2001 San Francisco 49ers
The 2001 San Francisco 49ers went 12–4, and lost in the Wild Card round. They scored 409 points and allowed 282.
- Record
- 12–4
- Home
- 7–1
- Road & neutral
- 5–3
- Points
- 409–282
- Postseason
- Lost Wild Card
Where the season ranked
They scored 409 points, the third-most among the 31 teams, and allowed 282, the ninth-fewest. Their point differential was +127.
How the season unfolded
The 49ers started 3–1 and were 6–2 after eight games. They went 3–1 over the final four weeks to finish 12–4.
Their longest winning streak was five games, from Week 8 to Week 12.
Best and worst games
Their biggest win was 38–0 over the New Orleans Saints in Week 17 (January 6, 2002).
Their heaviest loss was 27–14 to the St. Louis Rams in Week 13 (December 9, 2001).
They scored a season-high 40 points against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 11 (November 25, 2001), winning 40–21.
They shut out the Buffalo Bills (Week 12), the Miami Dolphins (Week 14), and the New Orleans Saints (Week 17).
In games decided by eight points or fewer, they went 6–3.
They played four games that went to overtime and went 3–1 in them.
Division and playoff opponents
Against teams that reached the playoffs, they went 3–3 in the regular season.
Postseason
In the Wild Card round, they lost to the Green Bay Packers 25–15 on the road.
Before and after
That was a six-win improvement on 2000, when they went 6–10.
It was the franchise’s first playoff appearance in any season from 1999 on.
In 2002, they went 10–6 and returned to the playoffs.
2001 schedule and results
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Sep 9, 2001 | vs Atlanta Falcons | W 16–13 (OT) |
| Week 2 | Sep 23, 2001 | vs St. Louis Rams | L 26–30 |
| Week 3 | Oct 1, 2001 | at New York Jets | W 19–17 |
| Week 4 | Oct 7, 2001 | vs Carolina Panthers | W 24–14 |
| Week 5 | Oct 14, 2001 | at Atlanta Falcons | W 37–31 (OT) |
| Week 7 | Oct 28, 2001 | at Chicago Bears | L 31–37 (OT) |
| Week 8 | Nov 4, 2001 | vs Detroit Lions | W 21–13 |
| Week 9 | Nov 11, 2001 | vs New Orleans Saints | W 28–27 |
| Week 10 | Nov 18, 2001 | at Carolina Panthers | W 25–22 (OT) |
| Week 11 | Nov 25, 2001 | at Indianapolis Colts | W 40–21 |
| Week 12 | Dec 2, 2001 | vs Buffalo Bills | W 35–0 |
| Week 13 | Dec 9, 2001 | at St. Louis Rams | L 14–27 |
| Week 14 | Dec 16, 2001 | vs Miami Dolphins | W 21–0 |
| Week 15 | Dec 22, 2001 | vs Philadelphia Eagles | W 13–3 |
| Week 16 | Dec 30, 2001 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 21–27 |
| Week 17 | Jan 6, 2002 | at New Orleans Saints | W 38–0 |
| Wild Card | Jan 13, 2002 | at Green Bay Packers | L 15–25 |
Counted by WHYNFL from the final score of every 2001 game. Division place uses win percentage, then point differential; the NFL's full tiebreaker procedure is not applied.