| Team: | San Francisco 49ers |
| Year: | 2016 |
| Record: | 2–14 |
| Division Place: | 4th NFC West |
| Coach: | Chip Kelly |
| General Manager: | Trent Baalke |
| Owner: | Jed York |
| Stadium: | Levi's Stadium |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers: | None |
| Shortnavlink: | 49ers seasons |
The 2016 season was the San Francisco 49ers' 67th in the National Football League (NFL), their 71st overall, their third playing their home games at Levi's Stadium and the only season under head coach Chip Kelly. 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 49ers also nearly became the first team (and only the second since the AFL–NFL Merger 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, when they also finished 2–14 (both wins that season were against the Arizona Cardinals). 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.[1]
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.
After the 2015 season ended, the 49ers fired Jim Tomsula as head coach.[2] 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 and had been fired after a disappointing 7–9 Eagles season.[3]
The 49ers entered free agency with the following:[4]
| Position | Player | Free agency tag | Date signed | 2016 Team | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UFA | March 10, 2016 | Signed 4-year contract[5] | ||||
| UFA | July 26, 2016 | - | ||||
| UFA | February 23, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Signed 4-year extension[6] | |||
| UFA | March 23, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Signed 1-year contract[7] | |||
| ERFA | April 4, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Tendered one-year contract[8] [9] | |||
| ERFA | June 20, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Signed two-year contract | |||
| RFA | March 8, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Tendered one-year contract[10] | |||
| UFA | March 14, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Signed 1-year contract[11] | |||
| RFA | March 8, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Signed 1-year extension[12] | |||
| UFA | August 1, 2016 | Signed 1-year contract | ||||
| UFA | March 2, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Signed 1-year contract[13] | |||
| RFA | April 4, 2016 | San Francisco 49ers | Signed 1-year contract[14] | |||
RFA: Restricted free agent, UFA: Unrestricted free agent, ERFA: Exclusive rights free agent
| ||||||
| Position | Player | 2015 Team | Date signed | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary Stampeders (CFL) | January 20, 2016 | Signed 2-year[15] | |||
| March 10, 2016 | Signed 1-year[16] [17] | ||||
| March 22, 2016 | Signed 3-year[18] | ||||
| August 23, 2016 | Signed 1-year[19] |
| Indicates that the player was a free agent at the end of his respective team's season. |
| Position | Player | Date | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 15, 2016 | Retired[20] [21] |
See main article: article and 2016 NFL draft.
| Round | Selection | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | |||||
| 28 | From Chiefs | ||||
| 2 | 37 | Traded to the Kansas City Chiefs | |||
| 3 | 68 | ||||
| 4 | 105 | Traded to the Kansas City Chiefs | |||
| 133 | Compensatory pick | ||||
| 5 | 142 | From Chargers | |||
| 145 | |||||
| 174 | Compensatory pick | ||||
| 6 | 178 | Traded to the Kansas City Chiefs | From Cowboys | ||
| 207 | From Broncos | ||||
| 211 | Compensatory pick | ||||
| 213 | Compensatory pick | ||||
| 7 | 249 | From Chiefs | |||
The 49ers traded their second-, fourth- and sixth-round selection (Nos. 37, 105 and 178 overall) to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for their first- and seventh-round selection (Nos. 28 and 249 overall).[22]
The 49ers acquired an additional fifth-round selection as part of a trade that sent their 2015 first-round selection to the San Diego Chargers.[23]
The 49ers acquired a sixth-round selection in a trade that sent their 2015 seventh-round selection to the Dallas Cowboys.
The 49ers traded tight end Vernon Davis and their 2016 seventh-round selection to the Denver Broncos in exchange for the Broncos' 2016 sixth-round and 2017 sixth-round selections.
| Position | Player | College | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DT | released August 27[24] | |||
| DT | released September 3[25] | |||
| S | waived August 23 | |||
| WR | released September 3 | |||
| WR | released September 3 | |||
| LB | waived May 12[26] | |||
| LB | released August 27 | |||
| DE | ||||
| DE | ||||
| K | released August 27 | |||
| OL | released August 27 | |||
| OL | released September 3 | |||
| OL | released September 3 |
The 49ers' preseason opponents and schedule were announced April 7, 2016.
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 14 | Houston Texans | L 13–24 | 0–1 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | |
| 2 | August 20 | at Denver Broncos | W 31–24 | 1–1 | Sports Authority Field at Mile High | Recap | |
| 3 | August 26 | Green Bay Packers | L 10–21 | 1–2 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | |
| 4 | September 1 | at San Diego Chargers | W 31–21 | 2–2 | Qualcomm Stadium | Recap |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles Rams | W 28–0 | 1–0 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | |||
| 2 | September 18 | at Carolina Panthers | L 27–46 | 1–1 | Bank of America Stadium | Recap | ||
| 3 | September 25 | at Seattle Seahawks | L 18–37 | 1–2 | CenturyLink Field | Recap | ||
| 4 | October 2 | Dallas Cowboys | L 17–24 | 1–3 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | ||
| 5 | Arizona Cardinals | L 21–33 | 1–4 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | |||
| 6 | October 16 | at Buffalo Bills | L 16–45 | 1–5 | New Era Field | Recap | ||
| 7 | October 23 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 17–34 | 1–6 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | ||
| 8 | Bye | |||||||
| 9 | November 6 | New Orleans Saints | L 23–41 | 1–7 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | ||
| 10 | November 13 | at Arizona Cardinals | L 20–23 | 1–8 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
| 11 | November 20 | New England Patriots | L 17–30 | 1–9 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | ||
| 12 | November 27 | at Miami Dolphins | L 24–31 | 1–10 | Hard Rock Stadium | Recap | ||
| 13 | December 4 | at Chicago Bears | L 6–26 | 1–11 | Soldier Field | Recap | ||
| 14 | December 11 | New York Jets | L 17–23 | 1–12 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | ||
| 15 | December 18 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 13–41 | 1–13 | Georgia Dome | Recap | ||
| 16 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 22–21 | 2–13 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | Recap | |||
| 17 | January 1, 2017 | Seattle Seahawks | L 23–25 | 2–14 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | ||
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||||
49ers kicked the season off at 1-0
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-1
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-2
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-3
The 49ers wore their black alternate uniforms for this game as part of Color Rush.
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-4
Days prior to Week 6, Head Coach Chip Kelly confirmed that quarterback Colin Kaepernick would start in place of Blaine Gabbert. This was Kaepernick's first start of the season.
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-5
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-6
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-8
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-9
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-10
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.
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-11
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-12
With the loss, 49ers fell to 1-13
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.
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.