The 49ers The 2022 schedule has been officially released. We no longer have to verify rumors or question whether leaks are accurate. Over the past two seasons, the team has fought 49 of five prime-time matches. After another successful year in 2021, the Niners once again appeared in the largest number of prime time games.
The 49ers have finished the season with six of their last nine home games, and none have been outside the Pacific time zone, with the exception of Week 11 in Mexico City.
Here’s the full schedule with times, dates and TV channels. All times listed are from the Pacific Ocean.
Preparatory week one: vs. Packers
Preparation week for season 2: @Vikings
Season 3 preparation week: @Texans
Week 1: @ Chicago BearsSunday, September 18 at 10:00 a.m. PDT
- Opposite Lance Fields
- A favorable midfield opener starting in his first full season.
- DeMeco Ryans and the Niners defense could not have asked for a better opening.
Week 2: vs. Seattle SeahawksSunday, September 25 at 1:05 p.m. PDT
- Seattle faces Denver in Week 1, so 49ers get their opponents in a short week
- This results in two games in a row where San Francisco will not face a blockbuster pass
- Rookie in the first round LT Charles Cross vs. Nick Bossa. Poor fella.
Week 3: @ Denver BroncosSunday, October 2 at 5:20 PM PT
- It wouldn’t be the 49th season without Russell Wilson getting in the way.
- This will be the first ‘Test’ of the season, but the Niners may be broken with Jerry Jeudy facing off Second degree tampering charge.
- Denver has familiar faces on its roster such as DJ Jones, K’Waun Williams, and Tom Compton.
Week 4, vs. Los Angeles ramsMonday, October 10 at 5:20 p.m. PT
- These next two games are the opposite of the first two as far as schedule strength goes. Will the 49ers continue their regular season dominance over the team that bounced back on them in NFC Championship last year?
- I think we’ll see the Rams’ defense decline in 2022.
- I think we see the Rams attack better in the second year with Matthew Stafford and Sean McVeigh.
The fifth week: @ Carolina PanthersSunday, October 16th at 1:05pm PT
- Another weak early season opponent for the 49ers.
- The Panthers win over/under in the regular season is currently set at 6.5, representing the Niners’ third opponent in the first five games that betting lines expect to finish worse than 7-10.
- While their choice of Matt Corral in the draft may have closed the door in any move, it is still out of the question that Jimmy Garoppolo would be under the Carolina center.
the sixth week: @ Atlanta FalconsSunday, October 23 at 10:00 AM PT
- The table is well set up for the 49ers to start 4-2. Many believe the Falcons have the worst roster in the NFL.
- Teams that give the Niners defense issues in general have firepower on offense that overwhelms their defense. This is not Atlanta.
- This should be around the time Trey Lance and crime begin to make their way to their stride.
- This will be the last game of the regular season that the 49 players play in the Eastern Time Zone.
Seventh week: vs. Kansas City ChiefsSunday October 30 at 1:25 PM PT
- a Energy rematch. Overreactions to this game will be fun, especially if Lance outsmarts the Mahomes.
- We’ve seen two “bad” teams followed by two good teams, and this cycle repeats itself to wrap up the first half of the season.
- Charvarius Ward revenge game
Week 8: @Los Angeles Rams, November 6, 1:25PM PT
- Playing rams twice in a month is a change. We’re used to seeing the Rams early in the season, then one of the last weeks.
- Although this game is not later in the season, it will hold significance in the standings as both teams are expected to compete for the division crown.
Week 9: Bye
- The Niners have had some bad luck with the BYEs early in the season in recent years. Most teams usually see BYE in the middle of the season being the best.
Week 10: vs. Los Angeles Chargers1:25 p.m. PT, NBC
- The Chargers may be the most exciting team in the NFL next year. The 49ers will cherish BYE Week as Kyle Shanahan and DeMeco Ryans attempt to plot ways to attack one of the most talented teams in the NFL.
- The Niners will have a break, then travel to Los Angeles and Mexico City.
Week 11: @ Arizona Cardinals (Mexico City), Monday, November 21, 5:15 p.m. PST
- The 49ers and the Cardinals return to Mexico City for the first time since 2005.
- San Francisco should be happy that the international game is costing their division rival a home game.
Week 12: vs. New Orleans SaintsSunday, November 27 at 1:25 PM PT
- Coming home instead of having to fly to New Orleans after playing at the Mexico City hike is a breather for the 49ers.
- Who knows what to expect from the Saints in 2022, but if the 49ers are going to be an accessory team, they can’t fall.
Week 13: vs. Miami DolphinSunday December 4th at 1:05 PM PT
- Mike McDaniel and Rahim Mostert are back in the Bay Area.
- Will the Niners be able to contain the speed of Mostert, Tyreek Hill, and Jaylen Waddle?
- The offense should score enough points where it doesn’t matter.
Week 14: vs. Tampa Bay BuccaneersDecember 11 at 1:25 p.m. PT
- Tom Brady. Enough said.
- This could be a potential playoff.
Week 15: @Seattle Seahawks, Thursday December 15th at 5:15pm PST
- The short week will do neither team a favor, but both teams will play for a short week.
- Barring the best performance of Pete Carroll’s career as coach, Seattle will be out of contention in the playoffs by this point in the season.
- If Drew Lock is the start of the Seahawks in Week 1, I expect Geno Smith to be the start of this phase of the season. If Smith is within the middle of Week 1, I would expect to see Lock for this match.
- The Seahawks should still have an impressive home advantage at Lumen Field, but it’s hard to imagine they’ll play as well this year.
Week 16: vs. Washington Leaders, Saturday December 24 at 1:05pm PST
- Carson Wentz is one of the most inconsistent quarterbacks in the NFL, but that didn’t do much for the 49er in their three encounters against the previous number one overall pick (Wentz is 3-0 in his career against SF).
- This may be a unique match between two quarterbacks from the same college (Lance and Wentz both attended North Dakota State).
Week 17: @ Las Vegas RaidersSunday, January 1 at 1:05 p.m. PT
- The former rivalry in the Bay Area is heading to Sin City for the first time.
- The Raiders have made some big additions this season (eg Davante Adams and Chandler Jones) but are also expected to be in the bottom half of the AFC West.
- They can still play for a Wild-Card, but the Niners could benefit from a late-season match when Vegas are already eliminated from the postseason in the AFC stacked.
Week 18: vs. Arizona Cardinals, Saturday/Sunday, January 7/8, TBD
- The 49ers will have to wait a little longer to find out their game for Week 18 as the NFL waits to see how the early season plays before finalizing those tables.
- I’m relieved to speculate that Cliff Kingsbury won’t be the Cardinals’ head coach if they don’t make it to postseason this season.
- No competitor has gotten more into Kyle Shanahan’s problem than Arizona. We’ll see if he can change that trend this season.
Super Basin: +1600
NFC: +750
NFC West: +190