HOW SF CAN SAVE YEAR AFTER BYE
5 ways for Shanahan to right this ship after taking this weekend off
A pack of 49ers fans, fresh off an Arizona boys trip, proposed a question to me as we exited the airport Monday: Thumbs up or down on Trey Lance?
“Thumbs up,” I replied. “But no matter who’s at quarterback, the 49ers have other issues.”
Then we rattled off a few as we walked to our cars, reminiscing about fourth-down (and third-down) calls that failed Sunday to listing off ever-inactive rookies, with almost everything circling back to Kyle Shanahan’s influence.
“Fire him!” said one of the airport gang, whom, I pointed out, was wearing Shanahan’s 2019 model red hat.
No one is getting fired during this bye week. Well, not the coach. Cornerback Buster Skrine got terminated Monday, but that’s irrelevant, as will be the 49ers (2-3) if they don’t reverse a three-game losing streak.
Here are five ways to save and reverse their season, with 12 games to go:
1. QUARTERBACK COMMITMENT » OK, I lied, the quarterback job is a pretty big deal. It just isn’t the cause of their woes, as an incohesive, undisciplined unit. That said, quarterback uncertainty is no way to go through a season.
Trey Lance’s knee sprain Sunday complicates matters, just as Jimmy Garoppolo’s calf injury Oct. 3 opened the door for Lance’s starting debut.
Yes, I could see Shanahan staying loyal to, if healthy, Jimmy Garoppolo. Cue the stat: Shanahan is 7-28 without Garoppolo starting, 24-10 with him. Garoppolo isn’t healthy, however.
Can a calf injury truly keep this franchise in limbo? Can a sprained knee? So much for insulating yourself at the position.
Lance isn’t an instant classic. He will learn on the job. And he will bring an electrifying element that’s been missing. He just must not run
16 times a game (unless it’s against the Green Bay defense in the playoffs) and take chances with bone-crushing hits.
“He gave us a very good chance to win that game and I know he will give us a chance to win a lot going forward,” said Shanahan.
That sounds very much like a coach ready to move forward with his handpicked quarterback, as long as it meshes with team needs. And, yes, he does, if healthy, which he is not.
Teammates have confidence in whichever quarterback plays. Fred Warner said of Lance: “When you’re young and taking these shots from big dudes, we’re on the opposite side so we know how that is — admirable.”
There is no noticeable locker-room division. That’s tough to say for sure, when the NFL isn’t allowing media into that culture-defining crucible. 2. FOLLOW BOSA’S LEAD » Nick Bosa’s five sacks are the 49ers’ most through five games since Bryant Young in 2005. Bosa is their defensive leader-byexample.
He is playing 70 percent of the snaps, and doing so on a rebuilt knee. He is also transitioning into a subtly candid speaker, with engagements every Thursday and postgame.
The better Bosa plays, the better that will rub off on the defensive front, which is the engine that makes this team go. If Bosa challenges Aldon Smith’s single-season franchise record of 19 ½ sacks, the supporting cast needs to help, a la Justin Smith’s role.
D.J. Jones, Arik Armstead, Dee Ford, Samson Ebukam, Arden Key, Kentavius Street and the stillmysterious Javon Kinlaw must prove the 49ers’ front is more than Bosa.
3. FOLLOW DEEBO’S LEAD » No offensive player is having a better season than Deebo Samuel, even after Sunday’s sub-par receiving effort (two drops, three-ofnine targets caught).
Samuel plays so hard, with so much physicality and passion. He is, for now, their Plan B catalyst (Plan A to be revealed soon).
Samuel was supposed to make a formidable duo with Brandon Aiyuk. That hasn’t happened this year because Aiyuk is an afterthought. He has eight catches for 90 yards and a touchdown — through five games; he had eight for 91 and a touchdown last year in a loss to Seattle.
Will Aiyuk awaken? If not, then who among Mohamed Sanu, Trent Sherfield, Jauan Jennings, Travis Benjamin or, for you diabolical dreams, Jalen Hurd? If Lance settles in as the starter, those wide receivers could see their statistics bloom with his powerful arm and daring innocence.
Once George Kittle returns for the season’s second half — Sunday was the first of three games he must sit out on injured reserve with his calf issue — then the 49ers would be wise to get him into the end zone for the first time with the ball in his clutches, rather than a defender jersey in his pancake-blocking hands.
4. RUSHING REVIVAL » Shanahan would be wise to dust off his run-game playsheet, presuming reinforcements arrive to complement rookie rushers Elijah Mitchell and Trey Sermon, the latter of whom was noticeably absent until a lastdrive carry Sunday.
Raheem Mostert isn’t returning this season, but the 49ers have been down that road before. They’re hoping JaMycal Hasty (ankle) returns next week after the bye, but Jeff Wilson Jr. (knee) is still out until late November.
Fullback Kyle Juszczyk is better suited as a lead blocker than as a willing third-down back, to say nothing of his use on fourth-and-1 sneaks.
Of course, if Lance is taking snaps, the run game will spike, judging by his wiggling ways en route to 89 yards Sunday. And because Shanahan’s world revolves around a play-action rushing attack, that is another reason Lance could be his goto guy post-bye.
5. COACHING METTLE » Never has Shanahan come under so much fire, albeit from fans and media rather than in-house detractors. Check that, there was a Super Bowl collapse that drew scorn. Since then, the 49ers have lost 13-of-21 games.
Shanahan’s supporters can counter with this stat: He is 31-38 overall, the same record as Bill Walsh, who did have a ring to show for that start of his 49ers’ tenure.
That .449 winning percentage is the NFL’s fifth-worst since 2000 among coaches who lasted at least five seasons with one team, behind Doug Marrone, Jim Schwartz, Jeff Fisher and Jay Gruden, according to the Associated Press’ Josh Dubow.
Numbers crunching aside, Shanahan is ultimately responsible for keeping another season from snowballing. This is the roster he and John Lynch groomed.
Everyone’s mistakes must be corrected. Penalties must vanish. Turnovers must be forced by DeMeco Ryans’ defense. Play calls, blocks, passes, rushing lanes, orbit motions, tackles and, well, an overall we’re-the-boss attitude must be executed better, “all these little details that come down to winning and losing in crucial moments,” Shanahan said.