State of the San Francisco 49ers: 11/18/18

Don’t worry Jed York. I got the answers for you. I don’t believe much will change from now until the end of the year so I’ll let you copy and paste this for your year end press conference on what went wrong this year. Just give us a shoutout is all we ask. Entering Week 11 of the 2018 NFL season, the Niners stand at 2-8. There were high expectations for the 49ers coming into the 2018 season. They rattled off 5 straight wins last year after Joe Montana’s long lost son gifted us with his presence. Fans and the organization were on such a high that we were all convinced this year was truly going to be the start of a new era. But it went all south in one moment. Jimmy G fought for one extra yard one afternoon in Kansas City and shredded his knee. Just like that, the season was done. This brings us the harrowing reality that through Week 10 of the 2018 season, the John Lynch/Kyle Shanahan led Niners are 2-16 in games without their Messiah dating back to the start of last season. It’s ironic how one person usually is not enough to win a championship by himself but losing one person is enough to derail an entire organization’s hopes and dreams. Where did it all go wrong? Is there anything Niner fans can point to as a sign of hope for the future? What needs to change? Luckily for you guys, we got the answers over here.

What has gone right so far in 2018

George Kittle

The emergence of George Kittle not just as a weapon for the 49ers but as an upper echelon player at his position has to be most positive news to come out of this year. The only two tight ends with more receiving yards than Kittle this year are Zach Ertz and Travis Kelce. Here are a few names that are behind Mr Kittle in that category regardless of position….Stefon Diggs, Gronk, ANTONIO FREAKIN BROWN, and AJ FREAKIN GREEN. And then you add in the fact that he is money when it comes to blocking as well and he might be the most complete tight end in the game today.

Rookie Contributions

The key to sustainability for any pro sports organization is you have to get value from low cost contributors. Most of the time that means hitting on your draft picks and from the looks of it, the 49ers accomplished just that. Their first three picks, Mike McGlinchey, Dante Pettis, and Fred Warner, all appear to be on their way to solidifying their positions for the next few years. With that, the front office can look to plug other holes on the roster. Good job John Lynch!

What has gone wrong so far in 2018

Roster Depth

Bad job John Lynch :( The loss of Jimmy Garoppolo derailed the 49ers chances this season. That much is obvious. The problem with the 5-0 mirage to end last season was that it gave the false pretense that the roster was good as is and not much tinkering had to be done. Wrong! Gotta put that blame on John Lynch for that thinking. Jimmy did what elite quarterbacks do and that is cover up the warts of the rest of the roster. With Jimmy out, we all see how much talent is lacking from the 49ers, especially on offense. They have no playmakers on offense with the exception of Kittle. The skill positions (WR, RB, TE) are made up of complementary pieces. We have the gravy but we don’t have the turkey. I’m not saying get Le’Veon Bell but at least kick the idea around. Shit what else are you going to spend the money on. Here are names on the roster that either are getting big money now or will be due for big money in the near future: Jimmy G, George Kittle, DeForest Buckner. That’s literally it. They can afford Le’Veon Bell.

Lack of Development from players

This kind of goes hand in hand with the first point. The front office and coaching staff assumed players from the 2017 roster would improve with the extra year in both Kyle Shanahan’s and Robert Salah’s offensive and defensive systems. That has not happened. Here is a list of names that were expected to be key contributors but have fallen below expectations in 2018: Adrian Colbert, Reuben Foster, Solomon Thomas (more on him later), CJ Beathard, Ahkello Witherspoon, Arik Armstead, Joshua Garnett, Trent Taylor. While there may be other factors that are hindering these guys’ performances (coaching, injuries, personal life, etc) the fact is they are not getting the job done.

Soloman Thomas

This guy has been such a disappointment over his first year and a half that it might be worth it to cut bait after this year. Through the first 24 games of his career, Solomon has 4 sacks. FOUR. I’m not good at math so let me get calculator so I can punch some numbers in and lo and behold these statistics show1sack for every 6 games played. That is terrible for a defensive lineman selected #3 overall. Now a lot of pundits (and Solomon himself) have suggested the 49ers have been misusing him. Solomon gained notoriety in college as a pass rushing defensive tackle. Someone who can generate pressure up the middle and take pressure off of fellow defensive tackle Deforest Buckner. Defensive Coordinator Robert Salah has elected to keep Solomon on the outside and use him as a defensive end where is not quick enough to beat athletic tackles and not strong enough to drive right through them. I think I speak for a good number of people when I say I would be very interested to see what Solomon can do if given the chance to play inside. However it is my opinion that when you are the deemed the third best player amongst all of your rookie peers, you should be dominating on the field no matter where your coaches put you. The players that need to be put in the right positions to succeed are the guys drafted much later. Step your game up son.

To summarize the Niners season, Jimmy G’s stupid knee is to blame for all of this. Even with the injuries to other players, lack of development, lack of playmakers I truly believe the 49ers would be contending for a playoff spot with Jimmy in the lineup. He is that good. With Jimmy, they win both games against the Cardinals, the Chargers, the Giants, and let’s chalk up the Packers game too for argument’s sake. That is 5 more wins with Jimmy. 7-3 sounds a lot different than 2-8. Without Jimmy, a lot of holes have been discovered and need to be addressed. Dare I say it...the torn knee actually could be the best to happen to this team. It offers two views: both how close and how far the team truly is. Always next year ✌🏽