The 49ers hit a disappointing low last year. Although, they have potential this year seeing as they’ve started the season 5-3. In this article, we’ll dive into an overview about the Niners and what to look out for in the 49ers 2025 NFL season.
One thing to look forward to is rookie LB Nick Martin and LB Tatum Bethune to shine in the upcoming games. Since Fred Warner, the starting linebacker, came down with a season-ending ankle injury, the 49ers are relying on them to step up on defense. If the head coaches give Nick Martin a chance to start, we’re sure that he would ball out.
Martin was drafted by the Niners in the 3rd round with the 75th overall pick this season. In college, Nick Martin played in 34 games out of 48, had 203 tackles which 23.5 of them resulting in loss of yards, 7 sacks, 4 pass deflections, 2 interceptions, and 2 forced fumbles.
Bethune is in his second season with the Niners. He was drafted out of Florida St. with the 251st overall pick by the 49ers in the 2024 Draft. He played 11 games in 2024 whith only 7 total tackles, and 0.5 stuffs. This year, he’s made an appearance in all 8 games so far. He’s got 38 total tackles and 1.5 stuffs.
Not only is it looking up for Nick Martin, the 49ers are also looking to Upton Stout to be the next starting cornerback. Stout from Western Kentucky was drafted by the Niners in the 3rd round, as well as Nick Martin, but with the 100th overall pick. Now starting, he is partnered up with CB Deommodore Lenoir. You could compare Stout with Lenoir, as they shared nearly the exact same stat line coming out of college.
Another thing to watch is the quarterback situation. As most 49ers fans know, their QB1 role usually belongs to Brock Purdy. With Purdy’s turf toe injury and him being on and off the field, they have been starting Mac Jones as of lately.
Purdy was drafted out of Iowa State with the 262nd and last pick in the 2022 Draft. He was known to most as “Mr. Irrelevant” for being drafted with the last pick. It was not an easy uprising for Brock Purdy. He was QB3 after Trey Lance, who was drafted 3rd overall the season prior by the 49ers and QB1, Jimmy Garoppolo. Garoppolo had led them to a Super Bowl in 2019 and led them to the NFC Championship the year prior to Purdy getting drafted. To the team’s demise but Purdy’s surprise, Trey Lance left early in the year with a season-ending ankle injury, and Jimmy Garoppolo had a season-ending broken foot later in the year. Purdy played the rest of the game against the Dolphins and won it for them. He continued to go on a “magical” run and win the rest of the 6 games of the regular season to give them a Wild Card spot. He propelled the team all the way to the NFC Championship. In that game against the Eagles, he tore his UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) in his elbow, and didn’t return. That game was the first loss of Purdy’s pro career. Purdy had an operation on his elbow in the offseason.
After the spectacle he put on last year, there was a considerable amount of hype put on him and the 49ers. In the 2023 season, the 49ers had a stellar season making it all the way to the Super Bowl. In the Super Bowl, they played the Kansas City Chiefs lead by QB Patrick Mahomes and Taylor Swift’s Fiancee, formerly known as TE Travis Kelce. Sadly, disappointingly, and heartbreakingly, in overtime, they could only get a field goal, and couldn’t stop the Chiefs from scoring a touchdown, which meant that they lost.
Since that season, things have started to go downhill for the 49ers. The 2024-25 or next season was honestly terrible. The 49ers went 6-11, finished 3rd in the NFC West, and didn’t even make the post-season. Including having basically all their HBs out with Christian McCaffrey, Elijah Mitchell, and Jordan Mason injured most of the year. On top of that, they lost WR Deebo Samuel in that off-season. It seems like 2023 was the 49ers peak. They have come so close to a Championship but couldn’t secure it.
This year has been rough too when it comes to injuries. Here’s a chart of the 49er injuries as of Oct. 26th, 2025.
| Player | Position | Status | Injury Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| C.J. West | DT | Out | Undisclosed |
| Brock Purdy | QB | Out | Shoulder injury |
| Ricky Pearsall | WR | Out | Hamstring injury |
| Jordan James | RB | Out | Ankle sprain |
| Bryce Huff | DE | Out | Concussion |
| Yetur Gross-Matos | DE | Out | Elbow injury |
| Jake Brendel | C | Out | Knee injury |
| Spencer Burford | OT | Injured Reserve | Knee sprain |
| Brandon Aiyuk | WR | Reserve/PUP | Knee surgery recovery |
| Fred Warner | LB | Injured Reserve | High ankle sprain |
| Nick Bosa | DE | Injured Reserve | Torn ACL (knee surgery) |
| Ben Bartch | G | Injured Reserve | Ankle fracture |
| Jakob Robinson | CB | Injured Reserve | Forearm fracture |
| Kurtis Rourke | QB | Non-Football Injury List | ACL recovery (college injury) |
| Patrick Taylor Jr. | RB | Injured Reserve | Shoulder fracture |
More recently, the 49ers have been starting Mac Jones. Jones was drafted with the 15th overall pick by the Patriots in 2021. What is interesting about Jones being on the 49ers is that the 49ers could’ve drafted him instead of the 49ers bust, Trey Lance. If that would’ve happened, maybe Brock Purdy wouldn’t even be in this conversation right now. You could say Mac Jones is a part of the reason for Brock Purdy’s success. Jones stayed at the Patriots for 3 years, his rookie season being his best. In his rookie season, he played in all 17 games, getting 3,801 passing yards on the season, and averaging 223.6 passing yards per game. The year after, the 2022 season, he only played 14 games, had 2,997 passing yards, and averaged 214 passing yards per game. His worst season with the Patriots was his last one with them in 2023. He then got traded to the Jaguars in 2024. As the 2nd-stringer on the Jags, behind Trevor Lawrence, he had his worst season yet. He only made 10 appearances, got 1,672 passing yards, and averaged 167.2 passing yards per game. Compared to his 2023 season with the Patriots where he made 11 appearances, got 2,120 passing yards, and averaged 192.7 passing yards per game.
He then signed with the 49ers for the 2025 season. He was to be, and still is, Brock Purdy’s backup quarterback, but with Brock Purdy out with his turf toe, they are relying on him to start. So far this season, he has been crushing. He has basically matched his stats from last season in only 6 games! His record this season as a Niner is 4-2 compared to Purdy’s 1-1.
That brings us to the next obstacle in this QB situation. You may be thinking to yourself,”Why are these kids telling me all this stuff about the two 49ers quarterbacks? We get it already! Both of them are really good. Now the Niners can just keep two really good quarterbacks.” No reader, no they cannot. The Niners are in a sticky situation when it comes to contracts. Purdy has a fat contract in itself and Jones has a lesser guaranteed contract but has more bonuses on them. That means that Mac Jones probably has more motivation to be better for the 49ers but Purdy is also trying to beat him out for his QB1 spot. So far, I think that every Niner fan can agree that Mac Jones has been better this year than Purdy, but Purdy has experience with this team. Purdy has a no trade clause on his contract, so if the 49ers try to trade Purdy, it’s likely that he will appeal that. Let’s say that Purdy waives the no trade clause, the Niners find a team that is looking for a quarterback, and a team is also willing to pay that contract, the Niners will still have to pay some money to Purdy.
It’s looking up for the Niners this season. In this situation with the trade deadline coming up, we’ll have to see how the 49ers handle their quarterback problem, their money problem, and their injury problem.