Yes, Nick Mullens imploded. But others aren’t off the hook.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Nick Mullens (4) is sacked by Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Genard Avery, center, during the first half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020. At right is nose tackle Javon Hargrave (93). (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

Nick Mullens had a tough day against the Eagles. But so did the 49ers defense. (AP Photo/D. Ross Cameron

Let’s take a break from bashing Nick Mullens for a moment, although I am sure we will get back to it.

Sunday’s 25-20 loss to Philadelphia was the first time this year the 49ers looked shell-shocked. This was supposed to be the glide path of the schedule. And although they lost the first game to Arizona, they’d just had back-to-back wins, defeating every professional football team in New York City.

Philadelphia, meanwhile, was winless, 0-2-1. However, something to keep in mind. At the end of the season, losing teams often quit and play like losers. But teams that get off to a bad early start may think they can turn it around, especially if, like the Eagles, a single win would put them in first place in their division. They played hard.

And yes, turnovers killed the Niners. And no, for as long as I have been watching football, I can’t explain how quarterbacks regularly throw passes right to defenders standing directly in front of them. That Mullens pick-six was about as bad as it gets.

But I would like to step over to the other side of the football and pick up on something linebacker Fred Warner said after the game.

“We kept them on the field for way too long,” Warner said.

It’s true. And this wasn’t the first time. At important moments, the 49ers defense is finding itself unable to get the other team to give up the ball.

For example, at the start of the third quarter, Mullens put together a nice, now-forgotten drive. The 49ers, you’ll recall, were trailing 8-7 when they got the ball. It was the march that had everything — a shovel pass, a jump shot pass that traveled two yards — and lots of lots of George Kittle.

It concluded, 75 yards after it began, with a who-else touchdown pass to Kittle. That put the 49ers ahead 14-8, and things were looking much more like we expected.

So that would be the time for the defense to swarm the opponent, stop them dead and let the offense ring up some more scores.

However, the opponent remained un-swarmed. Instead, Philly’s Carson Wentz embarked on a long, weird drive. It wasn’t so much the length and time of it, but the number of times San Francisco could have had them stopped.

Philadelphia twice converted third-and-ones. They had Wentz trapped in the backfield on third-and-nine and he ran out of danger and upfield for eight yards, then converted the fourth-and-one.

Eventually Philadelphia had to settle for a field goal, but they held the ball for 16 plays and seven minutes and 31 seconds. That’s a great way to wear down a defense.

And it continued. As we got to the Fourth Quarter, and the Mullens meltdown really began in earnest, there was another telling sequence.

It began when, given a golden opportunity to extend the lead, Mullens took over near mid-field. As you recall, he was sacked, the ball popped out and Philly took over in 49ers’ territory.

What happened next goes in the score book as a pretty routine 42-yard drive, but there was a lot more to it. Wentz converted third-and-six to start, then got stuck in fourth-and-four. He went for it and a completed a quick route for a first down. Pinned back with second and 22, Wentz ran all over Santa Clara and threw an incomplete pass. That would have set up third-and-22, but the defense was called for not one, but two defensive penalties for a first down.

Wentz then dropped back and threw a little parachute of a pass, 42-yards, for the touchdown to make it 18-14. It’s the sequence that changed the game and a direct result of a defense not able to get the Eagles off the field.

Championship teams do not regularly give up long drives. The 49ers ran more plays than Philly (70-59), had more first downs (25-18), and more total net yards, (417-267). But given the chance to stop the Eagles offense, the Niner D couldn’t do it.

With the meat of the schedule arriving soon, that has to change.

Now, as for Mullens, it is always going to be uphill work for him. He’s not very big. (Seeing Wentz reminds you how helpful it is to have a tall, strong QB.) And despite all the stories about Mullens’ improved arm strength, you don’t write those about guys who can throw it through a wall to start with.

I would just say I genuinely felt sorry for him in that game. Yes, we probably got a little carried away with the “second starting quarterback” narrative. And as frustrating as it can be to see fumbles and what-was-he-looking-at interceptions, I can promise you that no one knows better than the quarterback what colossal screw-ups those are.

Oddly, I’m a little conflicted on Kyle Shanahan bringing in C.J. Beathard. Not that he’s not a great story. Don’t forget he also has a recent, wrenching tragedy. His brother, Clayton, a singer and songwriter, was fatally stabbed outside a Nashville bar last December.

He spent the off-time building up his body. He’s fit, and as he said after the game, now that he’s been in the system four years, he’s much more confident that the poor guy who was thrown into the 6-10 and 4-12 seasons in 2017-18. He looked great.

Being pulled from the game will surely not help Mullens’ confidence. What a head-spinner it has been for him. Three days ago you wouldn’t have to look far to find someone who thought he should start instead of Jimmy Garoppolo. Now he’s apparently battling for the backup job.

Finally, I’d say this. You hear it all the time about what a good guy so-and-so is. It’s one of our sports memes. But in the few times I’ve talked to Mullens, he really does seem like a genuinely good guy. I even met his mother on the sideline before one game. They seemed like a nice, and very proud, family.

Which means I have to repeat my favorite Mullens story. A couple of us were standing at his locker after practice, in the days when you could still do that. And the player at the next locker (Robbie Gould?) said, “Did he tell you he’s having a baby tomorrow?”

What? Yep, Mullens said. They were having a C-section and the time was set for tomorrow morning. So he probably should be heading home, unless anyone has any more questions?

So I’d like to see him do well. On the other hand, this ain’t beanbag. If you want sentiment, rent a movie. Everybody on the 49ers is hired and paid to win. And it better start happening if this season is to be salvaged.

 

 

 

This article has 576 Comments

  1. Nick Mullens is not an NFL starting quarterback. I don’t care how many times Grant and his elves say otherwise.

    1. Thing about that guy is no way he truly believes that. He chases the idea of it because the idea alone draws attention.

      Of course all you guys know this already.

        1. A little harsh I would say. I don’t disagree that Mullens is any more than a good backup but the Eagles offense so far has been really bad. If our D could have held them to their production against Washington and the Rams we’d have won even though our offense sucked. Mullens had a bad day and my bet is that Jimmy will too along the way. That’s when others and especially our D has to pick them up if we are going to contend. Jimmy is very good and KS is a legend in his own mind. But if our D is going to play like Dallas, there’s no amount of offense that is enough. Saleh is three games beyond the SB loss for which he deserves most of the blame IMHO and he still hasn’t figured out what to do without a pass rush. And making Wentz look like Lamar Jackson – What’s up with that? Even with Bosa and Ford playing the good teams were figuring our D out. (One inch from losing the BYE comes to mind).

          1. We don’t have to use OldCoach’s “eye test” to come to that conclusion. Statistically, Mullens’ performance was the worst of any quarterback in the NFL.

            26.9 ain’t a little harsh, it’s downright God Eucking awful!

        2. I’m guessing you posted this about Mullens being the worst QB in the league prior to Brian Hoyer starting for the Patriots on Monday. The play where Hoyer held the ball at the end of the first half and then took the sack causing time to expire was close to the worst play I’ve ever seen. Takes absolutely no athletic talent whatsoever to understand the situation and throw the ball away if the receiver isn’t open. Brian Hoyer is the worst QB in the NFL.

    1. perhaps they shoudn’t be on it now- w the expiring contracts in the secondary, I would go shopping on teams practice squads for a Corner/Safety …. elevating them to the roster, and then go sign a couple of wr’s to the practice squad.

  2. Mullens has had some good moments, but Sundays was disastrous. I could put most of the blame on the Oline, who does need to share the burden here.
    But when Mullens missed Bourne and especially a wide open Juze, it was obvious that this was not going to be a normal outing for the 49ers.

    But (imo), the biggest culprit in this ugly loss falls on Shanahan’ lap.
    The team lacked a sense of energy until late in the 4th Qtr.
    Except for a few players, the defense looked uninterested and gave Wentz a sense of confidence.

    The Oline got pushed around and reminded me of days Beadles, Garner and Tiller.

    My frustration stems from the fact that these players are so much better than how they performed last night. That’s why I put this loss on Shanahan for not getting them mentally prepared.

    1. A lame excuse but I think the players really miss the fans at home and rely on their energy.
      It really isn’t the same brand of football without them.

    2. Blaming the coach is ridiculous and while the defense wasn’t perfect the blame is on the offense. Without the turnovers Philadelphia only scored 11 points. I’ll take that every day. The problem on the offense was not very good pass protection for a QB whom struggles when pressured. Shanahan made Mullen’s but couldn’t protect him when the pressure came.
      If jimmy can’t play this week, it has to be CJ. He is a 3rd pick with obvious physical upside over Mullen’s and now he is surrounded by better talent than when he took over Hoyer.

    3. Yeah we had some people blaming Coaches for not having the team ready when they lost to the Cardinals, and it’s as weak now as it was then. Getting beaten by the guy across from you is on you not on the Coach. The key to this game was the 49ers Oline getting dominated physically by the Eagles Dline. The play calling was adapted during the game because of this and opportunities were missed by Mullens, but the real reason they lost was because they got got their butts whupped up front by a really good Dline. We can look at the defense not getting off the field, Kittle dropping the 2 point conversion and whatever else has been throw out there today, but this game is always won in the trenches and that is why the Eagles won. The 49ers are good enough to beat any team on any given day when healthy but they aren’t good enough to win a game where they are missing so many players and getting worked up front.

      1. I completely agree.
        No matter how “motivated” a player is, if the guy across from them is much better he is going to get worked.
        This was a bad matchup, Philly’s strength was their Dline, the 49ers biggest area of concern was their Oline. They were perfectly aligned for success.
        On the plus side the eagles biggest weakness, was their wr’s which matched up with SF’s second biggest area of concern.

        Honestly, I never put “motivation” on coaches at this level. Their job is to prepare the team and get them in positions to succeed. Shanahan, had a qb over throw ruin a play that likely at least puts them in field goal range, a qb int. ruin at least a field goal by throwing his first int, a qb fumble that gives philly the ball where a first down puts philly in field goal range and td throw to the eagles.

        There were many other plays that were missed and the oline was hot garbage, the defense missed a few turnovers possibilities, but turnovers are almost always killers and they were at minimum, responsible for a 10 pt difference (24 on the high end) in a game decided by 5 pts. Not many coaches are overcoming a 2 turnover difference without their starting QB… let alone with the number of players they were missing.

  3. Was Mullins awful, yes. Could the defense not get the Eagles offense off the field, yes. But that offensive line… Yikes!

  4. Anyone catch Trent Williams’ performance yesterday?

    2 sacks allowed, 2 additional QB pressures, 1 holding call, 1 false start.

  5. To Nick freaking Mullens should just leave after the season.

    How the F do you stay in the same system as a backup for 2-3yrs and play like that. It makes no F sense.

    Hope they draft a QB next yr to replace both this Jokers – maybe get us a running QB

    To Kshanny needs to stop this nonsense of over thinking the situation – dude is really off on his expectations…..

    Taylor is Slow
    Pettis is Soft

    You can’t keep running finesse O-LIne plays when the DL keeps stunting – it’s the dumbest move ever.
    The only way to counter stunts is to keep your O-line standing straight forward not roll them left or right
    Missed opportunities for screens – draws….

    Kshanny thinks he has a complete team – we are good but not great- keep the play book and calling simple

    And to Saleh – how many more running QB’s do you need to embarrass you, before you go back to old tapes or ask somebody on how to slow them down.

    You have faced Wilson twice every year since you have been hired – when are you going to come up with a F-ing game plan to stop this running QB nonsense….

    Go research how M Vick was slowed down – there has to be a scheme you can F-ing apply.

    I am so MAD right now….

  6. This guy is really sick – WTF kind of evil is in this man

    “Don’t be afraid of Covid,” Trump tweeted of the virus that has infected more than 7.4 million Americans and killed nearly 210,000.

    Dude is getting the best health care paid by the Taxpayers – this is an irresponsible thing to say to the country

    1. You’re a fohking loser. Your takes have always been bad, going back to the Alex Smith apologist days.

    1. Dak Prescott also threw for a million yards yesterday. But they lost.

      Stats are for losers!

            1. Lol, yea year 2 of a complete overhaul you’re not expecting success but incremental improvements in all phases. All that win streak was good for was winning over the hearts and minds of his team mates, and $137.5 million….

            2. Actually Jack, you’re wrong AGAIN!

              The 5 game win streak at the end of 2017 definitely had a positive effect, and 49ers players would readily tell you that. The feeling within the organization was that they felt like they had found their QB. It wasn’t just the way Garoppolo played that stood out, it was also his leadership qualities that sold him to teammates. The fact that the team lost almost every game the following season, after Jimmy’s fluke injury, only reinforced this feeling, which was a factor in the way the team took off out of the gate in 2019.

              These are the facts, Jack!

      1. Which is he doesn’t have a clue (no)or just tying to stir up another cockamamy analogy(yes).
        These “reporters” have a rough mandate.

        1. Jack isn’t any more of a “reporter” than Hillary is President.

          I guess they do have the same *likability* factor though. ?

          1. Hillary? Really? You still stuck in 2016? Do you think Chip Kelly is still Niners Head Coach?

              1. Yah, small things like likability, qualifications, or the fact that she did get millions of more votes than the current bozo in chief.

                Other than that, lol.

        2. The niners don’t have a quarterback they need to draft a quarterback these off season.This year they suck big time

        1. And that makes it good…? Bad….? For one or the other? Or is this just you observing the sky is blue?

          Come on, don’t make us go to that other site to find out if you have a point or not.

      1. Schwartz 6-1 against Shanahan
        Shanahan 1-6 against Schwartz

        Apply selfsame Hammer logic: fire Shanahan, hire Schwartz.

        1. Ribico…I semi-agree

          Whenever you run into a coach (Schwartz ) who feels that he has a bone to pick…(the Harbaugh back-slap) you can bet he’ll be out for revenge as long as he’s onn the earth….We were not prepared for this game, just like the last one . I think that we should be subbing a little more freely a bit earlier….We just got caught short-handed….

          1. They were. The QB didn’t make the throws. Same thing happened in week 1 when Bourne was open for 6.

      2. Yeah the difference is Garoppolo has one of the best overall winning percentages in the league and while he was the QB in the loss to the Cardinals, that game turned on a blocked punt and a goal line stop. 14 point swing that he had nothing to do with. While I don’t blame Mullens solely for last nights loss, he was terrible and got spooked by the pass rush. That’s something we take for granted with JG. He stands in there like a champ. Not a lot of QB’s do that.

