New year, but old look
Offense bad, though Shanahan’s exhibition debut is win
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It was the 49ers’ first preseason game, but it started by looking just like their injury- and lossfilled 2016 season.
The 49ers kicked off the Kyle Shanahan era by initially getting kicked in the teeth Friday night in a 27-17 win over the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.
The first play of scrimmage? Cornerback Rashard Robinson was burned for a 32yard completion to set the stage for a 75-yard touchdown drive that ended seven plays later. That was enough for quarterback Alex Smith and most of Kansas City’s starters, who took the rest of night off.
Meanwhile, the 49ers’ only two drives with their offensive starters were unsightly. The totals: zero first downs, three yards, an illegal-formation penalty and a forgettable stat line (1 of 4, 3 yards) for quar- terback Brian Hoyer.
“Obviously,” Hoyer said, “it’s disappointing to only have (six) plays and not really have any production.”
It got even worse for a team coming off a 2-14 season: defensive tackle DeForest Buckner left the game on the first drive and was immediately declared out.
The good news: Buckner’s injury didn’t appear serious and — say it all together — it was the first preseason game.
That is, Shanahan and company still have plenty of time to clean up the messes after a game in which they committed 17 penalties (131 yards) and had a field-goal attempt and a punt blocked.
“Expected it a little bit going into the first preseason game, but definitely was disappointed” by the many penalties, Shanahan said. “We’ve had them in practice. It’s something we just talked to the
team about. It’s something we definitely need to get better at and clean up on Monday.”
How ugly was it? The 49ers made so many mistakes that, by halftime, it was a blur to Shanahan. In the second quarter, the 49ers had an 8-yard touchdown pass from Matt Barkley to Aldrick Robinson wiped out by penalty. Still, Shanahan incorrectly said the 49ers had two scores nullified when he was interviewed by KPIX at halftime.
It’s likely that few will recall what happened Friday night by the time the regular season rolls around, but the first few minutes did nothing to dispel doubts surrounding two positions: cornerback and quarterback.
Robinson is the No. 1 corner, and the other spot will likely be filled by either Keith Reaser or Dontae Johnson, both of whom are unproven.
On Friday, Robinson, a 2016 fourth-round pick, didn’t look up to the task of being the leading man.
First, he was beaten badly down the right sideline by wide receiver Tyreek Hill on the first play for the 32-yard gain. Six plays later, he whiffed on an open-field, third-down tackle that would have prevented a first down. On the next series, he surrendered an 83-yard touchdown to Chris Conley, although it was nullified by Conley’s passinterference penalty. Two plays later, he was in coverage again on a 29-yard pass to Conley.
Robinson’s nightmare was finally interrupted when he intercepted a short pass floated by Tyler Bray, who threw the errant ball when he was pressured by rookie defensive tackle Solomon Thomas.
“There’s no doubt, they came after him early,” Shanahan said. “Rashard is aggressive. And if you don’t back him up, he’s not going to back up. They went after him early. It’s a good thing they did from their standpoint, because he wasn’t backing up and they made him change it. We have to make sure that doesn’t happen again.”
On offense, Hoyer, who is hoping to prove he’s a capable starting quarterback, had a forgettable debut with the 49ers. He did zip a 15-yard over-themiddle completion to a fully outstretched Jeremy Kerley, but it was wiped out by an illegal formation penalty.
The 49ers trailed 17-9 before rookie quarterback C.J. Beathard rallied them with fourthquarter touchdown passes to wide receiver Kendrick Bourne (46 yards) and fullback Tyler McCloskey (2 yards). Beathard completed 7 of 11 passes for 101 yards and had a 133.0 passer rating.
“I don’t go into it with exact expectations,” Shanahan said. “I just wanted to see how guys played. I was happy with how they battled. To get a win is more important, I don’t care where it is.”
Or, for that matter, how ugly it is.