Kyle Juszczyk is Thrilled the 49ers are Being Overlooked

2025 was nothing short of an impressive season for the San Francisco 49ers.

They managed to win 12 games and get to the divisional playoff round despite a ton of injuries to star players. If they were able to do that without their star players, imagine their success in 2026 when they’re healthy.

Unfortunately, the 49ers haven’t really been generating a lot of hype this offseason. Even with some amazing additions to their team, they’ve flown under the radar.

It’s almost like the 49ers aren’t being given their respect. That could be taken as an offense, but if you asked Kyle Juszczyk about it, he’s thrilled that the 49ers are being overlooked.

Juszczyk relishes flying under the radar

“We feel great about where our team is at," Juszczyk said Friday on The Insiders (h/t NFL.com). "The fact that we won 13 games last season with all that we had to deal with, I think that's easy to forget. And rightfully so. The Seahawks won a Super Bowl, the Rams had a great season, they had some great additions in the offseason, so I can understand why that is the case.

"But I think we feel great about where we're at. I love our squad. I think that we have only improved. Guys are getting healthy. We added Mike Evans and Osa (Odighizuwa) on defense, which I think both of those guys are going to make such an impact. I think we're sitting in a good spot. If people want to forget about us, that's fantastic. That's a good place to be sometimes."

It’s more than a good place — it’s a perfect one. When you’re a team that everyone in the league is gunning for, it intensifies the games and places extra pressure on you.

But the fact that the 49ers are being overlooked to an extent, it gives them an edge. They can take on the “us against the world” mentality, as cliché as it is.

Look at the Rams and the Seahawks. If both teams fail to go far in the playoffs, their seasons will be viewed as a joke. Knowing that, it makes winning games this year high-pressure.

There’s already endless pressure to win games in the first place. But when you’re a team being touted, it’s more. The 49ers aren’t a surprise team. It’s expected they’ll make the playoffs.

The real edge they’ll have is being counted out when facing the Rams and the Seahawks. That can work in their favor to take that approach and use it as fuel.

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