        1. When you say goalline stop are you referring to the one where Garoppolo almost fumbled the ball on his own without being touched, then spun around in the pocket until finally getting sacked?

          And don’t forget, Garoppolo had Bourne wide open for the winning touchdown. Missed the throw.

          1. Hammer, too transparent, you have some sort of bee buzzing in your bonnet. Who is this devil you are playing advocate for?

          2. No I’m referring to the 4th and goal from the one yard line that got stuffed. He did under throw Bourne so what’s your point? He’s not perfect and was off target in the opening game of the season and yet he still played well enough for them to win the game without major mistakes happening that were not his fault. Mullens wasn’t the only reason they lost to the Eagles but he was a major one.

            1. Ha! Although…nearly every one of those high (low?) lights shows a QB operating in a backfield mostly occupied by defensive players. What’s this about OLine play? :)

        1. Ok… thanks!

          Here are some other meaningless stats.

          49ers with McKinnon the starting RB in 2020 season: 1-1
          49ers with Mostert the starting RB in 2020 season: 1-1.

          49ers with Bosa playing a full game in 2020 season: 0-1
          49ers in games where Bosa doesn’t play a full game in 2020 season: 2-1.

            1. Geez Hammer, I hope you aren’t as reliant on the non sequitur in your SI writings. That will make for the shortest journalism career on record.

              1. Hey! Do not use those multi-syllabic college words. Ya gotta dumb it down for the masses!
                .
                ;p

              2. Your initial comment, kicking off this thread, was a non-sequitur.

                This may go down in PD lore just as meaningful as the “meaningless” discussion. ;)

              3. A non sequitor is a conclusion or statement that does not logically follow from the previous argument or statement.

                Sorry, but i gave the original statement about the qb’s. Making it about running backs and other positions is the very definition of non-sequitor.

              4. Making it about running backs and other positions is the very definition of non-sequitor.

                Hammer, what’s the title of this column? Commenting on other positions is logically following the gist of the entire article. Making reference between the backup and starting QBs was completely out of the blue.

                If your next SI posting is along the lines of “ Yes, Nick Mullens imploded. But Garropolo isn’t off the hook.” then go for it. Otherwise your comment that led off this thread is just a bunch of superfluous noise.

              5. If your point was as you claimed it to be, that your initial post was just pointing out a random stat, then what I posted most definitely was not a non-sequitor.

                Of course, if you actually did have a point you were looking to make… one wonders why you weren’t willing to stand behind it when asked?

              6. So to Jack’s point, maybe it’s the occasional off-game that defines a quarterback, not the overall body of work.

                Why is that so hard to follow?

                As a starter, Nick Mullens is …. oh wait

              7. Statistically, Nick Mullens is …. no, that doesn’t work either.

                OK Jack, now I’m stumped. What’s your point exactly?

        2. Face it Jack, you and Grant’s fantasy-land attempts to create a 49ers QB controversy fell flat on it’s face Sunday Night. The sooner you admit that your sensationalist style of sports journalism has been exposed, the sooner you can move past your failure to create a controversy that was unsupported by reality, and never existed in the first place.

          Or do I need to embarrass you by posting yet another statistical comparison between Jimmy G, and little Nick, yet again?

          1. The “quarterback controversy” was about what was happening outside of the building, and also that Mullens would need to deliver another high level performance against Philly for it to grow legs. I said all of this during the Periscope on Thursday.

            My view of Garoppolo has not changed, and there is plenty of recent information to explain it. Go do some reading up my friend.

  7. Ziggy wasn’t the Ansah.

    Williams to IR with a knee sprain.

    I’ve got the fork in my hands….

  8. So we all know Mullens was awful yesterday, and that performance has definitely neutered any argument made by the QB controversy theorists (unless we are talking about backup QB controversy).

    But, I will also say, the guy is a backup for a reason, and the fan anger/ tirades directed at Mullens are just as ridiculous as the arguments the past week about a QB controversy. He played very poorly. He’s a backup QB – playing poorly is not surprising against a defense that was killing the OL all game. We got 1 win and 1 loss from him while playing on a team that is also decimated by injury at many other spots. It happens. The team was always going to need to rely on JG leading them to the playoffs and any potential SB victory. Nothing has changed. Yes, it is now all the harder, but most teams would be pretty happy to go 1-1 with their backup QB playing.

    1. and the fan anger/ tirades directed at Mullens are just as ridiculous as the arguments the past week about a QB controversy.

      Scooter, excuse us for being drawn in with all that starting QB 1A, tieing Joe Montana with the most number of yards in his first 9 starts, breaking all of Farves records at ole miss etc etc business. This wasn’t just a backup, but the ultimate buy low, sell high. A guy who would turn into a first round pick trade – yes, that was being hyped and we fell for it. When all that expectation comes crashing down in such a spectacular manner there’s going to be a feeling of betrayal. Just a little bit. Maybe he’ll eventually get a chance to redeem himself with a larger sample, but it sure as hell won’t be in front of this fanbase.

      1. If you were drawn in by/ bought into that talk, that’s on you. Not Nick Mullens. And seriously… betrayal? Good grief some fans take football waaaay too seriously/ personal.

        The fact he played well enough prior to this latest game for some people to think like that should still tell you that he can be effective in the right situation. That hasn’t changed. But the same issues/ limitations he displayed in his previous games were magnified in this one, while he also seemed to lack a bit of the same focus he has displayed previously which magnified his issues further.

        1. I didn’t think he was all that great in both NY games. I said that without Shanny calling a perfect game in each contest, Mullen’s was probably going to lose. Even to the lowly Giants. I got vilified for predicting a loss.

          Then you give Schwartz who is a very good DC a week to prepare and the result was what we witnessed last night, awful.
          Shanny could not save him via his play calling and the defense also wasn’t very good. Add those three up and it sucks.

          1. I thought they would beat the Eagles in a close one. I thought Mullens would be a little better than he was, which is all he needed to be. But I certainly didn’t think it would be an easy one, didn’t think Mullens would have a great day, so am not surprised at the result.

            1. I called for a blowout but what makes sense in some of the experts analysis was, you can sometimes get away with key personnel
              missing at certain positions but QB, it’s way too hard.

            2. Had Mullens not thrown the pick 6 and kept moving the team for the win, there’s a good chance that he would have been forgiven for a bad outing.
              It’s always about winning.

              Joe Montana threw 3 Int’s against the NYGiants in a 1984 playoff game, but still manage to beat the Giants 21-10.
              Winning helps to cover a multitude of mistakes.

            3. I agree with what you’re saying, Scooter. In fact, I posted earlier that I thought it was unfair to lose sight of the fact that Nick Mullens is a backup QB.

              That said, he played so poorly against the Eagles, I do think it’s fair to question his former status as an above average NFL backup QB. Nick Mullens may simply be a product of lowered expectations, to go along with one of the league’s premier offensive systems.

              My problem with Grant and Jack’s analysis is that these guys cover the team. These guys supposedly have in person practice facility access, so these guys have an inside look at all three of the 49ers QB’s. Every other 49ers beat reporter I’ve followed have made it clear that, in person, Jimmy is easily the most physically gifted of the three. And we’ve seen Jimmy elevate his game against good teams even when the 49ers rushing attack wasn’t doing enough. We really hadn’t seen the same out of Nick. Both players now have a large enough body of work now, IMO, that when you analyze both skill sets as well as actual game performance, it sure seems incredible (as in not credible) for a Niners’ beat reporter to even suggest that there is even a whiff of a QB controversy. And that’s my biggest issue.

              I do want to go on record and make this point. I respect Nick Mullens as a football player, and as a person. He may very well find his niche in the NFL as a solid backup QB. In fact, I hope he does.

              That said, here is the bottom line for me – The idea that it might actually make good football sense to start Nick Mullens ahead of a healthy Jimmy Garoppolo is so far off base, that it makes you wonder whether Grant and Jack are even intellectually qualified to cover this team.

        2. And seriously… betrayal? Good grief some fans take football waaaay too seriously/ personal.

          And I suppose you’ve never felt the elation of great win or morose after a disappointing loss? That fact that we spend a good deal of our time scanning/contributing to this site, other sports sites/blogs, the allegiance/identification to/with “our” team – yes, we take sports very personally. Don’t deny it.

          1. I love watching the 49ers. I love watching them win, and yes, feel disappointed when they lose. I don’t feel offended or aggrieved though – I don’t take it personally. Football is a fun passtime.

            1. All the above but I sure do miss going to at least one game a year as well as, hearing that crowd noise on 3rd down and in goal line situations.

              I think the players miss the fans energy but there isn’t that same exuberance after a tackle or touchdown celebration.

              1. Yeah, the at game experience as a fan at a sporting event is definitely better than watching at home. And I am sure the lack of atmosphere at the stadiums is impacting the players and making it more difficult to get and stay energised.

    2. Yeah, Nick is still a good backup.
      He doesn’t perform well when under pressure but most teams are not built like Philly. Styles make fights so this was a rough one for him, He was never considered a starter by anyone else for a reason ( starting QBs draw at minimum a 3rd choice).
      On the plus side this makes it much easier to retain him if needed.

  9. Ha ha, Hoyer doing Hoyer things on MNF. Bellichick is out of his mind. Hoyer neutralizes every smart thing that Bellichick and McDaniels is trying to do. Kyle must feel symapathy.

  10. You don’t suppose Saleh may learn something watching the Patriots tonight, do you? …I didn’t think so.

  11. 1. Honey Badger – pick 6. I always liked that guy.
    2. If you extrapolate Jimmy G’s second half stats last year he is a top 5 QB. The numbers are something like 4,800 yards , 34 TD and 105 rating. It is no coincidence that his WR targets drastically improved with Sanders and Deeebo replacing Pettis and Goodwin.

    1. Garoppolo’ first game was over at halftime. I believe that Jimmy G should get the start (if he’s ready to play) against Miami to get his timing fine-tuned before they play the meat of their schedule.

      With new players (for Jimmy) like McKinnon and Aiyuk in the lineup, the timing factor is important going forward.

      The loss against Philadelphia reminded me of the 90’s games against the Bill Parcells NYGiants.
      Those Parcells defensive units would put a world of hurt on you.

  12. Mullen’s did not look right from the start of the game. His pass to Juice was “puzzling “. He looked off almost the entire night.
    The O-line had a rough night protecting Mullen. Williams really got abused.
    The defense looked slow and unfocused. They really miss Bosa to pressure the QB. They also have a tough time with running QB’s ,THAT needs correction.
    The team is beat Up and it showed last night.
    If they make the playoffs I will be pleased and surprised.

  13. I am not buying into the doom and gloom, because the Niners did have more first downs and yardage. Prevent the turnovers with a better ball security mindset, and they could have better outcomes.
    .
    Mullens started out shaky, missing wide open players, but it was the sacks and QB hits that bludgeoned him into playing slow and making mistakes. I am not giving up on Mullens, because he just has not had enough experience. Hopefully, he will learn to throw the ball away, instead of up for grabs, while in field goal range. I also hope he learns to know where all 11 defenders are, at all times, during a play. Field vision was obviously lacking, on that pick six.
    .
    Saleh needs to make adjustments. Rushing players past the QB invites long runs. He must get the D line to contain the QB in the pocket, while pushing the blocker into the QB.
    .
    Yes, even the Dolphins may give the Niners troubles, especially if the Niners keep turning over the ball. Still, many of the next teams they play have injury issues of their own. The Niners still have a deep and talented team and they will be formidable opponents. If the Niners play disciplined, and in control, with better ball security, they can beat anyone.

    1. News flash for you Nov.4th. Lousy football players make lousy throws and cause turnovers.
      Nick Mullen’s is a lousy football player.

      1. Yeah, and you were the one predicting a Niner blowout.
        .
        Guess what? I was right again. Hoyer threw the ball like the DB was the intended receiver.

    1. There was nothing wrong with this pocket

      http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=30043217

      Some pressure from the right at the end, but he was looking in the opposite the entire way.

      Yes, a lot of problems can be attributed to the OL simply getting overwhelmed. But who among us didn’t see multiple times, the Eagles DL with a clear path to the QB after the OL pulled in an RPO? They simply didn’t fall for the misdirection/finesse being presented to them. Well coached by a guy who has figured out a good part of Kyle’s offense. And Schwartz – 6-1 – against Shannies teams is just that guy.

  14. I’m puzzled as to how much energy and emotion has been spent in (justifiably) criticizing Mullens, a career backup.

    However, the main problem in Sunday’s game is not getting enough attention — the O line. Had the O line played at an average level of competence, 2 of the 3 Mullens’ TO would not have happened.

    The O line is playing 4 starters, including an All-Pro. They played at an All-Practice Squad level.

    In my 30+ years of watching NFL, I don’t recall ever seeing an O line’s level of play decline over the first 4 weeks while playing the same personnel. Ben Garland was the highest rated O lineman. Derek Barnett who weighs under 260 lb bull- rushed Williams to sack Mullens. Genard Avery who I had never heard of flew by McGlinchey as if he was Nick Bosa. The tackles played so poorly that even Kittle called them out. For Williams and Tomlinson the problem seems to be mental. For Brunskill, he seems to be just not strong enough to play guard. However, I’m having serious doubts about McGlinchey. He seems to be next in line for the Niners 2020 serial attack of the yips. He’s not moving his feet, not staying balanced, reacting slowly and then lunging. Hope he gets his act together very quickly.

    Mullens and Dontae Johnson are backups with limited physical skills and mental speed to keep up with the speed of the game. I cut them some slack. There is no such excuse for the starters on the O line.

      1. I’m hoping that this was the wake-up call.

        I’m sure Brian Flores will have a good defensive game plan that will take Kittle away and get after whoever plays at QB position. Flores and his coaches did as good a job with the limited talent they have on D to limit Wilson last Sunday. The Dolphins may be as challenging to the Niners’ offense as the Eagles.

    1. The thing is the Oline has been in the bottom tier of the NFL in pass pro for a few years, Jimmy has just masked it. This has been poo pooed by many, saying the running game will keep defenses honest. However, it has reared its ugly head whenever we have faced teams with top tier pass rushers, especially from the inside. See ATL, KC, Philly.

      Couple that with a backup Center and QB (the two who normally make the line calls based on the defensive alignment) going against the best dline in the NFL and you are bound to have problems. This is amplified even more when you no longer have players who threaten with explosive plays in the running game. This is where losing Breida hurts. BTW Jet should change his nickname to moped.

