Theoretically, they have until the trade deadline to improve their roster. Let's see what they do.
