San Francisco 49ers Futures Odds: Can Niners Repeat as NFC Champions?

The San Francisco 49ers are seen as the team to beat in the NFC this year.

That should come as no surprise given that they’ve reached the NFC Championship Game in four of the last five seasons. The Niners aren’t just the favorites in the NFC, though.

Sportsbooks are somewhat split — some list San Francisco as co-favorites alongside reigning champs Kansas City, and others give the Niners slightly longer odds than the Chiefs — but there’s no disagreement on who the top Super Bowl 59 favorites are.

Below are how the 49ers and Chiefs’ odds compare at four of the top sportsbooks:

• FanDuel: Chiefs +600; 49ers +600
• DraftKings: Chiefs +500, 49ers +600
• bet365: Chiefs +550, 49ers +550
• Caesars: Chiefs +575, 49ers +625

The Chiefs’ slightly shorter odds at DK and Caesars have as much to do with the strength and depth of the AFC as anything.

San Francisco 49ers 2024 Futures Odds

“Super Bowl or bust” might be an understatement when it comes to the expectations for San Francisco this season.

The Niners were dominant for most of 2023, their fourth season with 10 or more regular-season wins since 2019.

They sandwiched a 5-0 start to 2023 and a six-game winning streak from Weeks 10-15 around three head-scratching losses in a row to the Browns, Vikings and Bengals in October, then won two close games at home in the playoffs to reach Super Bowl 58.

With most of last year’s elite roster — San Francisco was No. 2 in opponent-adjusted total DVOA in 2023 thanks to its No. 1 offense and No. 4 defense (per DVOA) — intact, it would likely take a rash of injuries and/or locker room issues to derail this team in 2024.

On paper, the Niners’ schedule, which features a total of eight games against the NFC North and AFC East, looks tricky.

But according to SportsBettingDime’s Matt McEwan, San Francisco has the 16th-easiest schedule in the league.

San Francisco 49ers 2024 Betting Outlook

Can anyone slow down the elite 49ers offense?

• PFF OL Unit Ranking: No. 24
• PFF Receiving Unit (WRs/TEs) Ranking: No. 1
• PFF RB Unit Ranking: No. 1

Head coach Kyle Shanahan has led one of the best offenses in the league for several years now, and the San Francisco O was even better than usual in 2023.

The Niners were easily No. 1 in offensive DVOA last year, well ahead of the Dolphins, the No. 2 team by that metric.

There are legitimate concerns this season about when star tackle Trent Williams and WR Brandon Aiyuk will resolve their contract disputes and get on the field. But given that an Aiyuk trade still hasn’t materialized, the most likely outcome is another impactful season by the fifth-year star, even if his days in the Bay are numbered.

Williams is also at odds with the San Francisco front office over his long-term future. But the safest bet is that the 49ers will find a way to get Williams and Aiyuk on the field when they need them.

Skeptics of this offense might also question QB Brock Purdy — even after his outstanding 2023 campaign, his doubters persist — and it’s fair to question Christian McCaffrey’s health, especially considering the calf injury that’s plagued him in training camp.

But No. 23 has made the injury issues that wrecked his 2020 and 2021 seasons in Carolina a distant memory since joining the Niners midway through the 2022 campaign.

McCaffrey played just 10 games total in 2020-21, but he hasn’t missed a meaningful contest in 28 games as a 49er (his only absence came in Week 17 last year, when San Francisco rested its starters). In addition to McCaffrey, Aiyuk and Williams, Purdy also has one of the league’s best tight ends, George Kittle, as yet another target.

If there’s a legitimate weakness on the San Francisco offense, it’s on the O-line, which could be underwhelming even if Williams and Niners’ brass reach a deal between now and Week 1. But this unit wasn’t great in 2023, and that didn’t prevent Purdy, McCaffrey and Co. from putting up league-leading numbers.

Is there reason to doubt the San Francisco D?

In a word, no.

The 49ers’ Super Bowl odds are as short as Kansas City’s because as good as their offense is, their defense is equally outstanding.

• PFF DL Unit Ranking: No. 2
• PFF Linebacker Ranking: No. 2
• PFF Secondary Unit Ranking: No. 2

The San Francisco defensive line boasts multiple stars in Nick Bosa and Javon Hargrave, who combined for 17.5 sacks and 24 tackles for loss in 2023. Throw in speedy free-agent edge rusher Leonard Floyd, who has had at least nine sacks in each of the last four seasons, and the San Franciso DL will be unblockable as long as it’s healthy.

The Niners’ linebacker room is led by Fred Warner, a first-team All-Pro in 2021, 2022 and 2024. Warner, Dre Greenlaw (who is still recovering from a torn Achilles he suffered during the Super Bowl loss to Kansas City) and former Packer De’Vondre Campbell will make this a formidable unit once again in 2024.

The San Francisco linebackers won’t be the same until Greenlaw recovers from one of the most devastating injuries in sports — which could be halfway through this season or later — but Warner will ensure that LB is hardly a weakness for San Fran in the meantime.

The DB group for San Francisco lacks a star like Bosa or Warner, but 2023 Pro Bowler Charvarius Ward leads a secondary that is well-regarded by the likes of PFF for good reason. The Niners tied for the league lead with 22 interceptions in 2023, as a whopping 10 players all had at least one pick.

San Francisco 49ers 2024 Best Bets

• 49ers to win NFC (best odds: +300 at FanDuel)
• 49ers win total over: 11.5 (best odds: +120 at FanDuel)

Based on what we’ve seen when the Niners and Chiefs have clashed on the game’s biggest stage, it’s going to be hard to bet on this team taking down Kansas City as long as Patrick Mahomes is around.

Otherwise, though, there’s nothing the 49ers can’t accomplish, especially if they manage to get the contract issues with Aiyuk and Williams sorted out.

It would take good injury luck for this team to reach 12 wins, but +120 is outstanding value on this prop for a team that’s won 12 games or more in three of the last five seasons.

Now, about the “49ers to win the NFC” play.

First of all, yes, both Green Bay and Detroit nearly upset this team — in the Bay, no less — last postseason. But while the NFC doesn’t lack for potential threats to San Francisco, especially if it fails to secure home-field advantage in the playoffs, the Niners are still the best, safest bet to win the NFC until someone proves otherwise.

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