The

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

season was the franchise's 67th season in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL), the 71st overall, the third playing its home games at

Levi's Stadium Levi's Stadium is an American football stadium located in Santa Clara, California, just outside San Jose in the San Francisco Bay Area. It has served as the home venue for the National Football League (NFL)'s San Francisco 49ers since 2014. T ...

, and the only season under

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

Chip Kelly Charles Edward Kelly (born November 25, 1963) is an American football coach who is the head coach of the UCLA Bruins. He came to prominence as the head coach of the Oregon Ducks from 2009 to 2012, whom he led to four consecutive BCS bowl game a ...

. The season saw the 49ers attempting to rebound from their 5–11 record the previous year, but finished 2–14, with their only wins coming against their division rival

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

. The 49ers also nearly became the first team (and only the second since the

AFL–NFL Merger The AFL–NFL merger was the merger of the two major professional American football leagues in the United States at the time: the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL). It paved the way for the combined league, w ...

in 1970) since the 2001 Carolina Panthers to win their opener and lose the remainder of their games, prior to the 49ers' Week 16 win over the Rams. The 49ers' record was their worst since

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

, when they also finished 2–14 (both wins that season were against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

). The 49ers' 1–7 home record tied the worst home record in franchise history (not including the strike-shortened 1982 season). As a result, the 49ers fired Kelly and general manager

Trent Baalke Trent John Baalke ( ), (born February 14, 1964), is an American football executive who is the general manager of the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). Early years A Rosendale, Wisconsin native, Baalke earned his bachel ...

. The 49ers defense also set an NFL record by allowing a 100-yard rusher in seven straight games and easily finished last in the league in rush defense.

Offseason

Coaching changes

After the 2015 season ended, the 49ers fired

Jim Tomsula James Andrew Tomsula (born April 14, 1968) is an American football coach and head coach of the Rhein Fire of the European League of Football. Serving as a defensive coach throughout his career, Tomsula has also been the head coach for the Rhein F ...

. On January 14, 2016, the 49ers hired Chip Kelly as their head coach. Kelly had spent the previous three seasons as head coach for the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

and had been fired after a disappointing 7–9 Eagles season.

Roster changes

Free agency

The 49ers entered free agency with the following:

Signings

Departures

Draft

Notes : The 49ers traded their second-, fourth- and sixth-round selection (Nos. 37, 105 and 178 overall) to the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

in exchange for their first- and seventh-round selection (Nos. 28 and 249 overall). : The 49ers acquired an additional fifth-round selection as part of a trade that sent their

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first-round selection to the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

. : The 49ers acquired a sixth-round selection in a trade that sent their

seventh-round selection to the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

. : The 49ers traded

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

Vernon Davis Vernon Davis (born January 31, 1984) is a former American football tight end. He played college football at Maryland, and was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers sixth overall in the 2006 NFL Draft. In 2009, Davis co-led the NFL in touchdown rec ...

and their

seventh-round selection to the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

in exchange for the Broncos'

sixth-round and

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sixth-round selections.

Undrafted free agents

Staff

Final roster

Preseason

The 49ers' preseason opponents and schedule were announced April 7, 2016.

Regular season

Schedule

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Los Angeles Rams

Week 2: at Carolina Panthers

Week 3: at Seattle Seahawks

Week 4: vs. Dallas Cowboys

Week 5: vs. Arizona Cardinals

The 49ers wore their black alternate uniforms for this game as part of Color Rush.

Week 6: at Buffalo Bills

Days prior to Week 6, Head Coach Chip Kelly confirmed that quarterback

Colin Kaepernick Colin Rand Kaepernick ( ; born November 3, 1987) is an American civil rights activist and football quarterback who is a free agent. He played six seasons for the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League (NFL). In 2016, he knelt dur ...

would start in place of

Blaine Gabbert Blaine Williamson Gabbert (born October 15, 1989) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Missouri before leaving early for the 2011 NFL Draft after hi ...

. This was Kaepernick's first start of the season.

Week 7: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 9: vs. New Orleans Saints

Week 10: at Arizona Cardinals

Week 11: vs. New England Patriots

Week 12: at Miami Dolphins

With the loss, the 49ers were mathematically eliminated from postseason contention for the third consecutive season. An attempted rally by the 49ers was stopped short of the end zone in the final seconds.

Week 13: at Chicago Bears

Week 14: vs. New York Jets

Week 15: at Atlanta Falcons

Week 16: at Los Angeles Rams

With the win, the 49ers snapped their 13-game losing streak and swept the Rams on the season, while going 0–13 against the rest of the league. With the Cleveland Browns standing 0–14 before this week, the 49ers win also ended the possibility of two teams finishing 1–15 for the first time, or becoming the first team since the 2001 Carolina Panthers to win their opener and lose the remainder of their games.

Week 17: vs. Seattle Seahawks

With the loss, the 49ers ended their season 2–14, their worst record since 2004. This was Colin Kaepernick's last game as a 49er.

Standings

Division

Conference

References

External links

* * {{2016 NFL season by team

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

San Francisco 49ers seasons

2016 in San Francisco