The Dolphins are starting over from the coaching staff down to the quarterback room. The 49ers are picking up a playoff run that got cut short. Week 3 in Santa Clara is a real gut check for both.
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SUN SEP 20 · 1:25 PM PT
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Jeff Hafley inherits an entirely new-look Dolphins team, and the biggest question mark is under center. Malik Willis has the inside track to be QB1 after Miami moved on from Tua Tagovailoa, with Quinn Ewers pushing him in a genuine camp competition that's still unresolved. San Francisco has no such drama — Brock Purdy is the guy, full stop, with Mac Jones content playing insurance after going 5-3 as a fill-in starter last year. Kickoff at Levi's Stadium is set for 1:25 PM PT.
The 49ers enter banged up at two spots that make them dangerous. George Kittle is working back from a January Achilles tear and Nick Bosa is doing the same with a torn ACL, both targeting a Week 1 return but neither a lock to be fully unleashed three weeks into the season. Throw in the Brandon Aiyuk situation — he's publicly campaigned for a trade to Washington and hasn't hidden his frustration — and San Francisco's depth chart still has loose threads even coming off a playoff trip. None of that changes the fact that the talent floor here is still higher than Miami's on paper.
For the Dolphins, this game is about identity. Hafley inherits a roster that collapsed down the stretch last year — a 45-21 loss to Cincinnati and a 38-10 finale beatdown in New England closed out 2025 — and a receiving corps rebuilt through three rookie draft picks. De'Von Achane is the one sure thing on offense after cashing in on a big extension, assuming the shoulder that cost him a game last season is fully behind him.
Miami Dolphins
San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco's résumé speaks for itself: a Wild Card upset of the defending-champion Eagles before a lopsided Divisional Round exit to Seattle ended the run. Christian McCaffrey led the league in touches again, and the front office added Mike Evans to a receiver room still figuring out life with or without Aiyuk. This is a team built to win now, even while nursing injuries at tight end and edge rusher.
Miami Dolphins
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Fully healthy — no injuries to report
San Francisco 49ers
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Fully healthy — no injuries to report
Three weeks into Hafley's tenure, Miami should have a much clearer read on whether Willis is the answer. San Francisco just wants its stars healthy by the time games start mattering in December. That gap in stability is basically the whole story here.
