The 49ers fell minutes short of being Super Bowl champions last season. So the question is, are they better or worse this year before they open their season against the Arizona Cardinals?
General manager John Lynch likes his team's chances but knows they must prove it on the field.
"The great thing about that, Greg, is that this is a show-me league," Lynch said on 49ers Pregame Live. "So we gotta show up and prove that. I believe that potentially we've got an opportunity to be better."
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SIGN UP HERE Lynch also knows the 49ers lost a handful of key players this offseason. Joe Staley retired, Emmanuel Sanders signed with the New Orleans Saints and San Francisco traded DeForest Buckner to the Indianapolis Colts. Those players won't be easy to replace.
But Lynch is a big fan of the replacements.
"When you lose a DeForest Buckner, that's gonna leave a void," Lynch said. "But how well can Javon Kinlaw -- and it's not just Javon Kinlaw -- how well can Javon Kinlaw, Solomon Thomas, Kevin Givens, Kentavius Street, D.J. Jones ... how well can they fill that void?
"Emmanuel Sanders gave a great lift, but I will tell you we're incredibly excited about Brandon Aiyuk and Dante Pettis' emergence, Jordan Reed's emergence, Jet McKinnon being back. So there's a lot of subtle additions I think have us really, really excited about the opportunity to be better, but that's all for naught unless you go show that."
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The 49ers have to prove themselves right away in Sunday's season opener against the Arizona Cardinals at Levi's Stadium. They'll have a tough test against quarterback Kyler Murray and Co. The NFC West is improved and everyone is coming for the 49ers.
As for a Super Bowl hangover, Lynch doesn't feel it.
"There's so many worries about a Super Bowl loss hangover and all that, but I can tell you, we didn't have a traditional offseason, but from the day these guys returned, from the day we started our offseason program on Zoom meetings, they've been on point.
"If there's a hangover, I'm not feeling it."