      All that said they should be fine next week, but struggle against the rams, and look good again vs Seattle and Green Bay. The question going forward for this team will be, Can our offense score enough?

  15. We lost to a winless eagles team. We have no pass rush. Losing Bosa is like losing your starting QB for the year. We are not going to beat the Packers this year or the Seahawks based on how the team is playing but Bosa was a big key on why we beat those teams, including Buckner whos gone, Dee whos hurt again, thomas who well is just a backup. The strong D-line is now the biggest weaknest. At least might get a high draft pick next year. This will be a 2018 season again maybe 4 wins

    1. The D played fine overall considering they were short-handed. This loss rests squarely on the offense.

      1. Yep. The Eagles had 267 yards of total offense and only scored 18 points. 7 of those points came on a short field gifted by a Mullens fumble. Then you had the 7 points added by the Eagles D due to Mullens pick 6.

        The 49ers lost due to their offense. The D was fine.

  16. Now their is more hurt players from the last game. Seems like every week 2-3 guys fall down. What are they doing out their that these players get hurt. The whole team is like on IR or will be.

    1. I’m surprised they are even cognizant of Nancy Pelosi’s team since Kaepernick is no longer affiliated.

  17. Yes, the O line did not play well. However, the QB play of Mullens did not help.
    .
    JG masked the O line deficiencies with his quick release.
    .
    How can the O line improve? Maybe move Tomlinson to RG, so he can help McGlinchey. Maybe shake things up, and move McGlinchey to RG, and let Skule start at RT.
    .
    Do something, because what they are doing now, is not working.
    .
    Ol’ Grant ripped the coaching in his grades, giving them D-, but that seems harsh after giving the coaches an A for the Giants game. The coaching deserves a C-. They did not have a good game plan, and did not make the proper adjustments. Saleh still does not understand how to defend against a mobile QB. He sends pass rushers way past the pocket, that leaves wide open lanes for the QB to gash them. KS still does not consider time outs to be precious, and saved for legitimate challenges and the last 2 minutes of each half. It sure would have been nice to have had one more time out at the end of the game. Sure, it is his decision to squander them, but he has to live with the consequences. The play calling did not put players in position to succeed, so maybe KS should promote Bobby Turner to OC, so he can concentrate more on the game management.
    .
    KS is full of hubris, and does not think he needs an OC, so Jed should insist on it. Promoting Bobby Turner would be rewarding him for his 48 years of coaching, and he has been an OC and assistant HC previously, so he can do the job. It would be good publicity to promote a Black coach, and it would get a 71 year old man off the crowded side line, and safe up in a booth. Bill Walsh would be proud, and would have thought it would be a smart move. Jed would be showing he is doing everything in his power to help the team win, and coaching salaries do not impact the salary cap at all. Jed is the owner, he could do it easily. I just do not see how having an OC would hurt the team. Maybe hurt KS’s feelings? After last game, maybe they need to give KS a wake up call. His game management is suffering, because he is trying to do 2 jobs at the same time. Posters who think this is a bad idea, must like losing.

        1. Settle down Nov.4th. You should be the last guy to call people out on predictions.

          Looking back at one of my favorites of your ignorance was when you said Chip Kelly was the perfect hire for Kaepernick because he was gonna “unleash” Kap. Unleash was right. Right to the bench.

          1. Yup, you think that drek QBs like Hoyer, Jones and Darnold deserve to start, while Kaep is still being blackballed.
            .
            You bet the Niners would draft Trubusty, who is sitting on the bench.
            .
            Primo Lame-O, the guy who predicted Mullens would blow out the Iggles.
            .
            You should be the last guy in this world to pan another person’s prediction record.

            1. I don’t think anything Nov.4th, just that Nov.4th is soon upon us and that we will get some clarity on your intelligence and prediction record.

              Have a good day Nov.4th!

  18. We all know the dude is nuts. If you you bully your doctor into letting you go home early from the hospital you are nuts. If your first instinct upon arriving at home is to cover your face with orange bronzer makeup, you are super nuts.

    Dr. Leanna Wen, MD : If @realDonaldtroompy were my patient, in unstable condition + contagious illness, & he suddenly left the hospital to go for a car ride that endangers himself & others:
    I’d call security to restrain him then perform a psychiatric evaluation to examine his decision-making capacity.

  19. I’ll go on record that Mullens never sees the field again for this team except in case of an emergency, i.e., both CJ and Jimmy are down….

    1. What if he has a stellar practice week and Jimmy cant go? I mean I think he blew his chances altogether but some of these coaches put a lot of emphasis on practice performance.

      Looks like we might be drafting a QB prospect next Spring.

      1. From everything Shanny said leading into the season both backups were nip and tuck. Well tuck just took over for nip, and played well enough to get the start if Jimmy can’t go….

  20. Russian agent Troompy paralyzes US military command.

    CNN: The top US general, Gen. Mark Milley, and several members of the senior Pentagon leadership are quarantining after a top Coast Guard official tested positive for coronavirus

    1. CNN – Democrats mouthpiece and hate mongers. Btw, this is the same network that pushed and clamored for Bubba Clinton – how did that work out?
      Doesn’t surprise me that you’re a faithful cnn follower.

      1. The same information is being reported everywhere except faux news which is hypnotized by troompies lab induced crimson glow.

        Try to be better.

        1. Make sure you tell that to Gov. Coumo who sent hundreds of covid patients back to Nursing homes, then blamed the Nursing home staff for spreading the Covid. Ha, nice deflect!

          But hey, he’s not the president, so he gets a free pass, right?
          I can’t wait for your cancel, and cover culture on this one (lol). I’m sure cnn and the ny-times already have a ready made excuse for you. Go look them up.

          1. Yah, blame Gov. Cuomo, who’s state is basically being help up as the gold standard of how you flatten a curve, contain the virus, and save hundreds of thousands of lives in the process (at last as compared to the botched federal response).

            Have you seen analysis of the the state of New York, despite being hit first as an international hub, and how well they managed to flatten the curve, and get the virus under control, despite a lack of preparedness and/or adequate support from the federal government? It’s easy to point out mistakes in hindsight. The problem with this POTUS isn’t as much about the innititial mistakes, it’s more about his inability to listen to his own scientists and course correct. Eight months later and he still has no clue. He’s still putting his own self interests ahead of the country, and it’s absolutely pathetic!

            There is a reason Cuomo is so popular, especially compared to the denier in chief. Compare New York’s response, to that of every other populous state in the union.

            Take a look at New York’s Covid data compared to states like Texas and Florida, AES, and you’ll realize why criticizing Governer Cuomo is a fools errand.

            1. And now that Goldman Sachs came out with this ioffical statement: “A Democratic sweep would mean faster economic recovery”, POTUS is now losing to Biden on the one remaining issue he somehow continued to lead on in the polls- the ECONOMY!

              And his goes right to the heart of the current administration’s biggest failure of all, COVID-19. The Federal Reserve just came out with a press release warning of an economic tragedy if the US can’t get the virus under control.

              1. “The Federal Reserve just came out with a press release warning of an economic tragedy if the US can’t get the virus under control.”

                So, can you tell me how the Dems are going to stop the virus if they win in Nov.
                Biden said that he’s going to make his covid plans based on scientific findings. If the science community decides to shut down the country, I wonder what the Federal Reserve would have to say about that.

            2. 49,
              Another cover up excuse for Cuomo. Try telling the hundreds of families who lost love ones to the Nursing home fiasco that it’s a fool’s errand.
              Will you guys ever except even a modicum of responsibility or are we now knee deep in the cancel culture?

              1. LMAO at Goldman press release. Everyone knows they’re Democraps through and through and always have been.

                Meanwhile Gavin Nuisance is playing nice with Trump; they’re best buddies all of a sudden because he knows his re-election could nosedive if California doesn’t pull out of a $50B deficit shortfall.

                Politicians…..

              2. we now knee deep in the cancel culture?

                You misspelled cancel election culture there, AES.

                Speaking of knee-deep…you are now one of those foaming in the mouth anti-CNN ragers? Not a good look for the measured AES presented on these pages.

              3. LMAO at Goldman press release. Everyone knows they’re Democraps through and through and always have been.

                LMAO, tell that to Steve Mnuchin. Remember Gary Cohn, one time Trump National Economic Council Director? Not to mention:

                President Trump has nominated another Goldman Sachs executive to a senior role, marking the fifth former or current Goldman employee to join the new administration.

                https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/324027-trump-names-another-goldman-sachs-exec-to-senior-administration-role

                You are so ill-informed, but what can we expect from the cult? Now I know why you are using a different screen name with every post, if you showed yourself as a regular you’d be laughed from on end of the blog to another.

              4. You’re missing the point, AES.

                It’s a Novel virus! As a country, we were learning as we go, but here’s a clear example of the difference between the way Governor Cuomo handled this, as compared to POTUS.

                Early on, the CDC wasn’t sure just how effective face masks would be against the virus. Remember that? Of course, science has long known the efficacy off masks in terms of how well they protect against the spread of other diseases, and respiratory ailments in particular, it’s just that we didn’t have specific data in regards to this particular virus, because it is a Novel virus. It wasn’t long though, perhaps maybe a month into the outbreak, until we did have the data, and that data was clear.

                Crystal clear, in fact!

                So tell me AES … after his own CDC concluded that, in fact, face masks were the most effective tool we have at slowing the spread of this virulent, deadly disease, how did POTUS respond, as the leader of this country?

              5. You do seem like an alright guy, AES. But honestly, if you don’t see the correlation between the economic destruction we are facing in this country, and the botched federal response to this virus … well then, you are an example of someone who’s partisan loyalty has completely clouded your ability to think critically. That’s a fact!

                Take a look around …. you can deny it’s a cult, you can deny it’s extreme partisanship, but whatever you call it, it’s doing serious damage to this country!

              6. Meanwhile Gavin Nuisance is playing nice with Trump; they’re best buddies all of a sudden because he knows his re-election could nosedive if California doesn’t pull out of a $50B deficit shortfall.

                Hah, apparently economics isn’t your strong suit! Here are a couple quick lessons in economics – 101. Do yourself a favor and take notes:

                – Unlike the federal government, California was running a budget SURPLUS, prior to the COVID-19 outbreak.

                – California has, by far, the largest economy of any state in the union. In fact, if California were a sovereign nation, it would rank as the world’s 5th largest economy. Therefor, it’s in the entire country’s best interest for California to have a strong economy moving forward.

              7. Another cover up excuse for Cuomo. Try telling the hundreds of families who lost love ones to the Nursing home fiasco that it’s a fool’s errand.

                This was the time when NYC was being absolutely hammered with new covid cases – up to 10,000 daily – and those hospital beds were desperately needed. In that triage situation, the thought was transfer these recovering cases to less urgent care facilities to make way for the incoming. In hindsight it was the absolutely wrong thing to do, and I’m sure Cuomo and DiBlasio and anyone else who had a hand in the decision regrets it. They learned a morbid lesson and any survivors of those deceased have a right to be furious.

                Since then Cuomo’s (excuse the Trump delineation) blue state has flattened the curve to among the lowest in the nation. Compare that to Trump who has not learned a single thing in the months after that. He’s ignored intelligence warnings, called the crisis a hoax, downplayed the threat, lied about virus testing, lied about the government’s on-the-ground response, lied about the rate of infection, blamed the Obama administration, misled the country about a cure, packed his days with non-action, blamed governors, accused hospital workers of stealing much-needed surgical masks, falsely claimed in June the pandemic was “dying out,” refused to order a national lockdown, touted dubious miracle cures, filled marathon pandemic briefings with ceaseless contradictions and lies, and silenced scientists. Even when he was sick with the virus himself, claimed it was under control, had “turned a corner”. The POS is f-ing murderer.

                Sorry that doesn’t fit the cult or fox news narrative you parrot in this site, AES.

              8. “This was the time when NYC was being absolutely hammered with new covid cases – up to 10,000 daily – and those hospital beds were desperately needed.”

                Another cover up slanted agenda story. Trump sent a Navy hospital ship to NY.
                Who’s decision was it to send covid patients back to Nursing homes, Trump?
                Btw, how many covid patients actually went to the Navy Hospital Ship?

                Let’s take a look into the future if the Dems win this Nov. and the Covid still lingers for the next 5-7 months.
                1. They will blame it on Trump.
                2. They will continue to keep all boarders closed. Which btw, they called Trump a racist for closing.
                3. Hunter Biden’ financial dealing will – aahum, go away.

                Hmm, I think it’s safe to assume that when the Dems called Trump a racist for closing the borders, that had they been in power they would have kept the borders open. Gee, I wonder how that would have helped Americans.

                Also, has Kamala ever apologized to Biden for intimating that he was a racist. Maybe Nancy and Schiff should call their linguistic professors to analyze Kamala’ comment (lol).

              9. 49,
                “It’s a Novel virus! As a country, we were learning as we go, but here’s a clear example of the difference between the way Governor Cuomo handled this, as compared to POTUS.”

                Another cover-up and pass the blame reply. Maybe all the families who lost moms and dads when their loved ones were put back in Nursing homes to die, will accept that excuse.
                In the age of blaming Trump for every negative event, this excuse and cancel culture has no wings to fly away.

                I’ve already used up too much space on here about politics. No more need to continue to drag it out.

              10. FYI, these things don’t just happen out of the clear blue, AES:

                7/10/2020, “As POTUS’s Approval Ratings Sink, New York Gov. Cuomo’s Soar” –

                POLL: Governor Cuomo’s approval ratings soaring during coronavirus outbreak
                The NBC/Marist poll reports all-time highs since he took office in 2011-

                60% of New Yorkers registered to vote rate Cuomo’s performance as excellent or good
                86% of Democrats, 65% of independents, and 28% of Republican approve of the governor
                55% of upstate New Yorkers responded positively overall, compared to 67% of those in the City
                69% of upstaters approve of his leadership during the pandemic, compared to 75% in the City
                52% of upstaters like the way he’s handling the economy, compared to 63% in the City

                Now, compare those to your guy’s poll numbers.

              11. Hey AES, since we were on the subject of State Governors, I am curious how you justify this:

                It was reported by Andy Slater, a Fox Sports radio host, and later confirmed by other reporters and the Miami Dolphins, that Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis, gave the clearance for Florida stadiums to go to full capacity. This would allow the Dolphins’ Hard Rock Stadium to go from the current maximum of 13,000 fans (still a mind-boggling figure) to a full-capacity 65,000 number.

                I suppose you will come up with some kind of twisted, nonsensical way to excuse this kind of reckless policy, being that this Republican Governor is basically taking his marching orders from POTUS? SMH!

