San Francicso 49ers Official 2015 Schedule Released
On Tuesday, the NFL released every team’s official 2015 schedule. We already knew who each team would be playing, but now we know when and where they will be playing as well.
The San Francisco 49ers will not have an easy time in 2015. According to a measurement that predicts 2015 win totals based on true talent, San Francisco’s 2015 slate is the toughest in the league. According to another measurement, using the implied Super Bowl odds of a team in 2015, the 49ers have the third-toughest schedule.
Here is the 49ers’ 2015 schedule (all times in PST).
Preseason: 8/15 at Houston Texans, 8/23 vs. Dallas Cowboys, 8/29 at Denver Broncos, 9/3 vs. San Diego Chargers
Week 1 – 9/14 vs. Minnesota Vikings, 7:30 PM – Monday Night Football
Week 2 – 9/20 at Pittsburgh Steelers, 10:00 AM
Week 3 – 9/27 at Arizona Cardinals, 1:05 PM
Week 4 – 10/4 vs. Green Bay Packers, 1:25 PM
Week 5 – 10/11 at New York Giants, 5:30 PM – Sunday Night Football
Week 6 – 10/18 vs. Baltimore Ravens, 1:25 PM
Week 7 – 10/22 vs. Seattle Seahawks, 5:25 PM – Thursday Night Football
Week 8 – 11/1 at St. Louis Rams, 10:00 AM
Week 9 – 11/8 vs. Atlanta Falcons, 1:05 PM
Week 10 – BYE WEEK
Week 11 – 11/22 at Seattle Seahawks, 1:25 PM
Week 12 – 11/29 vs. Arizona Cardinals, 1:25 PM
Week 13 – 12/6 at Chicago Bears, 10:00 AM
Week 14 – 12/13 at Cleveland Browns, 10:00 AM
Week 15 – 12/20 vs. Cincinnati Bengals, 5:30 PM – Sunday Night Football
Week 16 – 12/27 at Detroit Lions, 10:00 AM
Week 17 – 1/3 vs. St. Louis Rams, 1:25 PM
The 49ers have nine games against 2014 playoff teams, including their divisional rivals, the Cardinals and the Seahawks. Overall, this year’s opponents finished 2014 with a 142-112-1 record in the regular season, but a 4-7 record in the playoffs.
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The 49ers open the season on Monday Night, taking on the Minnesota Vikings at Levi’s Stadium. The game will air on ESPN, and will be part of the traditional Monday Night doubleheader on opening weekend.
The 49ers’ divisional schedule opens on September 27th when they face the Cardinals. The Cardinals finished 11-5 in 2014, but their weak offense was exposed when facing a tough Carolina Panthers’ defense in the playoffs. The Cards and 49ers split the season series last year, but San Francisco is 10-2 in the last 12 meetings.
On October 18th, the 49ers and Ravens meet in a rematch of Super Bowl XLVII, where the 49ers’ comeback efforts ended up falling just short, as the Ravens took the game, and the Lombardi Trophy, by a final score of 34-31. This game will be Torrey Smith‘s first matchup against his old team, after signing with San Francisco in the offseason.
The 49ers beat the Ravens in 1996, the first matchup between the two teams, but since then, the 49ers are 0-4 against the Ravens, including the Super Bowl.
More from San Francisco 49ers
- 49ers sign new long snapper amidst a flurry of roster moves
- 49ers: George Kittle and Deebo Samuel cleared to return to practice
- 49ers expected to place DE Dee Ford on injured reserve
- 49ers sign TE Daniel Helm off the Buccaneers practice squad
- 49ers: Jordan Reed could miss up to two months, will be placed on IR
On October 22nd, the 49ers and Seahawks renew their rivalry in prime time, as they meet on Thursday Night Football. The Seahawks have taken five out of the last six meetings, including once in the NFC Championship game in 2013. In those half-dozen games, the Seahawks have outscored San Francisco 147-62.
The Seahawks swept the 49ers in the season series in 2014. That includes a Thanksgiving Day game where the Seahawks’ players celebrated their victory by eating turkey in the middle of the field. The 49ers scored just 10 points in the two games against Seattle.
In their last prime time game of 2015, the 49ers meet the Bengals on Sunday night in week 15. The 49ers lead the all-time series 11-3, including two Super Bowl wins over the Bengals in 1982 and 1989.
The following week, the 49ers head to Detroit to take on the Lions, another playoff-bound team from 2014. The 49ers lead this all-time series 37-27-1, and have won nine straight matchups, dating back to 1996.
The 2015 regular season closes in 2016, as the Rams head to Levi’s Stadium to battle the 49ers on January 3rd. The two NFC West rivals split the season series in 2014.
The 49ers will hope to be playing deeper into 2016, but the road to get there will not be easy. Not only is the schedule very difficult, but the 49ers will have a new coaching staff, and have lost more than a couple key players, like Frank Gore, Chris Borland, and Patrick Willis.
They’ve added guys like Smith and Darnell Dockett, and will be getting a number of players back from injuries that cost them most or all of 2014.
The schedule opens with a tough stretch, and will go a long way towards determining if Jim Tomsula has a hold on the team, or if he is in way over his head.