49ers’ worries begin at front

All-Pro tackle leading group of green starters on offensive line

A long, long time ago — before the San Francisco 49ers displayed even a single Lombardi Trophy in the lobby of their training facility — a man named Moses led his people to the promised land while defiantly protesting his underdog status.

The man was Moses Malone, a future first-ballot Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer, who was on the verge of carrying the Houston Rockets to the 1981 NBA Finals. Anticipating a matchup with the favored Boston Celtics, the center made a brazen reference to his Virginia hometown, declaring, “I could take four guys off the streets of Petersburg and beat them.”

Never mind that Malone’s Rockets would lose to Larry Bird’s Celtics in six; the quote only added to Malone’s legend. And I bring it up now, 41 years later, because the 49ers are heading into a Super Bowl-or-bust season with a bit of a situation at a pivotal position group.

Yes, the Niners have the league’s best player at the most important spot on the offensive line. That’s huge — as is Trent Williams, the AllPro left tackle in question. Yet, depending upon the fragile health of right tackle Mike McGlinchey, the 49ers could be looking at four inexperienced starters on a unit charged with making 22-yearold Trey Lance’s transition to QB1 status as smooth as possible.

Yeah, it’s not optimal.

I’m not saying the Niners’ line amounts to Williams and four guys off the streets of Petersburg (or Longview, Texas, the nine-time Pro Bowler’s actual hometown). However, it the most concerning component of an otherwise stacked operation, and the crux of a stiff challenge for head coach Kyle Shanahan as he prepares for the not-so-soft launch of the Lance Era. Shanahan has acknowledged that Lance will experience growing pains; ideally, literal pain can be mitigated along the way. That will require a line that can protect him when he drops back to pass and spearhead a legitimate running game to keep defenders honest. Williams, a first-team All-Pro, will handle his business. The other four guys will have to prove they belong.

Judging by what we’ve seen this summer, it’s going to be an adventure.

At left guard — replacing Laken Tomlinson, a standout who signed a three-year, $41.2 million deal with the Jets in March — is Aaron Banks, a second-round selection in the 2021 draft with zero career starts and plenty of rough edges.

At center — replacing seven-time Pro Bowler and 2010s All-Decade-team member Alex Mack — is Jake Brendel,

a fifth-year player who hasn’t played an offensive snap in the NFL since 2018.

At right guard is another unseasoned starter, rookie Spencer Burford, a fourthround pick who had two holding penalties and gave up a sack to an undrafted rookie in the preseason finale at Houston.

McGlinchey, who has held the right tackle job since being picked in the first round in 2018, is attempting to return from a torn quad that ended his season in November, but his status is shaky. He looked rusty in early training-camp practices. Then, after playing just eight snaps in the preseason opener against the Packers, the 6-foot-8 Notre Dame alum experienced knee irritation that sidelined him until late August. There is concern that McGlinchey’s leg-related ailments will be a recurring issue, meaning Colton McKivitz — a 2020 fifth-round pick with one career start at tackle — would be pressed into service.

Suffice it to say, there are some stressed-out coaches in Santa Clara as the regularseason opener next Sunday against the Chicago Bears approaches. They understand that even the best-case scenario will include plenty of mistakes that imperil some of Shanahan’s exquisitely crafted play-calls, all in the name of development and future dividends.

It’s a state of affairs that belies the Niners’ current reality. A hyper-talented team coming off a close loss in the NFC Championship Game harbors aspirations of winning a sixth Super Bowl title, even while turning to a raw quarterback.

To borrow from some other celebrated San Franciscans — the Grateful Dead, along with lyricist Robert Hunter — for the 49ers, there’s “barely time to wait.”

And yet, despite the line’s hot-mess potential, there are reasons to believe this team can survive and thrive in the process. It helps that the Niners have the league’s best fullback, savvy 10th-year veteran Kyle Juszczyk, and George Kittle, the most ferocious runblocker among the NFL’s elite tight ends. Brendel, who opted out of the 2020 season and played just six offensive snaps in 2021, had a surprisingly good training camp, mitigating coaches’ concerns.

Lance’s mobility also should come in clutch and, of course, the unexpected return of deposed starter Jimmy Garoppolo gives the 49ers some insurance should the young starter get hurt.

Finally, there is Shanahan, whose elite ability to come up with opponent-specific game plans that manage the shortcomings of all 11 offensive players should make a difference. He and his trusted offensive-line coach, run-game coordinator Chris Foerster, have fought through similarly daunting circumstances in the past.

Think back to 2012 when Washington, with Shanahan as the offensive coordinator and Foerster coaching the line,

Among the linemen the 49ers are hoping will keep Trey Lance healthy are center Jake Brendel — whose last regular-season snap came in 2018 — and left guard Aaron Banks, a 2021 pick.

Despite the line’s hot-mess potential, there are reasons to believe this team can survive and thrive in the process.

captured an unlikely division title and had the NFL’s top rushing attack with quarterback Robert Griffin III earning Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.

That line featured Williams at left tackle and four guys who are barely household names in their own residences: Kory Lichtensteiger, Will Montgomery, Chris Chester and Tyler Polumbus. It stayed that way in 2013, with Washington finishing fifth in total rushing yards (and third in yards per carry) even as the season imploded.

Similarly, when Shanahan was the Falcons’ offensive coordinator during their stellar 2016 season — the one in which quarterback Matt Ryan won MVP and Atlanta held a 28-3 lead in the Super … well, you know — the line consisted of Mack, current Atlanta left tackle Jake Matthews and three players (Chester, Andy Levitre and Ryan Schraeder) who fell firmly in the zone.

So yes, there is precedent, and a whiff of hope that things could turn out to be just peachy. Unless and until that happens, however, there’s legitimate cause for concern. Last month, the Niners made some inquiries to other teams about acquiring an interior lineman via trade but elected to stand pat. Of the current backups, Daniel Brunskill

(who started at right guard throughout 2021) and Blake Hance (claimed off waivers Wednesday a day after being released by the Browns) are the least untested, but they’re fallback options. The plan is to ride with the current starters and hope they play through their inexperience.

“I’m really not as worried about the line as some other people might be,” Juszczyk said. “Honestly, I see so much talent in those guys. As some of those interior guys get more snaps, they have a chance to be really good.”

One Niners lineman is already great. Beginning next Sunday, if it looks like Williams is playing with four guys off the streets of anywhere, the Niners are in trouble.