Cowherd Boldly Predicts ‘Old, Expensive’ 49ers Won’t Win NFC West originally appeared in NBC Sports Bay Area
The 49ers are considered an NFL powerhouse by many after making big playoff runs and two Super Bowl appearances in the last five seasons, but one expert thinks things will be tougher for San Francisco in 2024.
On Friday’s episode of “The Herd with Colin Cowherd,” the FS1 host predicted the Los Angeles Rams will win the NFC West next season — not the defending division champions in the Bay. And while that may not surprise some, Cowherd’s analysis of the 2024 49ers could be shocking to the faithful.
“[The] The Niners are good, but they’re an old, expensive football team,” Cowherd said (h/t 49ers Webzone). “Watch out for Brandon Aiyuk’s injuries and noise.”
The 49ers have won the NFC West in three of the last five seasons, but the Rams took the crown in 2021 and look to be on a roll again in 2024. So while it’s not completely out of the question for Matthew Stafford and Co. to win the division, the San Francisco’s age, payroll and Aiyuk’s contract saga cannot negate its status as one of the NFL’s most dominant rosters.
Even after Aiyuk reportedly requested a trade Outside of San Francisco amid stalled extension talks, it’s not new territory for the 49ers. Star Deebo Samuel did the same before the start of the 2022 NFL season, and the team ended up working things out with him before winning the division and reaching the NFC Championship Game. Distraction avoided.
But without Aiyuk, could the 49ers be in trouble? ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky recently involved so muchmaking comments similar to Cowherd’s that San Francisco’s division reign could be in jeopardy next season.
“As of right now, the San Francisco 49ers are the favorites to win their division and their conference, rightfully so,” Orlovsky said during “NFL Live” on Tuesday. “If Brandon Aiyuk wasn’t a San Francisco 49er, I wouldn’t take them to win their division, I’d take the Los Angeles Rams. I think he’s very important to this offense.”
And while the 49ers don’t have the youngest roster in the league, they have just four starters over the age of 30 and plenty of young All-Pro talent, including Nick Bosa (26), Talanoa Hufanga (24) and Fred Warner (27), to name a few. However, injuries are always a concern for any team, and San Francisco is no different.
It’s no secret that the 49ers’ Super Bowl window is now — they employ a lot of high-value talent and are paying their players that way. And if being old and expensive produces results similar to the campaigns San Francisco has posted in the past, the franchise has a good chance of making another attempt at hoisting the Vince Lombardi Trophy this season.