                On a related note:

                Florida voters losing faith in GOP Governor DeSantis, new poll finds

                Experts warn, DeSantis mixed messaging, lack of adherence to CDC guidelines, could be costing lives

    1. Sanu fell to the numbers game. Shanahan has intimated that Richie could be back this week.

      I honestly, have no idea what Shanahan and Lynch want to do with Pettis. But with the spat of injuries they have had, it’s probably a good idea to (gulp) keep him around.

      1. Pettis should have been cut at training camp. Between him and Witherspoon they combine to be the 2 biggest flops.

        1. Actually, by many eyewitness accounts including Shanahan, Pettis had a very good camp.
          But, I’m really starting to believe that Shanahan and Lynch are unwilling to dismiss their draft picks.
          This seems (at least) to be the trend when we see Solly stick around this long.

    2. The way the season is going, I won’t be shocked to see Sanu back again later this season.

      1. Rib,
        Yes sir.
        This team needs a big wake up call.
        This has to come from Shanahan and the team captains.
        We’re two games behind the seahags and can’t lose anymore games if we want to stay within striking distance.

        And yes, RIP Van Halen

        1. And yes, RIP Van Halen

          If the afterlife is anything like the beforelife, I somehow can’t imagine restful peace as part of EVH’s ;)

          If anything, the other harp players are now like”how the hell did he do that?” ;)

    1. I am glad that VH prohibited troompee from using their music at his biodisaster propaganda events.

        1. B. O,
          IF this alleged story is found to be true. The Dems should be forced to rescind their impeachment of Trump.
          They should also pay back the taxpayers 40+ millions of dollars out of their own pockets for their hate filled joke of a kangaroo court.
          Nuff said.

        2. Wow. The smell of overwhelming desperation is palpable from the chief superspreader all the way to the bottom of the cult barrel.

          BTW, AES:

          cult

          a system of religious veneration and devotion directed toward a particular figure or object. a relatively small group of people having religious beliefs or practices regarded by others as strange or sinister. a misplaced or excessive admiration for a particular person or thing.

          So don’t get all huffy, ok?

          1. I make no apologies if I don’t fit into the cancel, cover and overlook culture.

            Your scientific findings on a cult doesn’t mean anything to me. I really don’t waste time on atheistic view points.
            Ha! But apparently that makes me a cultist (lol).

            1. Your scientific findings on a cult doesn’t mean anything to me.

              Not surprising. Scientific findings on anything don’t mean anything to the cult.

              1. Doesn’t mean anything to Harris since she demanded the plexiglass dividers.

                Jose-Luis Jimenez, a chemistry professor at the University of Colorado who studies how the coronavirus can spread through the air.

                “Aerosol transmission is basically like smoke,” Jimenez said. “If one of the candidates is smoking and you put up plexiglass barriers, it won’t matter. The smoke will just go around those barriers.”

              2. True, those plexiglass dividers are basically glorified spit guards. But after seeing Trump’s mouth foaming performance in the previous debate, who can blame her?

                So you agree any additional presidential debates should be held virtually? Dear Leader rejects that. What were you saying about science?

              3. Rib,
                This mental issue seems to run rampant with your Dem party.

                Paranoia :
                “Some identifiable beliefs and behaviors of individuals with symptoms of paranoia include mistrust, hypervigilence, difficulty with forgiveness, defensive attitude in response to imagined criticism, preoccupation with hidden motives, fear of being deceived or taken advantage of, inability to relax, or are argumentative.”

                I really can’t think of anything else that better describes Nancy and her alliance.
                Btw, if Biden wins, you Nancy believers should start learning how to say president Harris.
                Little Nancy is already scheming the Dems plan by using (25th amendment) to
                remove Biden from office and handing the reins to Harris.
                Not true? Then explain to me how Biden selects a VP partner who virtually called him a racist on national tv.

                The Dems are leading all their followers many of whom are very intelligent into their abyss of hatred.
                I’m surprised that they are blind to it.
                But hey, maybe a radical/liberal president Harris works for you.

              4. AES,

                Paranoia strikes deep.

                Little Nancy is already scheming the Dems plan by using (25th amendment) to
                remove Biden from office and handing the reins to Harris.
                Not true? Then explain to me how Biden selects a VP partner who virtually called him a racist on national tv.

                LOL. Back away from the Fox News. Parroting an deranged idiot who’s hopped up on dexi, you guys crack me up.

                As far as KH calling JB whatever? Need I list out the litany of things Republicans were calling DJT during the 2016 primary season? Not pretty, they make “racist” sound like a compliment. Thanks to the cult, they forgot they are ostensibly vertebrates with a backbone. You guys sure did a number on the Republican part. How’s that for an explanation?

                A radical/liberal Harris president? At this point I’d take that pile of dog sh!t on the sidewalk as President over Trump. It would do a better job. And not directly infect half of Washington DC.

              5. “Need I list out the litany of things Republicans were calling DJT during the 2016 primary season? ”

                Not to mention how Mike Pence endorsed and voted for Ted Cruz in the primary that year.

            2. Rib,
              “LOL. Back away from the Fox News. Parroting an deranged idiot who’s hopped up on dexi, you guys crack me up.”

              Actually, if you’re interested, I mentioned this early last week before Fox and Nancy ever brought up the 25th amendment idea.
              Sometimes you just have to follow the line of thinking and the pattern of hate and divisiveness of the Dems to figure it out.

              If they get to office, they will eat their own. Btw, no news outlets or the WH has announced that.
              I just follow the pattern.

              1. “Little Nancy is already scheming the Dems plan by using (25th amendment) to
                remove Biden from office and handing the reins to Harris.
                Not true? Then explain to me how Biden selects a VP partner who virtually called him a racist on national tv.”

                Trump said all of this shortly after Biden named Harris as his VP selection

          1. Hey you phokctard. Did you bother going to either site yesterday when the news broke? Neither had the headline anywhere on their main sites. Nor was it on their main page at any point. Burying a news story under a separate site map link and not on the main page where it rightfully belongs is worthless and another stupid attempt on your part to run with bullschiff as usual. Seems rather newsworthy to me? Does it not to you? Interesting, since you losers are so quick to post anything innocuous the President says to the main page of it benefits your narrative.

            RIBICO IS A MORON. File that under “politics”.

            1. I’m glad more news sites finally aren’t immediately falling over on every moronic tweet from that deranged madman. FN is pulling out all the stops on keeping the cult from burning down the place. They saw how you guys treated C Wallace.

              BTW Nice screen name. What are you, 7 years old?

              1. Did you suck her cock when you were only 7? I guess she’s worse than we all thought!

              2. Ribico says:
                October 7, 2020 at 3:43 pm
                Kids reading the comments? This is obviously a kid posting the comments.

                Something we could both agree on.

            2. Welp. I’m guessing the Press Democrat laid off all the moderators. Kinda shocked that kind of language got posted.

              1. There was a time when kids would read these comments, but I fear the Age Of Innocence is fading like an old dream….

              2. Agreed, this kind of language is uncalled for.
                And here, I get blocked for a reply to Rib.
                Go figure (lol).

              3. I think I’ve been coming here since Maiocco ran this blog and Dennis Erickson was the coach. Maybe even before that. Very sad what this blog has devolved into. Guess the implosion of this blog is corollary to the slow roll death of newspapers. It’s really a shame.

  21. Matt Barrows
    @mattbarrows
    Per agent @kenny_zuckerman, the #49ers are promoting DE Alex Barrett from the practice squad to the active roster.
    6:00 PM · Oct 6, 2020

      1. He was on the practice squad on a team without a good edge rusher on the roster… what do you think?

    1. If we lose to Miami we most likely end up a 7-9 team, and on the outside looking into the playoffs.

      If we win and get the reinforcements maybe we reverse that to 9-7 and sneak into the playoffs.

        1. I’d like to think Jimmy would be back shortly thereafter, along with some other reinforcements.

  22. When Stormy has the moral high ground in a twitter feud with the first “lady”. LOL

      1. You’ve got to give Bruce credit, he’s not making every off-topic political post under a different screen name. Not like the pro-trump clown(s) here.

        1. Because Bruce Lee is his real name and we already know Ribico is yours, right?

          So legitimate…

  23. Matt Maiocco
    @MaioccoNBCS
    ·
    52m
    #49ers
    Wednesday

    Will not practice
    Dontae Johnson (groin)
    Emmanuel Moseley (concussion)
    Jimmie Ward (wrist)

    Limited
    Jimmy Garoppolo
    Dre Greenlaw
    Raheem Mostert
    Dante Pettis
    Trent Taylor
    Ahkello Witherspoon

    Heading to Injured reserve
    Ziggy Ansah (season ending)
    K’Waun Williams

    1. Someone may need to check these numbers but according to Spotrac the 49ers are tied for the league lead in players on IR. 49ers, Denver, and Philly all have 11 players on IR.

      So I ask again, What exactly is Ben Peterson’s job?

      1. What has become abundantly clear is that the 49ers issues re keeping players on the field has not improved under the new training and medical staff.

        1. It’s gotten worse. They did not have these players ready for the rigors of the season.

          1. True, but it seems like this is not the year to judge them on and I believe this is year 2 for the strength and conditioning staff.

            1. That said, it is something that should be monitored very closely going forward.
              It should also be noted that some of this might be on SF coaches for being so soft on them in camp, many coaches ran much more physical camps and have suffered fewer injuries.

              1. In the old days when camps were way tougher, I don’t remember the types of injuries I am seeing now.

  24. I think things are pretty simple this week regardless of who is at QB. The O line plays well we win. The O line doesn’t play well we lose. Williams, McGlinchey and Brunskill are key, they were horrible last week and all 3 need to step it up this week or it is going to be a long season.

    1. Old Coach I will just add the entire unit needs to come together and play well.
      Not just 3 guys.
      Run and pass protection they need to set the tone against a team that’s struggled to generate a pass rush.

      1. “entire unit needs to come together and play well. ”

        Brilliant analysis. I’ll add that the 49ers should try to score more points than the Dolphins.

        1. You can also add that Trump is going to have you crying in your soup in a couple weeks.

          1. JFC, what are you basing that on? National polls have him behind 10-15 points, running behind in every swing state he needs, virtually tied in states he took by up to 10 points last election. The absolute only way he call pull this off is through massive voter suppression. And believe me, they are trying just that.

    2. Coach,
      +100
      Also, I’d like to see the team more fired up this weekend. Playing a bad team does not represent a gimme in this league.

    3. Funny how that works, right Coach? I would add the DL has to play well or it could be a long night.

  25. I can wrap up the entire debate in a few sentences. The US response to Covid was both sadistic and incompetent. We have 4% of the worlds population and 25% of deaths. There are more Covid cases in the Whitehouse than New Zealand. Pency was in charge of Covid response. In addition Troompy is the most corrupt immoral unethical and lawless president in US history. Yet, Pency who alleges to be a devout Christian (painfully so) , had a front row seat and watched silently not unlike Jerry Falwell watching the poolboy with his wife.

    1. Do you like boys, Bruce? I know a little boy named Ribico that would love to take you whole.

    2. Can’t you go to a political blog and leave us alone. You are ruining this football blog.

      1. Jerry, we’ve been telling these clowns since week one to stop talking politics but for some reason they cannot comprehend the difference between the two.

        1. Current events and yes politics have infected the entire sports world including football There’s a difference between talking current events and these fly by idiots just interjecting puerile porn attempts.

    1. Kudos she definitely needed a spanking, and got one.

      Meanwhile Rib is choking on Bruce Lee’s package over here.

      1. Why am I not surprised the only thing the Trump cult has left is puerile homophobic attempts of disruption.

  26. I’m getting a little concerned about the concussion that Mosely has. It seems like most players are only in a concussion protocol for at most two weeks.

    1. Yeah, I was thinking this exact same thing. I hope this young man didn’t suffer something severe that could have long term impacts on his life.

  27. How can the Niners defeat the Dolphins?
    .
    KS should remember that Matt Breida has spilled his guts on the Niner playbook, so KS needs to change things up. He should give standard looks, then do something totally unexpected. He should design plays that have multiple options, so the Dolphins have to defend both sides and deep. Then KS should let his QB make the right read, so he takes what the defense gives him.
    .
    Looking at the Seahawk/Dolphin game, the Dolphins played the Seahawks tough, so they will not be pushovers.
    .
    Like the Eagles game, the Niners should put pressure on the QB, so he makes mistakes. Maybe more delayed blitzes up the middle, after the front line contains the QB in the pocket.

    .
    Conversely, like Old Coach says, the Niner O line may be the key factor between winning and losing. KS should try more passes while the Dolphins are in their base defense on first downs, but the best strategy may be to run the ball up the middle. The Seahawks gashed the Dolphins up the middle, so the Niners should copy their scheme. Do not use McKinnon for that. They should use him to attack the edges and be a pass catching option.
    .
    The Niners should utilize Jeff Wilson, but they should also unsheathe their most potent weapon. Let Wilson hammer at them, then let JaMycal Hasty be that change of pace back. Use the WRs on those fly sweeps, and try to catch them off guard with reverses.
    .
    KS should take advantage of the Dolphin defensive speed by running counters and misdirections. If their defense over runs the play, they will be out of position.
    .
    Above all, have good game management. Make sure they get plays off in time, before there are 5 seconds on the play clock. This will save them from having to burn a time out to prevent a delay of game penalty. Consider time outs to be precious, and saved for legitimate challenges and the last 2 minutes of each half. Heck, it might make the difference between winning and losing.
    .
    I hope JG is healthy enough to play, but I still like Mullens, yet CJB may also be a decent option. The most important thing for whoever is in, is to consider ball security paramount. Do not throw a pick while within field goal range. If in the red zone, tell the QB to prevent a sack or turnover by throwing the ball out of the end zone, if no one is open.
    .
    Mullens, with his pick six, was definitely rattled, so CJB may step in. CJB looked good in the last quarter, so I think he is accurate enough to help win the game. Of course, establishing a running game, will not put the Niners in those third and long situations, so the defense is expecting the pass. If the Niners can establish the running game, it will not matter who is in at QB.
    .
    Of course, the Dolphins will stack the box, and dare the Niner QB to beat them with his arm, so I hope they attack the edges.
    .
    This is a winnable game, but only if the Niners stop shooting themselves in the foot. Niners 24-23.

    1. Jack,
      Nice breakdown. I think that an argument for Buckner’ 3 sacks early last season could have something to do with Bosa’ play, but Buckner was and is a great player on his own merit.

