The 2020 season was the

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 ...

' 71st 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), their 75th overall, and their fourth under the

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 ...

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

tandem of

Kyle Shanahan Kyle Michael Shanahan (born December 14, 1979) is an American football coach who is the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He came to prominence as the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons, wh ...

and John Lynch. The 49ers entered the season as the defending NFC champions; however, the 49ers failed to improve on their 13–3 season after a Week 8 loss to the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

and were eliminated from playoff contention after a Week 15 loss 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 season saw many key players missing significant time due to injuries, including starting quarterback

Jimmy Garoppolo James Richard Garoppolo (born November 2, 1991), nicknamed Jimmy G, is an American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Eastern Illinois, where he set the school r ...

and 2019 Defensive Rookie of the Year

Nick Bosa Nicholas John Bosa (born October 23, 1997) is an American football defensive end for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State and was selected second overall by the 49ers in the 20 ...

. The 49ers season ended with a league-high 18 players on injured reserve. Another notable event was the suspension of home games in

Santa Clara County Santa Clara County, officially the County of Santa Clara, is the sixth-most populous county in the U.S. state of California, with a population of 1,936,259, as of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Santa Clara County and neighboring Sa ...

due to the ongoing

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, forcing the 49ers to play their final three home games at

State Farm Stadium State Farm Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Glendale, Arizona, United States, west of Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix. It is the home of the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL) and the annual Fiesta Bowl. State Farm Stadium re ...

Glendale, Arizona Glendale () is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, located approximately northwest of Downtown Phoenix. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 248,325. History In the la ...

Offseason

Roster changes

Free agency

The 49ers entered free agency with the following:

Signings

Departures

Trades

* On October 27, the 49ers traded their 2022 sixth-round selection to the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

for

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

Jordan Willis and 2021 seventh-round selection. * On November 2, the 49ers traded

Kwon Alexander Kwon Alexander (born August 3, 1994) is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football at LSU. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Alexander has also played for t ...

to the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

in exchange for a fifth-round conditional pick in the

2021 NFL Draft The 2021 NFL Draft was the 86th National Football League Draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland from April 29 to May 1, 2021 ...

and LB

Kiko Alonso Kristian "Kiko" Alonso (born August 14, 1990) is a former American football linebacker. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft. After a stellar rookie season with the Bills, Alonso missed his second season ...

Draft

Notes * The 49ers traded LB

Eli Harold Medgar Elisha Harold (born January 20, 1994) is a gridiron football defensive end who is a free agent. He played college football for the University of Virginia Cavaliers. Early years Harold attended Ocean Lakes High School in Virginia Beach ...

to the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

in exchange for a conditional seventh-round selection. * The 49ers traded their second-round selection 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 DE

Dee Ford Donald “Dee” Ford (born March 19, 1991) is an American football defensive end who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Auburn Tigers football, Aubur ...

. * The 49ers traded their third- and fourth-round selections 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 WR

Emmanuel Sanders Emmanuel Niamiah Sanders (born March 17, 1987) is a former American football wide receiver who played 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at SMU, and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third ...

and Denver's fifth-round selection. * The 49ers traded DT

DeForest Buckner DeForest George Buckner (born March 17, 1994) is an American football defensive tackle for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oregon, and was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the ...

to the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

in exchange for a first-round selection (No. 13th overall). * The 49ers traded their first- and a seventh-round selection (13th and 245th overall) to

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

in exchange for a first- and a fourth-round pick (14th and 117th overall). * The 49ers traded their first-, fourth- and fifth-round selections (31st, 117th and 176th overall) to

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

in exchange for a first-round pick (No. 25th overall). * The 49ers traded their RB

Matt Breida Matthew John Breida (born February 28, 1995) is an American football running back for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia Southern and signed with the 49ers as an undrafted free agent ...

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

in exchange for a fifth-round pick (No. 153rd overall). * The 49ers traded their fifth-round selection (No. 156th overall) and a 2021 third-round selection to

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

in exchange for OT

Trent Williams Trent Williams (born July 19, 1988) is an American football offensive tackle for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oklahoma, where he was recognized as an All-American, and was drafted b ...

. * The 49ers traded their WR

Marquise Goodwin Marquise Derell Goodwin (born November 19, 1990) is an American football wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He also is an Olympic Games, Olympian who competed in the long jump in track and field. He was ...

and a sixth-round selection (No. 210th overall) to

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 ...

in exchange for a sixth-round selection (No. 190th overall).

