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          San Francisco 49ers' 2023 schedule: Takeaways, predictions

          Nick Bosa and the 49ers will play in five prime-time games this season, including two on Thursdays. Bob Kupbens/Icon Sportswire
          • Nick Wagoner, ESPN Staff WriterMay 11, 2023, 08:00 PM ET
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              Nick Wagoner is an NFL reporter at ESPN. Nick has covered the San Francisco 49ers and the NFL at ESPN since 2016, having previously covered the St. Louis Rams for 12 years, including three years (2013 to 2015) at ESPN. In his 10 years with the company, Nick has led ESPN's coverage of the Niners' 2019 Super Bowl run, Colin Kaepernick's protest, the Rams making Michael Sam the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam's subsequent pursuit of a roster spot and the team's relocation and stadium saga. You can follow Nick via Twitter @nwagoner
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          SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The San Francisco 49ers' 2023 schedule was released along with the rest of the NFL slate Thursday.

          As has become tradition, the 49ers will have five prime-time games in 2023. But in this, the first year in which teams can have multiple Thursday night matchups, the Niners are one of the teams that will be a part of that experiment, with a Week 3 game against the New York Giants at home and a Thanksgiving night meeting at the Seattle Seahawks. San Francisco will also play on Monday twice, with a visit to Minnesota in Week 7 and a home game on Christmas against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 16.

          That means a couple of tight turnarounds but also a couple of extra mini-byes to go along with their Week 9 bye, which could be beneficial down the home stretch for a team expected to again contend for a Super Bowl appearance.

          Here's what's in store for the 49ers:

          Schedule

          Sept. 10: at Pittsburgh

          Sept. 17: at Los Angeles Rams

          Sept. 21: vs. New York Giants (TNF)

          Oct. 1: vs. Arizona

          Oct. 8: vs. Dallas (SNF)

          Oct. 15: at Cleveland

          Oct. 23: at Minnesota (MNF)

          Oct. 29: vs. Cincinnati

          Nov. 5: BYE

          Nov. 12: at Jacksonville

          Nov. 19: vs. Tampa Bay

          Nov. 23: at Seattle (TNF)

          Dec. 3: at Philadelphia

          Dec. 10: vs. Seattle

          Dec. 17: at Arizona

          Dec. 25: vs. Baltimore (MNF)

          Dec. 31: at Washington

          Jan. 6 or 7: vs. Los Angeles Rams

          Strength of schedule: 0.515 (15th toughest)

          Over/Under: 11.5

          Biggest takeaway

          The 49ers will travel the second-most miles in the league this year, trailing only the Seahawks, but they don't have many obvious spots for the week-long stays out east that they have done in recent seasons. The only real option for that is Week 6 and 7, when they play at Cleveland followed by Minnesota. But that Vikings game is on a Monday, so it's possible the 49ers could go back and forth with the extra day off. Otherwise, the schedule shapes up nicely, with no particularly daunting stretches aside from a three-game run against Seattle, Philadelphia and Seattle again in Weeks 12-14. But the Niners won't mind having a few extra days off after the trip to Seattle before having to go to Philadelphia.

          Revenge game

          It doesn't get any more revenge-y than the Week 13 NFC championship rematch against the Eagles. No, the Niners won't be able to atone for their 31-7 loss in Philadelphia, but they're eager to get another shot at the Eagles with what they hope will be a healthy quarterback or two in tow. San Francisco hasn't shied away from the idea that it didn't get a fair shot to beat the Eagles because it lost starting signal-caller Brock Purdy to a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right throwing elbow, and backup Josh Johnson early in the second half with a concussion.

          Nobody knows how that game might have turned out if the 49ers had a healthy Purdy, but they'd like to at least get a better idea this time around in one of the most anticipated matchups of the season.

          Bold prediction

          Purdy will start all 17 regular-season games. Since coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch arrived in 2017, the Niners have gone through an entire season with one starter only once (Jimmy Garoppolo in 2019). What's more, Purdy is coming off elbow surgery, which has left some wondering if he will even be back in time for Week 1.

          But the Niners are confident in how Purdy's recovery is going, and it's possible for athletes returning from the repair with InternalBrace to be fully cleared as soon as five months post-surgery. All Purdy has to do after that is stay healthy and productive enough to hold down the job the whole season. It's a big ask, but the 49ers' faith in Purdy is real, and so long as they're winning, they'll keep rolling with their second-year signal-caller.