The 2021 season kicks off this Sunday in Chicago for the 49ers as they take on the Bears at Soldier Field with a Trey Lance/Justin Fields matchup at the center of attention. With Lance under center, it’s not fair to tie offensive expectations to this opener from previous openers for the 49ers. Still, it’s an interesting conversation, given how previous teams have performed under Shanahan.
There are two parts to this study, with Shanahan being an offensive coordinator for far longer than a head coach. Some teams were downright bad, and others were absolutely loaded.
Season openers, for Shanahan especially, don’t foreshadow his team’s success with wins or statistics.