Is The 49ers Season Already Over?

by
Former Writers
October 10, 2018

Stròlic Furlàn - Davide Gabino via Flickr

The 49ers Season No One Wanted

Coming into 2018, the outlook for the San Francisco 49ers season was positive. The hype surrounding the Niners, not just by their fans but the league in general, exploded. They had just signed their franchise quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to a record deal, as well as signing Jerick McKinnon as their number one running back.

Five weeks into the 2018 NFL season and so far, things couldn’t have gone worse for the 49ers. They are 1-4 after a humiliating loss on Sunday to a winless Arizona Cardinals, a game they were expected to win. The Niners offense had a total of 33 first downs compared to the Cardinals ten. They also had a total of 92 plays against the Cardinals 49. Turnovers, penalties, and poor plays cost them the game.

Are Injuries To Blame?

After only five weeks there have already been a huge amount of injuries, drastically impacting the 49ers season. Before the season even commenced, McKinnon blew out his ACL during training camp. Garoppolo followed suit, tearing his ACL in Week 3 against the Kansas City Chiefs. With the Niners’ two star players out for the remainder of the year, things were starting to look bleak.

They have a long list of key players currently injured that are either out for the immediate future or are week to week. Matt Breida injured his ankle early in the first quarter during Sunday’s game. An MRI has since revealed a serious sprain, according to coach Kyle Shanahan in an injury report he delivered Monday. Breida will miss Week 6 against the Green Bay Packers, along with Dante Pettis who is still recovering from a knee injury sustained in Week 4.

Joe Staley, Weston Richburg, Mike Person, and George Kittle are all questionable with knee injuries and will be assessed later in the week. Garrett Celek has a quad injury, while Marquise Goodwin and Jimmie Ward are both suffering from hamstring injuries. Richard Sherman is still undergoing treatment for a calf injury and Reuben Foster injured his shoulder. All are again questionable for the upcoming Packers game.

Untested rookies have had to be relied upon for much of the 49ers’ season thus far. While some have met expectations such as Fred Warner and Dante Pettis prior to his injury, others have not. Also, last year’s rookies Ahkello Witherspoon and Adrian Colbert have not impressed in the secondary.

With the Niners well under the salary cap, it’s time to start spending some money this offseason.

Kyle Shanahan On The Season So Far

With the 49ers season off to a 1-4 start, it would be fair to say that fans are somewhat frustrated at the direction the team seems to be heading. No one wants to see a repeat performance of last season; however, that is now very likely. Shanahan provided his take on the situation during his Monday press conference.

“I totally understand the frustration, and I understand the question with our record,” Shanahan said. “I think people did have higher expectations going into this year. So did we. I think it was a tough blow early in the year, as everyone knows, losing [RB Jerick] McKinnon and then losing our starting quarterback. So, I do think that takes a toll, and I think everyone understands that.

But, that doesn’t mean that we can’t win games. I think we’ve played in two games now without [QB] Jimmy [Garoppolo] and I think we have been more than capable of winning both of those games and we haven’t gotten it done.

I know we’ve been through some adversity. This is the hand that we’ve been dealt, and I think we have the people in our organization, I think we have the players, I think we have strong enough people who can deal with it and man up and find a way to win. It’s never easy. It definitely gets harder when you do have injuries and things like that.”

While Shanahan remains optimistic, as all coaches should, how he goes about producing some wins is yet to be seen. He does have a great offensive mind. However, he is a young coach and has made some dubious decisions while on offense during the season. With such a complex scheme that he runs, is it time to simplify things for a while?

The Quarterback Situation

At this stage, C.J. Beathard appears to be locked in at quarterback for the remainder of the 49ers season. It’s clear to see that Beathard is never going to be a franchise QB. If he’s lucky, he might be able to make a career out of being a backup, if that. While he is capable of substituting for short periods of time, he’s not one you’re going to want to rely on for an entire season.

He has improved from last season putting up some good numbers from his last two starts; however, inconsistency remains. If he’s going to last the season, he is going to have to learn to take fewer hits and punishments. Although, not all the blame can be placed squarely on Beathard. His receivers have been far too unreliable with their catching abilities, dropping balls that should have been easy catches. The 49ers promoted rookie Nick Mullens from the practice squad to be Beathard’s number two. The Niners will be in trouble if Beathard goes down injured with Mullens’ limited playing time.

It is still unknown if the 49ers will add a third QB to their roster. They worked out several veterans after Garoppolo’s injury including EJ Manuel, Landry Jones, Kellen Clemens, Tom Savage, Matt Simms, T.J. Yates, and Kyle Allen. However, they have yet to make any decisions regarding signing a player.

Shopping For A New QB?

There was speculation around the NFL that the 49ers would trade for a QB. This makes little sense however and would be a waste of money or picks. NFL Insider Ian Rapoport appeared on KNBR on Monday to discuss the 49ers situation.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if they do hit the market and kind of look around but you’ve got to kind of know what you’re getting out there,” Rapoport said on the “Murph & Mac” show.

“Are they going to trade draft capital for Nick Foles? For what? To finish 5-10 instead of whatever else it might be? I don’t see it.”

There Is Still Hope

While the 49ers season is likely done and dusted, there is still hope for the future. Both Garoppolo and McKinnon will be healthy in time for the start of next season. The team will have another year of practice under Shanahan’s elaborate scheme, and the 49ers will most likely secure another high first-round draft pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.

With Garoppolo out, it has set them back one year. But in the grand scheme of things, they still have plenty of time to bring it all together.