      There’s been (throughout the history of football) the thought that football is largely a mental game as much as physical.

      Because of this, I can’t dismiss that opposing Dcords/Ocords are mentally prepared to face the 49ers knowing that key starters on both sides of ball or missing.

      Also, the Oline has not meshed. The eagles overpowered the Oline last Sunday and helped keep their offense within striking distance.
      Still, with all the negatives, we were in position to win until the pick-six.
      Aaarrggh! I’m still heated over the loss ?

      1. Buckner went from 3 sacks this time last year to 1.5 this year.

        The offense has to begin playing like advertised in order for this team to have a chance. That’s just the bottom line, and I’d expect that to continue until 2022, when I’d expect Bosa to be fully back to 100%….

          1. I posted that to support AES’ musing that part of Buckner’s 3 sacks were influenced by Bosa. Not to take anything away from Buckner or pimp up the guys who’ve replaced him….

      2. Thanks AES, and I would agree. Guys like Bosa and Ford were definitely helpful with that and yes, Bucker is a very good player in his own right.

        I understand their reasoning for making the move. We just need to understand that the results from that position won’t be the same for a bit.

    2. The D through the first half of last season was historically good. They were always likely to “regress” this year even if they retained Buckner.

      The D has played fine this year. And in consideration of the injuries they have been quite good. They aren’t the reason the team has lost two games.

      The offense was, imo, always going to need to play better/ more consistently good this year, and with the injuries to some key guys on D even more so. With JG hopefully back this week the offense is getting close to a full complement and now they need to start taking over games.

      1. Would Jimmy G have beaten the Eagles?
        In a one possession game, that’s where Mullen’s and Jimmy are night and day.

          1. Jack Hammer, if Garoppolo always gives them a better chance to win, why would there ever be a QB controversy?

            Do you understand why we aren’t giving or Grant a pass on this subject? Do you understand why the Faithful are tired of the unwarranted disrespect directed at Jimmy G, when it’s clear that, when he’s healthy, he’s one of the better QB’s in the league.

            1. There were plenty of the “faithful” that were asking for Mullens after the Arizona game.

              As I’ve already stated more than once and you don’t seem to understand is that the “QB controversy” wasn’t going to come from inside the building, it was from the “faithful”

              1. As I’ve already stated more than once and you don’t seem to understand is that the “QB controversy” wasn’t going to come from inside the building, it was from the “faithful”

                Again, that’s nonsense. A few whiny, fair weather fans isn’t representative of a fan base clamoring for the backup QB to take over as the team’s starter. You know as well as I do, that kind of decision always comes from the top, in this case it would have to come from Kyle. You were insinuating that Kyle would have a hard time replacing Mullens if he played well, regardless of Jimmy’s health, and that was just absolute nonsense! You don’t allow your HEALTHY franchise QB (with one of the best W-L records of any quarterback) who is the leader of your offense, and who just took your team to the Super Bowl, to sit behind a less talented UDFA QB, under ANY circumstances.

                Kyle was never going to let that happen, Jack, because that’s exactly how you create an unnecessary controversy, and Kyle isn’t stupid enough to do that with a QB of Jimmy’s caliber. That was never going to happen, but you and Grant decided to make it a thing over there at SI, by insinuating that Kyle might actually consider starting Nick over a healthy Jimmy, even though, if you know anything about Kyle Shanahan, you would know that was never going to happen. And considering you guys supposedly cover this team from the inside, it came across as incredibly ill-informed, and some would even say with an air of disingenuous sensationalism.

              2. “Kyle was never going to let that happen”

                Yeah I know. That’s why I never said he would.

                You keep wanting to say I was wrong about something that I never said or wrote.

              3. Rib,
                While He may claim to be impartial… it’s a bogus statement. Nobody is completely impartial and neither is Grant. He admitted that his perfect season for SF would be 8-8 due to the drama of the season, this alone tells you he is not impartial.

                To be fair though, if I were a reporter I would want 10 win seasons with some top quality wins and terrible losses… they would make the playoffs (most likely), fans would stay interested, questions like “are they a playoff team or not” would last through the season, and if they make the playoffs are they a “superbowl contender or a 1 and done team” would carry you through the post season.

                8 and 8 season are not dramatic seasons, see the Nolan – Singletary years. These type of seasons usually have fans lose interest quickly, fans know they are not a contender and also that they are not going to get a great draft pick.

              4. I don’t speak for Grant.

                Nor do you speak for the “faithful”.

                What was this QB controversy they were clamoring for? Allies posts here?

              5. Shoup, as you say he may have pulled for those outcomes to make his job easier, but that in no way put him in the Fan category.

                I’m still wondering about this “faithful” groundswell to replace JG that hammer speaks of? Near as I can tell it was entirely media generated.

              6. Rib,
                It wasn’t even media driven. What media personality other than Grant and his crew can you name that brought up the idea of a qb controversy?
                The reality is Nick Mullens is a lot closer to C.J. Beathard than he is to Jimmy.

              7. Both Jas Kang and Rob Guerra mentioned a QB controversy. KS had to assert that JG was the starter, once he is healthy. John Lynch answered questions about JG’s leadership, so there was lots of chatter, not only on this site or at All49ers.
                .
                It is not the end of the world that there was speculation, especially after the Giants game, where the Niners did not punt. And no, it was not only fan driven. There was controversy driven by the media, because some folk like to diss JG.
                .
                It is OK to acknowledge the media’s complicity in the controversy. Denying reality is self defeating.

              8. “When asked about the situation this week Shanahan stated, “This is Jimmy’s team. He’s done a hell of a job for us and when he’s healthy, he’ll be playing again for us.” For people inside the building in Santa Clara this might be reality. However, if Nick Mullens can go out against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday and duplicate his performance from a week ago, making the switch back to Garoppolo the following week would be met with a lot of grumbling from the fan base. And if Garoppolo were to then struggle, the grumbling will only intensify as will the pressure to perform.”

                Here is what I wrote last Friday. It is pretty clear that I was saying that inside the building there was no controversy, and also that Mullens would need to go out and play well against Philly and then Garoppolo struggling when he comes back for their to be a lot of noise.

                Mullens didn’t play well. So obviously there’s no legs from the fan base now.

              9. We seem to be talking past each other. Of course, KS and JL know JG is who they want as the franchise QB, and they paid him well.
                .
                Of course, there was a lot of speculation about Mullens starting over JG in the media, and by the media, including All49ers.
                .
                You make it sound like the media did not buy into the speculation, and that it was solely fan driven. Nope. The media took it, and ran with it, so much so, both KS and JL had to make unequivocal statements supporting JG.
                .
                You may say it was the Faithful, I say it was the Faithless- a small minority of bandwagon fans.

              10. Rib,
                I never claimed he was a fan, only that he had preferences… that by its very nature gives him rooting interest. Even if it’s because he wants to be right… in that Nick Mullens is almost as good as Jimmy, or that Saleh is a great DC, or that Shanahan is overrated as a coach. This would be similar to a gambler rooting for the team they bet on.

              11. Seb,
                I’m sorry, I do not who those people you mentioned are. I never heard about it on KNBR, the athletic, ESPN, CSNBayArea, SFGate, basically none of the respected outlets… In the Montana Young years or during the Alex Smith, CK controversy…. it was everywhere.

                This wasn’t even close to that, there are a few fans who want to change… but that happens no matter what, and even then those fans were few and far between.

              12. Shoup. Jas King and Rob Guerra write for Niners Nation, which is not an obscure blog site.
                .
                KS and JL both addressed the QB controversy, so I hope you know who they are. They had to support JG, because many in the media like to diss him. Look at JG’s ranking. 15th, but he won the NFC Championship.
                .
                Yes, it will never rank as high as the Montana/Young controversy, but there has almost always been Niner QB controversies, with wild speculation even in the times of Tittle.
                .
                I hope you will agree that it was a tempest in a teapot, media driven with some fringe fans like Allie, or a troll that took over that name to be divisive.

        1. We’ll never know for sure, and JG certainly isn’t immune to bad games, but in general JG has shown more aptitude for playing well enough to win when the pass protection is suspect.

          1. The most frustrating part about it is that I believe on most days Mullens plays well enough to win that game, despite not being a great QB under pressure. He was just off from the get go. Not sure why, but he was not as locked in as he has been previously.

              1. Missing Bourne and Juice the first two plays had nothing to do with pressure. He was off all game, and when pressure did come it just exacerbated the issue.

        2. Prime,
          Good point.
          But except for the p6, Mullens was moving the ball down field for a chance to win.
          He made a terrible mistake with the Int.
          But to your point, Jimmy would likely not have put the team in that position.

      2. I sort of agree with you Scooter, with the exception of defending against mobile QB’s. They have done a poor job containing athletic QB’s, and that’s been one of the major factors in both losses. The other issue has been generating consistent QB pressure with a 4 man front. Both of these issue point to the loss of Nick Bosa, and Dee Ford. Particularly Bosa in terms of containing opposing QB’s.

        That’s why I was so deflated when Bosa went down. This is still a very talented defense, but there are two players that stand above all others in terms of value, and those two are Bosa and Fred Warner. This is almost a completely different defense without Bosa on one of the edges.

        Add to that all of the other injuries on both sides of the ball (particularly Garoppolo, Samuel, and Mostert), and extremely unhealthy bad air quality further limiting the team’s ability to prepare for week 1, and it’s really no mystery as to why this team is 2-2, IMO.

        1. This D has struggled with mobile QBs every year under Saleh. Even last year. Losing Bosa and Ford aren’t the reason for it. Neither is the switch to more wide-9. It is an issue with how Saleh runs his D, and a sprinkle of discipline issues regarding working as a team rather than individuals along the line.

          1. While I agree that containing mobile QB’s is not a strength of this wide nine front, are you honestly telling me losing one of the league’s best all around DE’s, and a guy who is particularly brilliant at setting an edge, hasn’t been a factor? Yah … no, that I have to disagree with on that.

            As for your point in terms of the natural defensive regression, yes, that was bound to happen. The 49ers defense was, in some ways, historically good last season, so regression towards the mean, was almost a certainty. It’s really hard to say how much of this regression has to do with
            injuries though, having lost both of their bookend DE’s. Those injuries, along with a number of additional key injuries have completely changed what was projected 2020 roster, as late as this early May.

            1. Bosa obviously makes the D better, but if you think he would fix the team’s issues defending mobile QBs you weren’t paying attention last season.

              1. How much of a difference would he make in containing the running game of mobile QBs? They were a problem for the team all last season. Murray was a problem week 1 with Bosa. They just don’t defend the QBs running well, even at full strength.

          2. Scooter,
            On Wentz’ TD run, Dion Jordan was responsible for containing the outside, but he got completely duped on the play and was not discipline enough to cover his area.
            I believe that Bosa would have done a much better job on containment.

            1. Yep, Jordan played that one very poorly. Bosa probably would have played that better. It was one play. Mobile QBs have been running on this D for years whether Bosa is playing or not.

              1. Yep, that would help. Guys being more disciplined in staying in their lanes/ fits would too, but that also would come at the expense of slowing the rush.

                They’ve also been bad at keeping contain on the edges over the years, and also have historically had a bad habit of the DEs crashing down on the option while the LB fails to scrape over to take the QB.

                Lots of reasons the team struggles to contain mobile QBs running on them.

      3. Yes. The D so far has been about what we saw through last year when they were very good early on against some really bad QB’s.

        The only exception being the sudden change results. Early last year they did great in those situations, this year they have been bad.

        Last year once the level of QB’s they were facing improved they were not so hot, allowing just under 26 per over the last 9.

        It is going to be tough to match that during the stretch coming up after Miami, and with the way this offensive line is playing I’m not sure they will be able to score enough points on offense to keep up even with Jimmy Gesus.

        1. On the topic of QB’s, will Shanahan and Lynch look to draft one late in the 2021?
          If so, does he draft a modern QB who is effective when running?

          One QB who could fit that scenario (2-3 day pick) that I like is Tyler Huntley of Utah.
          Small, yes, but he’s a passer first and effective when he runs. Of course, I’m projecting a back up QB here.
          Reminds of a poor man’s Kyler Murray.

  28. A question for the blog and I will apologize ahead of time because it is a football question and not about politics. After Sunday’s performance is there a more talented or financially valuable skill position player in the NFL other than G. Kittle? Excluding QBs.

    1. Probably not, but I’d caution being too giddy about it because his style of play is conducive to injuries. Let me put on my Hammer hat and point out our only two wins were without George Kittle….?

      1. Let me put on my Hammer hat and point out our only two wins were without George Kittle…

        HA! Perfect.

    2. Davante Adams, Michael Thomas, Tyreek Hill, Calvin Ridley, DeAndre Hopkins, Stephon Diggs, even Amari Cooper, have all been very productive.
      .
      Kelce is another valuable player, but the Chiefs have Tyreek Hill and Clyde Edwards Helaire so he is being overshadowed by them.
      .
      Alvin Kamara, Aaron Jones, Derrick Henry, Dalvin Cook and Ezekiel Elliot, along with McCaffrey before his injury, are all very valuable contributors to their teams.
      .
      If George Kittle was so valuable to the running game, why has the Niner run game struggle this seaon so far?
      .
      Granted, Kittle is elite, but he did drop that 2 point conversion, which made it so the Niners had to score a TD, instead of possibly kicking a field goal, at the end of the game.
      .
      Kittle is certainly the best TE in the game, but overall, there are many other players who are integral to their team’s success.
      .
      Maybe Elliot and Cooper may not be considered, because they are on a 1-3 team, but they have been very productive. Dak has historic numbers, but is one play from being winless.

      1. Seb,
        A great run blocking TE can not make up for horrible performances by the rest of the O line. I will take Kittle over any of the players you mentioned. On top of being a great receiver and blocker he is a remarkable leader. imho

        1. Old Coach, I definitely agree that he is a leader, but those other players are also big leaders on their teams. I wanted the Niners to select Kamara, but they traded away that pick to move up a round the next season. I think it turned out that the Niners only gained 10 spots. Instead, the Niners selected Ahkello Witherspoon with the pick before, and Cooper Kupp was selected 2 spots after Kamara. Now, with Kamara, the Saints look strong, even without Micheal Thomas.
          .
          Do not get me wrong, I love George Kittle as a fan of his elite talents, and am elated that he is on the 49ers. Still, declaring him the best player after the elite QBs, is a bit of hyperbole. I hope it does not go to his head, and he remains a humble hard working guy.

