49ers: An 0-9 start — and then one ‘Jim’ dandy of a turn-around
No 49ers season can compare to this one. An 0-9 start for the first time. A midseason trade for a franchise-flipping quarterback. A revitalized fan base eager for more in 2018.
As it winds down Sunday at Los Angeles against the NFC West-winning Rams, here is a recap of the 2017 49ers:
TEAM MVP » Are five Jimmy Garoppolo starts enough to merit this distinction? Absolutely. Winning his first four starts, and doing so in comeback fashion, turned this offense into a yard-producing juggernaut and this franchise into a must-see show. Runnerup: Kicker Robbie Gould.
OFFENSIVE MVP » With Garoppolo already honored (see above), left tackle Joe Staley’s value in his team-high 11th season can’t be overstated. “My guy!” a mic’d up Garoppolo said to Staley before beating the Titans. He battled through a knee injury, played with a broken eye socket and is Pro Football Focus’ top-graded tackle the past four weeks (sixth-best for the season). Runner-up: Marquise Goodwin. DEFENSIVE MVP » DeForest
Buckner doesn’t have gaudy stats (three sacks, 60 tackles) but he’s a weekly fixture on the line’s interior. He routinely battles double teams to pressure the pocket, and he’s helped the run defense improve. Runner-up: linebacker Reuben Foster.
MOST INSPIRATIONAL >> Marquise Goodwin showed an incredible ability to excel, much less play, after the deaths of his son before the win over the Giants and his dad before the win over the Titans. Early-season drops are a distant memory as he moves within 66 yards of a 1,000-yard season. BEST OFFENSIVE PLAY >> Halting their 0-9 snowball was Goodwin’s 83-yard touchdown catch in the Nov. 12 win over the Giants. C.J. Beathard, with solid protection from the offensive line and Carlos Hyde, unleashed a deep pass for Goodwin’s only touchdown this season, which he emotionally celebrated mere hours after his son’s death. Others: Hyde’s 61-yard run at Seattle, Matt Breida’s winclinching 30-yard touchdown run against Jacksonville, Garoppolo’s thirdand-9 conversion to Trent Taylor to set up a winning field goal in Chicago. BEST DEFENSIVE PLAY >> Some prefer a Foster hit, like those against Ezekiel Elliott, DeMarco Murray or (Foster’s favorite) Adrian Peterson. Some will vote for interceptions by Jaquiski Tartt, K’Waun Williams or Dontae Johnson (whose pick six was also highlighted by an Eric Reid hit). Reid had other big hits, too.
But the pick here is a fourthand-1 stop by Earl Mitchell (and Reid) for a 2-yard loss early in Houston.
BEST FREE AGENT >> Gould calls this the most fun he’s had in 13 seasons — he went to a Super Bowl with the Chicago Bears — as he’s made a career-high 37 field goals, including his past 21 attempts. His game-winning fifth field goal at Chicago was special, as was the career-high sixth field goal he made to topple the Titans. Runners-up: Goodwin, Pierre Garçon or Williams.
WORST FREE AGENT >> Brian Hoyer bombed to an 0-6 mark as the starting quarterback, losing his job to the rookie Beathard before halftime of that sixth loss, at Washington. Runnerup: Jeremy Kerley (cut six months after re-signing on a three-year deal).
TOP OFFENSIVE ROOKIE
>> Taylor won the slot-receiver role in camp and excelled amid his Dec. 3 “flu” game at Chicago, where he caught all six targets, with five producing third-down conversions. Runners-up: Breida, tight end George Kittle, Beathard.
TOP DEFENSIVE ROOKIE >> Foster overcame ankle and rib injuries to become the fast, hard-hitting linebacker envisioned of the first-round draft pick. Runners-up: Cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon, free safety Adrian Colbert, defensive tackle Solomon Thomas. BIGGEST HISTORIC FEAT >> For those glass-half-empty souls, the 49ers started 0-9 for the first time in their 72-year history. For those glass-half-full souls, the 49ers are the only team to win more than three games after starting 0-9. BEST PLAY CALL >> That pitch to Breida to clinch Sunday’s win is a prime example of coach Kyle Shanahan being a play-calling
“mastermind,” as Goodwin called him. That said, the best play call was by CEO Jed York in hiring Shanahan and awarding him a six-year deal with GM John Lynch.
BEST PHONE CALL >> On Oct. 30, Patriots coach Bill Belichick offered Garoppolo in a trade to the 49ers, and Lynch said it took 10 minutes of consultation with Shanahan to pull the trigger. We assume 9 minutes, 59 seconds were spent giggling at their gift.
ODDEST EXIT >> Linebacker NaVorro Bowman, one of the 49ers’ all-time leading tacklers, was unhappy with becoming a potential platoon player and got released upon his request Oct. 13, two days before he was to face Washington in his native Maryland. Runner-up: Rashard Robinson, traded to the Jets on Oct. 31.
BREAKTHROUGH HIRE >> Katie Sowers became the NFL’s first openly gay coach and first female 49ers assistant. She parlayed her Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship into a full-time role as a wide-receivers assistant. She is Outsports.com’s Female Hero of The Year.
WORST/BEST INJURY >> Of the 27 placed on injured reserve since training camp, one of their first was linebacker Malcolm Smith, their highest-paid free agent. Smith’s torn pectoral did, however, fast track Foster’s playing time as a rookie. (SECOND-BEST) MIDSEASON FIND >> Garoppolo aside, the 49ers acquired 10 other veterans during the season, and their greatest gem came off the waiver wire in defensive tackle Sheldon Day. Runner-up: the super-sized boombox that’s escorted them to the field since the Giants win. BEST LYNCH SURPRISE >> Pick any of these Lynchrelated surprises: 1) Never previously mentioned among GM candidates, the 49ers hire him out of
the Fox broadcast booth. 2) Lynch trades down a spot in the draft with the Bears for a nice bounty. 3) Lynch’s trade request for Garoppolo marinates until an Oct. 30 deal. 4) Lynch greets tailgating fans before the home finale. TOP FIVE PENDING FREE
AGENTS >> Quarterback Garoppolo, running back Hyde, center Daniel Kilgore, safety Reid, linebacker Brock Coyle.
BEST QUOTE >> “Yeah, it’s been a bit of a whirlwind for sure, no doubt about it. Just when I first found out, I can’t even describe how excited I was. Just, I mean, my time in New England was great, you know, I thank them for everything. But, to come in here, coming to such a great organization, it really is a privilege. I’m excited about it. It’s going to be a good thing.” — Garoppolo, upon his Oct. 31 arrival.