Undrafted free agents

Staff

Final roster

Preseason

The 49ers' preseason schedule was announced on May 7, but was later canceled due to the

Regular season

Schedule

The 49ers'

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

schedule was announced on May 7. Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Arizona Cardinals

Week 2: at New York Jets

Although the 49ers won easily over the struggling Jets, they suffered devastating injuries on both sides of the ball to

Raheem Mostert Dominique Raheem Mostert (born April 9, 1992) is an American football running back for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Purdue. Mostert attended New Smyrna Beach High School in New Smyrna B ...

Tevin Coleman Tevin Ford Coleman (born April 16, 1993) is an American football running back for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He played college fo ...

, and Solomon Thomas. It got so bad the team's MRI truck broke down.

Week 3: at New York Giants

With

sidelined,

Nick Mullens Nicholas Clayton Mullens (born March 21, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Southern Miss, where he surpassed Brett Favre's single-season re ...

made his first start since

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

. He threw for 343 yards and a touchdown in a blowout win over the Giants.

Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles

With this loss, the 49ers dropped to 2–2.

struggled mightily in the game with two interceptions, one of which was returned by Alex Singleton for a touchdown, and was benched afterwards for

C. J. Beathard Casey Jarrett "C. J." Beathard ( ; born November 16, 1993) is an American football quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Iowa and was drafted in the third round of the 201 ...

. The 49ers drove all the way to within field goal range down by 5, but the clock ran out.

Week 5: vs. Miami Dolphins

With this embarrassing loss, the 49ers dropped to 2–3, already matching last season's loss total.

returned from injury but struggled mightily with 2 interceptions, leading to him being benched at halftime for

Week 6: vs. Los Angeles Rams

The 49ers bounced back from the previous week.

threw 3 touchdowns and 268 yards and the 49ers defense was able to hold a red-hot Rams offense in check. With this win, they improved to 3–3, and won their third straight meeting against the Rams.

Week 7: at New England Patriots

This was quarterback

's first return to New England since the Patriots traded him to the 49ers in October 2017. Garoppolo played for the Patriots from 2014 to 2017, and was part of their

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

and

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 ...

Super Bowl-winning teams.

Week 8: at Seattle Seahawks

At one point, the 49ers were down 7-30. Despite outscoring the Seahawks 20-7 for the rest of the game, the 49ers dropped to 4-4.

Week 9: vs. Green Bay Packers

In a rematch of the NFC Championship the previous season. Aaron Rodgers threw for 305 yards and 4 touchdowns as the Packers went up 34–3 before the 49ers scored two meaningless touchdowns to make the final score 34–17 and dropping the 49ers to 4–5. As of week 9, the 49ers have a league high 24 players on the reserve lists.

Week 10: at New Orleans Saints

Week 12: at Los Angeles Rams

The 49ers returned from their bye week with some much-needed reinforcement returning from injury: on offense, Raheem Mostert scored a touchdown and 43 yards rushing and Deebo Samuel had 133 receiving yards; on defense, Richard Sherman contributed by grabbing his first interception of the season. The game was largely a defensive struggle. The two teams had four combined turnovers in the first quarter, and the only points scored in the first half came on a Raheem Mostert touchdown and a Matt Gay field goal. Early in the third quarter, the 49ers padded their lead to fourteen points with Javon Kinlaw's pick six and a Robbie Gould field goal. However, the momentum changed quickly as Aaron Donald forced a fumble on Raheem Mostert and it was returned for a touchdown by Troy Hill. The Rams soon scored again on a touchdown run from Cam Akers to take a three-point lead. The Rams' final drives quickly turned to punts while Nick Mullens led the 49ers on two drives resulting in field goals, including the 42-yard game winner by Robbie Gould with no time on the clock. With the win, the 49ers swept the Rams for the second straight year.

Week 13: vs. Buffalo Bills

Due to the

halting all contact sports the 49ers decided to use

for 2 games

Week 14: vs. Washington Football Team

Week 15: at Dallas Cowboys

The 49ers traveled to Dallas hoping to keep their season alive, the 49ers struggled throughout the game. The 49ers immediately trailed 17–7, and turned the ball over 4 times against one of the worst defenses in the NFL. Despite fighting back and forth after tying the game, the 49ers never had the lead. San Francisco also allowed Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb to return a kickoff for a touchdown, which sealed the 49ers' loss. This loss, combined with the Cardinals' victory over the Eagles, the 49ers were eliminated from playoff contention.

Week 16: at Arizona Cardinals

With this win, the San Francisco 49ers finished 5-3 in away games.

Week 17: vs. Seattle Seahawks

With this loss, the 49ers finished 1-7 at home and are 1-5 in their last 6 games against Seattle.

Standings

Division

Conference

Notes

References

External links

* * {{2020 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