Most of 49ers schedule against non-playoff teams

By Bud L. Ellis

Ten victories won the NFC West last season. The San Francisco 49ers fell two games short of that mark.

But finishing at .500 in 2009 is a good building block for the upcoming campaign, and the 49ers hope a schedule featuring 10 games against non-playoff teams will launch San Francisco into the postseason.

The National Football League has released its list of home games and road games for every team. Dates and times will be finalized in the spring. Seven of the 49ers’ contests come against teams that won fewer than six games in 2009.

San Francisco takes on NFC West rival and defending division champion Arizona in home and road games. At home, the 49ers face Super Bowl champion New Orleans and NFC wild-card qualifier Philadelphia. The rest of the home schedule includes matchups with division rivals St. Louis and Seattle, and non-division games with Tampa Bay, Oakland and Denver.

Away from home, the games against playoff teams include matchups with the Cardinals, AFC West champion San Diego and NFC wild-card qualifier Green Bay. The rest of the road schedule includes trips to St. Louis, Seattle, Kansas City, Atlanta and Carolina.

Based on opponents’ win percentage, the 49ers’ schedule ranks 28th out of the 32-team NFL.

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Sunday, March 21, 2010 at 4:32 pm by bud

Tags: Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs, National Football League, New Orleans Saints, Oakland Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles, San Diego Chargers, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, St. Louis Rams, Super Bowl, Tampa Bay Buccaneers