            1. The problem is- you are wrong before the fact. What is truly pathetic was your betting 200 bucks that the Niners would draft Trubusty.

    3. He’s definitely in the elite tier of most valuable non-QB offensive skill position players.

  29. Some good news.

    Matt Barrows @mattbarrows 5 h
    On the field as the #49ers start Thursday’s practice:
    •Jimmy Garoppolo
    •Raheem Mostert
    •Dre Greenlaw
    •Ahkello Witherspoon
    •Jimmie Ward
    •Trent Taylor
    •Dante Pettis

    1. Really need the offense to carry the team this season. The D has played decently considering the players it lost to injuries. It will have to start with the O line.

  30. 49ers great, Fred Dean in the hospital and in rough shape due to Covid-19. Per Dwight Hicks.

    1. I hope he got the anti viral cocktail, instead of hydroxychloroquine.
      .
      My thoughts and prayers are with Mr Dean, with hope for a speedy recovery.

  31. Holy moly our secondary is in bad shape right now! The back ups to the back ups are hurt.

  32. Could the Niners travel to Philly, Dallas, Chicago, New Orleans, Tampa Bay as a wild card and win?

    HELL YEAH!

  33. Tough, weird season when Brady loses count of the down on a 4th quarter comeback trail.

  34. This Bears/ Bucs game is a good example why a team should be bold, and go for it, instead of settling for field goals.
    .
    The Bucs scored more times (5), than the Bears (4), but lost the game.

  35. Shockingly it wasn’t BLM or antifa who plotted to kidnap and murder a US Governor. It was trumpee inspired neo-nazis who are sick of being held up in their mommie’s basement. They call themselves the mini weenee gang.

    1. So much for standing down and standing by. Geez, they don’t even know how to follow orders. Probably why this country replaced militias with a professional military long ago.

              1. I did change it, and he/she changed it ,too.
                .
                This catfish gave itself away, writing vile smut in my name.
                .
                It sure tried to sound like me, but the dig at the end was always a dead give-away.
                .
                I know it is a long time poster , because the catfish can parrot me, chapter and verse.
                .
                Prime is so clueless, he thinks 2 posters are one, but I would never create a catfish account, because I detest what the catfish does on here. Of course, this is not my first rodeo, so I know what anonymous burner trolls can do.
                .
                Poor Prime, he is easy and gullible. He falls for every Con. like the one in the Oval Office.
                .
                Yes, like Prime admitted, Kaep took the league by storm. History tends to repeat itself.

              2. Nice try. You can change your profile, avatar and name but you like the idea of others thinking it’s not you.
                Right Dee!

  36. Defensive linemen Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas both recently underwent season-ending surgeries to repair torn ACLs in their left knees.

    Coach Kyle Shanahan said both players sustained some damage to their knees, in addition to the ACL tears. He said both surgeries were described to him as “extremely successful.”

    “I know it was clean and that’s about all I know,” Shanahan said.

    As long as there are no complications along the way, both players are expected to be cleared for on-field work at some point during the offseason and should be ready for the start of the 2021 season.

    As per NBC Sports “my teams” app.

    1. How much better than “successful” is “extremely successful”? Probably not a medical term…

  37. Shanahan on KNBR this morning says contingent on a solid practice today , Jimmy G and Mostert are a go for Dolphins.

    1. Apparently Deebo missed practice because of “illness”. He’s not on COVID list, though…

  38. After watching the Seahawk/ Dolphin game, I have more hope. The Dolphins played tough against them, and they lost due to turnovers. With Fitzpatrick, that is to be expected.
    .
    Looking at the stats, the Seahawks are dead last in team defense, so they have problems of their own. They cannot rely on RW to throw 4 TDs every game, especially with that makeshift O line. He is getting beat up, so he may start regressing.
    .
    Fortunately, the Niners are third in team defense, although they stymied 2 horrendous NY teams, so it needs to be taken in context.
    .
    Getting back JG and Mostert will be a shot in the arm, although I still want to see Wilson and Hasty run the ball.
    .
    I hope KS can design plays that invite the blitz, then burn them by throwing towards where the blitzer left.

    1. Seb,
      Every passing play has a hot read where the QB is supposed to throw to a receiver in the area the D vacated.

      1. Yep, but easier said than done.
        .
        I also hope they have a RB safety valve. Maybe do not task the RB to block, but swing him out to give the QB a quick option.

  39. My biggest fear this week is the 9ers knock Fitzpatrick out of the game and Tua T. comes in and runs for big chunks of yards and multiple TD’s.

    1. That’s true Coach. I thought the same thing where a rookie QB makes his debut and lights us up as we have no film on him.

      Our secondary is in shambles and this game could be make or break game for the season.

    2. Coach,
      Good perspective, but are the Fins so desperate for a win that they are willing to risk their future franchise QB?

      Tua is a couple of years removed from what was a possible career threatening ending injury.
      I’d be holding my breath (if I were a Miami fan) if he took off running.
      That said, he could be Russell Wilson 2.0 if he can stay healthy.

    3. OC, mobile qbs are a definite point of concern. Our D is giving up 3.19 YPC to opposing RBs and 6.81 to QBs. It is painful to see qbs scramble for a 1st on 3rd and long . We need to correct this quickly. Upcoming schedule includes NE, SEA, BUF, WSH, DAL, AZ, SEA.

  40. While perusing the stats, I also noticed that the Cowboys are giving up 36 points per game.
    .
    Some posters had predicted the Cowboys would defeat the Niners, but I knew that a Mike Nolan defense would not be competent. Mike McCarthy has also demonstrated why Aaron Rodgers had issues with him.

  41. Gold sold Hunter at it again.

    It’s a wonder why those two major “news” outlets won’t report this, yet they spent months reporting on a totally fake dossier that was shown to have been conjured uo by Hillary’s campaign. Yet, we have this and no one cares because it’s not news, right?:

    https://www.nationalreview.com/news/senate-report-details-hunter-bidens-extensive-foreign-business-dealings-and-obama-officials-efforts-to-distance-themselves-from-it/

      1. More like ADHD. Blame him for Bosa, Sherman, Ford and Thomas becoming injured?
        .
        BTW, good luck in the next contest. Amsterdam Invaders and Mango Haze will be pitted against each other. I hope you can finally notch a win. You seem to be snake bitten, with good scores, but astronomical scores against you.

          1. HAHA his performances last year were way worse. He finished last in the league.

            You know who finished in the top two (tied)?- that would be none other than the team known as ‘Sebnynah Blows Grant Daily’

            1. You bring nothing to this site, except being so threatened by me, you have to waste your time, acting like a cretin.
              .
              Hurling insults says way more about you, than it does me.

              1. Remember when Seb criticized the team known as ‘Sebnynah Blows Grant Daily’ saying it’s just a troll and isn’t taking the fantasy league seriously; and should be kicked out?

                Well, Seb, that team, unlike yours, finished in the same position the Niners did last year.

                How are you doing, Sebbie? Still blowing smoke up Grant’s butthole?

              2. Well, I did not follow Fantasy last season, but knew there was an offensive name playing.
                .
                I suspect that troll drafted a lineup with players that I had touted previously, to try and show how lame my assessments were. It is good to know that my proxy picks did well, and I guess I won without trying.
                .
                Thanks. No wonder they did not post who won last season.

              3. You bring nothing to this site, except running around, every post under a different screen name

                Fix that for you Seb.

                Seb, it’s one guy. He’s a dweeb, some kid whose parents haven’t limited his screen time. If he’s not hurling juvenile vulgarisms at you or me, he’s posting stupid, what he thinks is favorable, stuff about Trump that truly exposes his lack of brainpower. Not worth engaging him at all. Just blow him off.

              4. Awwwwe. You’re as cute as a butt pickle, Rib!

                Does your daddy call you Rib, or by your full legal name Ribico C. K.?

                ♥️

  42. Good old Biden. The operative word is ‘old’ lol

    DiMattei said the question of court packing was the “number-one issue” viewers have asked him about.

    “Sir, don’t the voters deserve to know…” DiMattei asked.

    “No they don’t deserve—I’m not gonna play [President Trump’s] game,” Biden responded, adding that Trump would “love that to be the discussion instead of what he’s doing now.”

    Biden said at a Friday press conference that voters would only know his position on court packing after the election.

    “You’ll know my opinion of court-packing when the election is over,” Biden said. “Now look, I know—it’s a great question, and I don’t blame you all for asking. But you know the moment I answer that question, the headline in every one of your papers will be about that.”

    https://www.yahoo.com/news/biden-says-voters-don-t-170433889.html

  43. Oh dear…..

    U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said that Americans were able to stay home during the COVID-19 pandemic because “some Black woman was able to stack the grocery shelf.”

    1. Try to grow some gonads and post under your own name. Biden inartfully stated that people of color were doing much of the essential work in the early days of the pandemic.

      https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-factcheck-biden-clip-black-women/fact-checkcontext-missing-inclip-of-bidenspeaking-aboutblack-women-idUSKBN26T2Q8

      Meanwhile we discover the most corrupt president was selling ambassadorships to mar-lago trust fund babies. Trumpee is the swamp and has been his entire life.

      1. Oh my!

        “I’ve had a great relationship [with Indians]. In Delaware, the largest growth in population is Indian-Americans moving from India. You cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin’ Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I’m not joking.”

        1. Oh my! The other guy said that Covid 19 was a hoax and is responsible for this increased terrible tragic death toll, after citing quack remedies. Now he is on drugs, and acts like it.
          .
          What a pathetic sign of desperation to parse words while people are dying.

          1. Oh boy… not again Joe! ??‍♂️

            “We should challenge students in these schools. We have this notion that somehow if you’re poor, you cannot do it. Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids.”

  44. Prediction time.
    SF wins 28-24
    I really hope it’s not this close, but I think Miami will move the ball well with our current defensive lineup.

    1. Hmm, it looks like you think the Niners score TDs, instead of settling for field goals. Very astute. ;p

  45. Niners will take care of business today despite another running QB, who will get his yards but won’t do much more. The defense will stop the running game and make Miami one dimensional. The Niner running game will return, and Kyle will dial up plays like last week that should have gone for big yardage and scores. Jimmy won’t miss those throws. I’m taking the Niners -8 1/2 and the over (50 1/2).

    SF 34 MIA 17

    Season vs spread/OU 5x $100 bets per week. 14 W 6 L
    Coffers are filling!

    Enjoy the game folks! Drink lots of beer! Today’s choice “Cooperage Curty Dancing”

      1. Morro,
        “Hamms, the beer refreshing…”

        Ha. One of the best commercial jingles of all time.
        Btw, where was the land of fresh blue waters? ?

        1. I think it was the land of “sky” blue waters AES but I could be wrong. I like the Coors slogan “Coors, it’s the water” and the bumper sticker with that slogan and the kid peeing into the creek!

          1. Juan,
            Yes! It was the “sky.”
            I think that I was about 8 yrs years old when that commercial was on. It’s been a while (lol).

        2. I’m from Milwaukee and I ought to know:
          It’s draft brewed Blatz beer, wherever you go.
          Smoother and fresher, less filling that’s clear,
          Blatz is Milwaukee’s finest beer.

  46. “Miller High Life, the champagne of bottle beer”! A HS favorite back in the early ‘70’s! Cheap!
    Raiders are playing pretty good. Not impressed with KC’s defense. They just outscore opponents.

    1. Great story of the day – Alex Smith back and playing.
      Gotta love this guy’s heart and determination.

        1. Speaking of toddlers…. yikes! ?

          Biden once said, “And by the way, you know, I’d sit on the stand and it’d get hot. I got hairy legs that turn blonde in the sun. The kids used to come up and reach into the pool and rub my leg down so it was straight and watch the hair come back up again. They’d look at it. So I learned about roaches and I learned about kids jumping on my lap. And I loved kids jumping on my lap.”

  47. yikes, I was afraid of Fitz but this ridiculous.
    The offense better put up points in this game.

  48. I was hoping Trent Williams would be better today but so far he has given up a sack and got no push on 4th and 1

  49. Anybody miss Joe Staley? Jeesh, the OL is horrible and so is Kyle’s play calling. No imagination whatsoever. Defense stinks. Other than that they look ok! That 4th and one call was pathetic. That’s the best he could come up with?

  50. And then there was this one time…. ?

    In 2007, Biden said this about his then-presidential opponent, Barack Obama: “I mean you’ve got the first sort of mainstream African American, who is articulate and bright, and clean and a nice-looking guy.”

  51. Well, this game couldn’t have started much worse. OL still getting killed, this time against a very average defensive front. Defense giving up big plays.

    Need to make this muffed punt return a big defensive stop.

  52. Ok, the grandkids want to ride the horses. This might be an early exit to the barn. Super Bowl hangover? They really look crappy all the way around, especially the OL. Too bad. Key play here at 3rd and 10. Ok, well that’s a start!

    1. Neither Saleh or Kyle are big into in-game adjustments, let alone mid-half adjustments.

    2. Not sure if he can adjust Allen out of the lineup. They are at the bottom of the barrel right now.

  53. Why would you leave poor Bryan Allen alone time and time again on an island?

    At first you blame Allen for the poor play, but now I just feel sorry for the kid.

    This is Saleh’s responsibility to ensure he is not left all alone on the Dolphins #1 receiver without over the top help on 3rd and Goal from the 22.

  54. Allen is killing us. Saleh simply doesn’t know how to adjust. He could try putting Tavarius in. Do something because Fitz is just looking where Allen is and throwing the ball in that direction.

  55. They have to get Allen out of there. He’s a guaranteed win for the Dolphins every time they target him. Which is almost every play. Brutal.

  56. They better get 48 off the field, I don’t care what they have to do. Fkn adjust Saleh. My God!

  57. Can’t believe that Allen played 4 years for the Steelers and Seahawks. He plays like a rookie.

  58. Is it just me, or does Shanahan look like a bad HC by keeping Allen in the game.
    This is getting ridiculous.

  59. And now the effing punter is effing up

    The DBs are not communicating.

    DJ Jones is down — didn’t think it could get worse.

    yuck..

  60. I’m not sure Garoppolo knows how to throw to the outside of a receiver. It just feels like he’s never learned that throw.

    Even worse, on crossing patterns moving away from him, his balls just fall short or completely sail on him.

  61. This is ugly but it is really to be expected. Look at the difference between todays lineup Vs last year. No Bosa, Ford, Buckner, Blair, Mosely, K. Williams and Sherman. I don’t believe there is a team in football today or the past who could overcome what this team has gone through. On the offensive side it comes down to a O line that can’t pass block and injuries aren’t the problem, this is the O line we expected to start at the beginning of camp.

