Every NFL team ranked by how badly they need LeBron

9. San Francisco 49ers

Position – Anywhere on Defense

Jimmy Garoppolo came in and fixed everything for the San Francisco 49ers. They don’t need help at any other position because Jimmy Jesus is in the building.

Not exactly.

Even though Garoppolo gave their offense a boost, their defense still needs a lot of work. The 49ers defense was 24th in total yards and 22nd in points. LeBron could play any position on defense for San Francisco. Put up on either side of Reuben Foster, put him on the opposite side of Solomon Thomas, or put him in the secondary next to Richard Sherman.

That’s my personal landing spot for him on defense. The most petty defensive duo of all-time. Sherman has a chip on his shoulder after being release by the Seattle Seahawks and LeBron always has a chip on his shoulder. You don’t think LeBron wants to steal headlines from the Golden State Warriors? If he comes to San Francisco and knocks Steph Curry and Kevin Durant to the second page, that’s a win for him. It might be his only shot at beating the Warriors.

The downside to being on the 49ers is much like the downside to being on the Lakers. There’s a lot of good history in San Francisco and much of that came from the safety position. Ronnie Lott is a Hall of Fame defensive back who won four Super Bowls with the 49ers. If LeBron can’t give them at least one playoff victory, he’s going to be chastised for the rest of his NFL career. The same way Lakers fans are going to kill him if he can’t get out of the second round.

Kobe never lost in the second round.