  62. I think this season is lost but I felt that way since the Bosa loss anyway.

    They ought to just try and get healthy and learn to play as a team again.

    Maybe next year..

  63. This is their easiest game of the next seven. It could get ugly. Film study has caught up with the Niners. Philly exposed the OL and the DB’s. Miami is executing same plan. It’s working. The boss just ordered me (hehe) to take the kids out. I said , “but it’s not over yet “. She laughed and walked away. How humiliating. The game, that is.
    I’m in RUI (riding while intoxicated) territory. I better just walk’em around the paddock. Good afternoon folks!

  64. It is what I have pointed out in the last game. The O line and D line are very subpar. The DBs are a liability.

    The coaches are not adjusting to the game being played, they are playing what they think should be the game.

      1. And just like that, the 49ers are back to 2017.
        Draft picture – CB, CB, CB, Oline, Oline and QB.

  65. When JImmy first came on the scene three years ago, I would have had faith that he could bring back the team. That faith is gone and not likely to return.

  66. KS needs to ditch his Raider hat.
    .
    He also needs to get a clue. Trading Matt Breida to the Dolphins gave them the Niner playbook.
    .
    Maybe they should fire their OC…….

    1. SMDH. You’re a bigger moron than you’ve let on, and that’s been plenty.

      There’s really no point insulting you anymore; you do a better job of insulting yourself than anyone.

      1. No. I mentioned what Al Davis did to his father, so he should not be wearing a silver and black hat. How is that changing the subject?

  67. i’m really gonna root for CJB. If he plays well and brings the team back, stay with the hot hand.

    1. I am not surprised. I expected him to pull Jimmy G out. His high ankle sprain seems to be flaring up. These sprains really hurt you when you stand on your toes.

      1. These sprains really hurt you when you have a relentless pass rush in you face. There fixed it for you

    1. You do if his ankle is preventing him from stepping into throws. Those throws on the interceptions were awful.

        1. Yeah. I got to tell you, Prime, I’m waivering in my faith in JG. If the Vikings would straight up trade Cousins for JG, I would seriously consider it. I know Cousins hasn’t been great, but Kyle always wanted him and he probably would do better. I just get this feeling that there is no synergy between Shanahan and JG.

          1. It’s not a QB issue. The oline has been awful. No serious play makers on offense and yes, the league is onto Kyle’s scheme.
            Too much dink and dunk and relying on the run game.

            As for the defense, well, look at secondary and who started today says it all.
            Point is it’s not blow it up time.

          1. I think it’s a lame excuse. If you are fit to play you play. You don’t start a guy less than 100%.

            Guarantee they say it was not injury related after this game.

        1. Guys, maybe Jimmy G is not the guy but Cousins I know is not.
          Maybe that will be the riff that drives Kyle and John apart.
          OMG,I’m starting to sound like Grant!

  68. This is what I thought the team was going to look like last year.

    They gave ShanaLynch extensions too soon.

      1. He is awful too. He might be a cancer too. Why would WSH let a pro bowl tackle go for nothing?
        He hasn’t been pro bowl caliber that for sure.

  69. Kyle’s had more gaffes on offense and defense than good old Joe Biden in a 5 minute presser.

    Oh snap, nevermind….

    Not only did he describe Delaware’s school desegregation plans as “the most racist concept you can come up with” in 1975, he also criticized President George H.W. Bush for being soft on “violent thugs” in 1989. He often implied that he didn’t care what motivated criminals; he just wanted them taken off the street.

    Biden courted Southern segregationist Senator James O. Eastland, who helped him land spots on the committees dealing with criminal justice and prisons. As early as 1977, Biden rallied for mandatory minimum sentences that would limit judges’ discretion in sentencing criminals — with support from Eastland. In the meantime, Biden also became a legislative partner — and a close friend — of another segregationist named Strom Thurmond.

    1. What kind of a loser are you talking politics when the game is on?
      You are the lowest form of pathetic!

  70. There are 3 reasons why it come to this and none of them are named Shanahan, Saleh or Jimmy G. The 3 reasons are injuries, injuries and the O line.

    1. I’m not so sure OC. Do you really think if BB was coaching this team that the performance would be this pathetic.

      1. That question will be answered this season. BB’s first with out Brady in about 20 years. Remember Belicheat was a losing HC before Brady.

    2. yup. It’s just so disappointing to see the Super Bowl window close on this roster. Big changes coming off-season.

        1. Not sure but there are 39 players on this roster who will be free agents at the end of these season. With the cap shrinking, this team will look quite different next August.

    3. Thank you Coach. It’s not rocket science.

      Did we really think with all these injuries after week 2 that we had a chance? I mean Brian Allen and Verret starting corners?

      Never mind every where else.

  71. Did the team stop playing for Shanahan for some reason?
    I don’t recall too many teams going so bad, so fast.

  72. A lot of girls on this blog. Wipe your tears and use your head. This game was lost because of injuries. They have just lost too many key players. This was a very good team last year with the same players. We lost because of a practice squad DB in due to injuries. The online hasn’t been able to jell with backups playing positions they aren’t used to. Jimmy was brought back too early from an injury. This season may be lost but it’s due to injuries. Kyle, John and jimmy didn’t all of a sudden turn incompetent.

    1. So Saleh doesn’t deserve any blame for leaving Allen on an island on that one TD throw – which was well after Fitz had already made mince meat of Allen. Saleh is nothing special and I’ve been saying so for 3 years. It’s well documented that he made no adjustments in the SB and KC finally figured it out in the 4th quarter and chopped up the SF D.

      1. I’m not sure what Shannie was doing farting around with the 25 second offense before the half that led to that pick.

        1. You can point to a number of games where KS’ play calling before the end of a half or even game has been very suspect.

      2. Saleh isn’t perfect and I’m sure we can all find nit picks against everyone. Is a injured Witherspoon really that much or ant better? I know this is emotional but blaming the coach and the QB is just too easy which is why most people do it.

        1. My take on Saleh has been the same for 3 years. It’s based on observation and not just emotionalism from this game. It doesn’t mean I’m right, but it’s not based on one game. Also, I’ve been saying since last offseason that I think there is no synergy between KS and JG.

    2. These excuses have no traction. We thought that we had the best depth in the league – wrong.
      We thought that even with many key players out, that the great offensive mind could find a way to win – wrong.
      We thought that Saleh could keep the defense strong and respectable with key players out – wrong.

      The issue is not so much that we’re losing, but who we’re losing to.
      What do you think is going to happen when we face Seattle and the Rams twice this season? Btw, the Cards could very well beat us again. That’s a possibility of 5 losses just in our Division.

      There is no way Miami should put a 43 spot on us.
      What we lost today is more than shows on the standings.
      We lost the ability to scare opposing teams going forward.
      We lost our mojo, and there’s no Austin Powers to help us get it back (lol).

  73. Everybody wants to blame injuries – but weren’t Mostert, Samuel and JG back (although maybe too early). Kittle’s also back. So, at least on offense, wasn’t this pretty much full strength? Blame the OL all you want, it isn’t injuries that are causing their bad play.

    On defense, Saleh should have known he had a major weakness with Allen in the game. In that case, it seems to me that a good DC devises ways to hide that weakness. Did we see that? Maybe you still lose the game, but a blowout like this?

    1. How would you hide Allen? This I gotta see. As for the online, Trent is obviously still very rusty having not played in a while. Our starting center is out injured and Brunskill is playing out of position. Sounds like injuries to me.

      1. Richburg has been out for what seems like forever. You can’t count on him. Should have brought in Ryan Jensen instead like I suggested. The OL should be at least improving marginally, but they are actually getting worse. With regards to Allen, how about not leaving him on an island to cover Parker after Parker had already beaten him multiple times? How about some safety help? Do something; don’t just let Fitz continue to target him play after play after play. Come on man, expect more from the coaches.

      2. If Allen is all you’ve got, change your defense. Give him safety help to double team Parker all game.

        1. Sounds reasonable but no way of knowing if that would have worked. I’ll be interested in hearing Saleh’s answer to that question. We were doomed once we’ll fell behind by that much.

          1. Take a look at what the Vikings are doing to frustrate Wilson. They’re playing two safeties back, deep to help out their young CBs. Seattle still might win, but what the Vikings are doing is working.

          2. Jerry,
            It’s not rocket science. You know you can’t keep playing cover 3 with him. So you switch to cover 2 or roll your coverage and it doesn’t take 3 series’ to do this.

    2. This defensive scheme doesn’t allow much hiding of the DBs when the D line is not generating pressure, especially at the edge. Lynch, KS and Saleh are all on the same page on scheme. I personally think that with the popularity of the running QB the game has passed by this scheme that plays 8 men close to LoS, and rushes wide 9 from the edge. Since they have to play more zone with these backup CBs, I don’t know if the Niners are playing more variations of Cover 2 which I think they should, probably more quarters. On top of that, Ward has not played well in the last 2-3 games.

      1. I agree with you that this scheme can’t contain the running QB. I’d still keep Kocurek, though, if he can adapt to a different scheme.

  74. Not gonna blame it on anything but incompetence by the coaches and the by the players. Lynch will face his most challenging offseason ever to get that window open again next year….

    1. We have to revamp our secondary. Witherspoon is a bust. Tartt overrated and we need two starting corners because Sherm is done.
      Can’t resign T.Williams as he has not returned to anything that resembles a pro bowler and #69 has played like a rookie.
      The interior of the oline is killing us so a new center is high on the list.

      As for the QB, I’m not sure if they will move on from Jimmy G but Cousins is not the answer.

      Next order, Saleh has to go. I said it last year. He can’t make any in game adjustments and like you said, how do you leave a guy off the practice alone on the island against Parker who is a very good WR.

      Finish 4-12, top 10 pick and reload for 2021.

      1. It’s too early to write off Trent Williams. Same for D Ford. Let’s see what’s he playing like at the end of the season. Definitely need to fix the corners and the online. I think both would have been good without the injuries but no depth.

    2. R. it is just one of those years that happens in sports.
      The real issue is getting ,as I remember , a can of Blatz.
      Tough to find on the Big Island.

  75. Things weren’t all bad. Remember all the hand wringing about the running game? Well, 7 yards a pop today. And… if we were in the NFC East, we’d be in first place. Playoffs baby!

    Hey, I’m a glass 1/8th full kind of guy.

  76. Well, the one good thing about this game is- all the bandwagon fans will leave, and only the Faithful will remain.
    .
    Still think KS needs all the help Jed can give him, and someday, they will learn to get a play off in time, so they do not have to waste a time out.

  77. WTF. Most points allowed at Levis

    1. DAK compound fracture. Best wishes for speedy recovery.
    2. First of all there where a few bright spots . Mostert 120 total yards, Hyder continues to impress. Warner is the best player on the Niners.
    3. Jimmy’s ankle was not fully heeled per KS and JG. JG cites that as the reason pick #2 sailed. I am not sure what to make of JG.
    4. OL is horrible. There is a new problem every week.
    5. Saleh and to a lesser extent KS are so frickin slow to make adjustments and correct errors. Are they not seeing what everyone else is seeing?
    6. The Ford trade and cap hit are an anchor. We have a lot of work to do to fix things.
    7. We can start by getting rid of players who aren’t NFL caliber. Why are we wasting roster spots on players who have little to no chance of contributing.
    8. We are heeded for a top 10 draft pick.

  78. Maiocco asks if Jimmy couldn’t make it through a complete practice Wed or Thur why is he starting. Why start Allen off the practice squad.

    https://twitte.com/NBCS49ers/status/1315433644807393281

    Rob Lowder: Kyle Shanahan said his decision to bench Jimmy Garoppolo was based on how the first half unfolded, and because it was clear that Garoppolo and his throws weren’t typical.
    “You can tell he was affected by his ankle.”

    1. Not sure why anyone expected different after all those injuries after week 2.
      It’s never an excuse until it is and now it is.
      As you look around the league and you see key injuries to key personnel units, it has a huge affect.

      All I want to see now is 49reasons come on here and wave his pom poms and tell me how I’m not a faithful now.

      I told you 49 after the Jets games it was gonna get worse before better.

    2. Yeah Matty ripped the coaches pretty good.
      – From paying a guy who hadn’t completed a practice to suiting AW up and not playing him.
      – Whitner put it on Saleh, saying his decisions were terrible and that he put an overmatched player in a bad position by his decisions. He also called Witherspoon soft which makes sense given his background was mostly in soccer prior football.

  79. Well i’m no longer all alone in my disappointment in Trent Williams. Bubba Paris came out today and strongly criticized Williams play in the last 2 games.

    1. Not at all. Finish 4-12, win it all in 2021.

      Priority:

      2 corners
      Center
      OLB/pass rusher
      Safety
      WR

      1. Priorities:

        1. Patrick Jones ii, Edge, Pitt
        2. Tyler Linderbaum, Center, Iowa
        4. Richard LeCounte, S, Georgia

          1. We traded our 3rd round pick for Trent Williams. Might’ve thrown in a 5th too but we had two. As of now we have a 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th round pick.

            1. 49ers have 2 5th rounders in 2021, 7 picks total. Just no 3rd.

              The 5th they gave to Washington was for 2020.

          2. Have a pick in every round except the 3rd. That’s the second pick that went to Washington in the Williams trade.

  80. Some of the things that is forgotten, the Niners are a team that needs a pre season due to the intricoes that KS employs. Tremendous amount of injuries, you can say what you want to say, they do play a part. The coaching decisions are not of playoff caliber. Lots of head scratchers out there. The center position, the most important position on the line is adequate at best. The lack of experience is reflecting on the line calls. For the most part the team has played flat doesn’t have the cohesion it had last year. Don’t give up on the team yet, the staff will figure something out.

  81. Nice to see Matt Maiocco pissed off. Although he doesn’t name names, he clearly is questioning decisions made by the CS regarding JG starting (when he didn’t make it through a single practice) and AW not starting. As he says: “don’t blame Allen, blame the people who put him in that position.”

    Matt Maiocco Retweeted
    49ers on NBCS
    @NBCS49ers
    ·
    3h
    “The 49ers looked like a disorganized, horrendous football team.”

      1. Which side of the ball had all of it’s starters on the field?

        Saleh is kinda like a one legged man in a butt kicking contest.
        Brian Allen? Seriously?
        Witherspoon dresses but says he can’t go, then plays more than 1/2 the game? Really?
        Jamar Taylor gives up a 70 yard pass because he lets the guy get behind him?

        I’d be right there with you if Sherman, Moseley, Williams, and Bosa started today. But they didn’t.

          1. This is part I don’t get — what exactly went behind the thinking of playing cover 3 for most of the first half with a street CB coming off the PS being left alone on a island to be burned repeatedly by a veteran QB? This didn’t just happen on the 3rd and 22. It was unfair to Allen who had not played since 2018, and it was a ridiculously bad decision. . I believe they started playing for cover 2 in the second half after benching Allen. I’d have expected them to play Tarvarious Moore rather than Allen if Spoon wasn’t a go.
            Also, when the game was out of reach, why not play Tim Harris or Webster to see what they have got?

            1. Yeah, Saleh was playing with 1 arm tied behind his back… but you would hope he could manufacture a way not to give up 3tds to start the game. It buried the team before they had a chance to get going.

              All that said, Shanahan had to know this game needed to be won on offense, and that his offensive line can’t pass pro. This means you are looking at a heavy dose of the run game and short quick passes. Not more, long play action passes.

          2. They were in cover 3 a lot so you don’t really help on that and when they go man it’s usually because they’re blitzing to make up for lack of a regular pass rush and you can’t help.

            This is all why they were so much better in 2019 with Bosa, Ford and Buckner, all who aren’t around now.

            Should Saleh take some heat? Sure, but they weren’t going to hold Miami under 20 today, and Shanahan did them not favors going for it on 4th down near midfield on their second possession.

            1. Which begs the question… why are they running a cover 3 when Miami has shown they can successfully attack it with that personnel group?

              1. Exactly, Shoup. Hammer makes it sound like Cover 3 is sacrosanct. Saleh simply cannot or will not adjust.

              2. I think it’s all Saleh knows. Shanny talks about how smart Saleh is but a true measure of a coach is making lemonade without lemons.

                For 3 years now we have been talking about his lack of in game adjustments.
                His scheme works when he has high end talent. That’s true for every scheme. But what Saleh has failed to do is hide his weaknesses when certain players are out.
                I mean, did he really think Allen was going to hold it down?

                And shame on Lynch for not selecting one defensive back in last years draft!

              3. If Saleh were to give Allen safety help that comes from the inside and I don’t think it would have helped much. Allen couldn’t stay over the top of the wr on the deep ball.

                Because of that, Saleh could have called whatever coverage you want and it wouldn’t have mattered.

              4. I don’t know, Hammer. The Vikings kept their two safeties deep the 1st half to provide help for their rookie/young CBs and it frustrated the hell out of Wilson. If the concern is the QB running, is that something to worry about with Fitz?

              5. Right, but the defensive line doesn’t generate pressure which is why Saleh has been forced to blitz more often this year.

                Last year the 49ers had Bosa, Ford, and Bucker to help generate pressure along with Armstead. This allowed Saleh a lot of flexibility for coverages and pressure (blitz) packages. Those first 3 guys aren’t around anymore and neither are Sherman and Moseley.

                Yeah the defense stunk, but it should have been expected that Miami would be able to put 20+ up on this defense due to the injuries and based on what they’d done through the first 4 weeks.

                Shanahan on the other hand had the exact opposite and they put up 7 points during a first half.

                You know your defense is going to struggle a bit, that is clear from their first series so you double down and go for it on 4th and 1 at midfield instead of punting it and giving them a fighting chance? That’s terrible game management.

                Then at the end of the half you have the clocked stopped after a screen pass that goes nowhere because the receiver is pushed out of bounds. You then call a timeout, and proceed to throw the ball two more times? Down 20? What is that? It’s just awful stuff, but we’ve seen examples like this from Shanahan over and over throughout his career in SF and even before he got here.

                He is a mediocre offensive coordinator with the title of head coach.

              6. That’s some harsh criticism Jack. Some of it true and some of it unwarranted when you do in fact consider all the injuries and limited continuity at the skill positions on both sides of the ball.

                But one thing is definitely accurate, the head coach has to be accountable for things in and out of his control.

  82. A few questions for the board.
    -SF is likely going to have a top 15, and more likely top 10 pick. Given their issues at cb, ol (every position), edge, and even possibly qb… where does sf go? Given the amount cap space locked up with non contributors (Alexander, Ford, and Richburg) their answers not likely available in free agency.
    – Can this team be restructured to be SB contenders next year or are they looking more at a 2 year plan?
    – Is Saleh still going to be considered as a Head Coach?

    1. After the Quinn firing, I can’t see Saleh being considered as a HC even if the 49ers turn the season around. I suspect Saleh is considered to be from the same tree.

      With regards to the rest, too early to say. I’m depressed because I have an inkling that the KS-JG relationship is not working. I see no growth from JG as a QB in this system and I see no growth from KS as a HC. I would be ecstatic to be wrong, but it’s currently how I feel.

      1. “I see no growth from JG as a QB in this system and I see no growth from KS as a HC.”

        I think this is the scary part. Sometimes I think Kyle wants to micro manage the qb too much. His background as a wr, gives him a unique insight on how to get wr’s open but may be lacking in it’s in how it synchs up for qb’s or may not provide qb’s with enough possible outs if the primary is covered.

        Additionally, Kyle seems to want to push the ball down the field to his detriment sometimes… he doesn’t have the oline to do this right now. Can he install a game plan closer to the one that was run in NE utilizing routes that wr’s can get open on quickly?

        Of course I don’t know any of this for certain but he definitely needs to come up with something different, because right now he is Martzing his qb’s into the grave. The upcoming weeks should tell us a lot about him.

    2. I think at this point you have to look at a 2+ year plan. Trade back and build quality depth so you don’t have to go to the street at multiple position groups (DE, DB). It was always risky to try and run it back with limited depth at key positions (DE, DB) and essentially a two player draft last year knowing Dee Ford was a high risk of not being healthy all year. Last year’s success on the edge really covered up deficiencies in the secondary. Not addressing the DE, OL and CB position and poor coaching not to build a plan to cover these weaknesses lead to yesterday’s collapse. This team needs leadership badly. Joe Staley and Emmanuel Sanders are sorely missed. Where is Sherman keeping this group of DB’s together even if he’s not on the field?!

      1. I completely understand that thought process, but if you are looking at a 2+ year plan I think you probably are parting ways with Jimmy. Likely not resigning Sherman or T. Williams and maybe biting the bullet with Alexander, Ford, and Richburg.
        That makes the next 2 years look Rough.

        1. The 49ers could be approaching the salary cap hell that the Rams were recently in. Ford will have a salary cap hit of $20.8 M and a dead cap hit of $14.3 M in 2021. Alexander’s cap hit is $16.5M with a dead cap number of $10.5M. Richburg’s numbers are $11.4M and $8.4M respectively.

          While Jimmy’s cap number is $26.9 M, the dead cap number is only $2.8 M.

          Also, doesn’t the team need to start working on an extension for Fred Warner. He won’t come cheap.

        2. I agree with letting all those other guys walk but why Jimmy? Until he is healthy then it a hard to say if he isn’t the guy.

          He’s had bad moments but looking at his entire body of work in SF, it’s been good. Also, what’s better out there? Cousins? A rookie QB?
          I think we should definitely draft in the following order:
          CB
          Center
          OLB/Pass rusher
          QB
          Safety

          1. I agree with letting all those other guys walk but why Jimmy?

            Only, because of the cap space he provides if you are looking at a rebuild… and the team you hope to have in 3 years when he becomes a free agent.

            I’m not there yet, but his salary alone could put him on the chopping block if he doesn’t show himself to be above average.

        3. That’s true and I think a lot of that is due to ill advised cap moves (e.g. Richburg, Ford). I think you have to continue to run with Jimmy G with Mullens as backup until you have a better option or like you said, it’s going to be rough. Jimmy G when fully healthy covers a lot of deficiencies in the OL (similar to the DE’s covering CB deficiencies). Shanahan needs to start calling a much better game plan. We have to build off of the running game into play action and start moving the QB’s more. The OL pass pro is a mess, and I don’t see that changing. If Jimmy wasn’t healthy enough to move well. They should have put Mullens back out there and give him a chance to build some confidence back. Get Jimmy back for the gauntlet of games coming up. Guess we’ll see what kind of leadership Shanahan and Saleh have whether the team packs it in with another 4 win season or rights the ship and gives the team a shot at the playoffs

          1. I think we need to upgrade the quarterback position.

            Kittle,

            At the end of the day, if we don’t run the ball well and we’re just a passing team, we’re just not as good as we can be.

            1. I would start at LT, Center, LG, RG, RT first. I mean who is out there that is better than Jimmy G, or even still, available?

  83. Kyle Posey brings up a really good point. If there was still a concern about AW tearing his hamstring, why not start Jimmy Ward at CB or Moore, but Ward has significantly more experience. Moore could have replaced Ward at safety. Instead the decision was to start a guy essentially off-the-street and keep him in until AW went to the defensive staff and said that he could play and wanted to go in. So, if AW hadn’t done that, it sounds like Allen would have remained in the game. Maiocco was right when he tweeted:

    “The 49ers looked like a disorganized, horrendous football team.”

    1. Or have Moore at CB for a game with Ward remaining at FS. They wasted a year of Moore trying to convert him to CB, IIRC.

  84. KS needs to grow up. This is not his toy to play with, this is his obligation and awesome responsibility to deal with. He needs help. If he wants to play OC, then he should resign as HC.
    .
    Jed should force KS to accept an Offensive Coordinator. Promote from within. Having a run game coodinator and a pass game coordinator is not working, because each is competing against each other to get them to run or pass.
    .
    KS- ‘I do not need an OC.’ After last game, he sure the heck does. With the proper preparations, some contests are won before the first blow is struck. The Niners lost before they stepped on the field, because they lacked proper preparations.
    .
    I still have not seen how having an OC would hurt the team. I sure saw how NOT having an OC has hurt this team. Sean McVay wised up, and hired an OC, after being humiliated in the SB. Now, with an OC, the Rams are 4-1.
    .
    KS is full of hubris, and I hope this last game has knocked him off his pedestal. If this game has not humbled him, just expect more losing. The coaching was pathetic, and could not make any adjustments. Their assessment skills are lacking, and they became rattled and unfocused.
    .
    Pulling QBs did not help, except to destroy their confidence. Too bad they do not have a quick hook for the coaches, too. Saleh likes his players to play with violence. That just leads to injuries. I wonder why he was not jumping around on the side lines, like he usually does. Bet he was glad he was wearing his mask. He needed to hide his face in shame, to let Ryan Fitzpatrick perform a beatdown on his squad.

  85. I dont think a rebuild is what this organization needs right now. To keep the window open, we need Lynch and his scouting staff to really pin point the areas of need. To stay competitive, the Niners are now the hunters. They need to draft and develop guys to beat the teams in the NFC West. That means we need more team speed at defensive end, corner and LB.
    We will be facing a mobile QB in Murray and Wilson for a long time who have elite WR’s in Hopkins and Metcalfe. That means rebuilding the secondary should be priority number one. Then, the offensive line. Tomlinson, Garland, T.Williams are not getting it done. Maybe those guys are not built for todays zone blocking scheme.

    Then, Lynch needs to work some magic with the cap. Not sure about specific contracts but Sherman, Ford are guys we need to move on from.

    We still have a very young roster. Just need to supplement it with some more youth and skill in certain units. This next offseason we will see how good of a GM John Lynch is.

    1. Incredible. I agree with most of this. You prove that if you spend your entire day blithering on the internet you will eventually say something which makes sense. CB, OL, Edge are highest priority and LB is the lowest priority.

      And to the guy who has been posting using Bruce Lee, time to stop playing with your mini dinger and go eat the hot pocket your mom heated up for you.

      1. Ouch. The Gaffe Machine giveth:

        As the sponsor of a Senate bill to outlaw busing on the federal level, Biden warned during a Congressional session in 1977: “Unless we do something about this, my children are going to grow up in a jungle, the jungle being a racial jungle with tensions having built so high that it is going to explode at some point.”

    2. While I tend to agree that’s a pretty big overhaul. Essentially 5 olinemen, 3 cb’s, at least one if not 2 de’s, that’s a lot to remake given the teams draft picks and cap space.

      1. Skule should be given an opportunity as should Brunskill at their natural positions. You draft a center on day two.

        Day one and two you address corner, safety and or OLB.

        Free up cap space and you spend maybe addressing some other needs you don’t get to in the draft.
        I’m thinking we finish with a top 8 draft pick.

    1. It’s possible, his biggest issues last week appear to have been communication related… the problem is knowing who was at fault. PFF appears to be guessing it was LT’s fault.

    2. The problem is that O line performance is not the result of an individual effort. After one of the sacks (probably the first one), Williams seemed to look at Laken indicating as if the fault was the latter’s. To me it indicates poor communication. Williams does not come across as a player who is able and willing to take up a leadership role. He says he thinks he has been playing quite well. Shows lack of accountability and leadership. Note sure that a high performing loner is the right fit for Kyle’s O line.

      This off-season Niners need to figure out and ditch the players who are not fully in on winning. That list will start with Pettis and Witherspoon but probably can include another half a dozen or so players. Alexander is too expensive for his level of inconsistent play, but he does provide energy and leadership that is lacking currently after Staley’s departure.

        1. Agree on Williams, Witherspoon, Pettis, Sherman, Tartt and every single back up defensive back we have.
          Problem contracts will be Richburg, Dee Ford, Robbie Gould, and Kwon Alexander.

  86. As awful as the team has looked, I don’t think wholesale changes are needed next season. It is still a good team when healthy. What we are seeing is a team that is having its depth exposed, and an OL that isn’t performing as a unit.

    The depth will always be an issue – on D, relying on backup DEs and PS CBs is a bad recipe. The OL is by far the bigger long term concern. But even there, I am not convinced wholesale changes are needed. 1 or 2 new guys could be all it needs for the rest of the unit to gel.

    And obviously they need the QB to perform. Better protection will help, but maybe the team does need to find another answer at QB. I am willing to put this last one down to injury for now, but when he comes back next the performance needs to be significantly improved on a consistent basis.

      1. I think what we are seeing is that these coaches need good talent playing well in order to look good. They aren’t really able to elevate or compensate for lesser talent. But when they have the talent, the schemes work very well.

        So, what does that mean for these coaches? Are they good? Personally I think they are coaches that can be very successful but, as outlined above, need a talented roster. That isn’t uncommon. Most good coaches are the same.

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