What
should the NFL family expect from the 2015 version of the San Francisco 49ers?
After three consecutive NFC Championship game appearances including one Super
Bowl, the 2014 team fell down to earth somewhat, for most teams that would be
bad enough, what has followed since though has led to the NFL media being
seemingly unable to separate the words San Francisco and Dumpster Fire from the
same sentence. What is the state of play
at Levi Stadium? Is it really as bad as everyone seems to think?
Let's
look at some of the departures for a moment, starting at the very top, Jim
Harbaugh, although blessed with an enviable win / loss record as a coach, has a
style that could politely be referred to as not being player friendly. When stories surfaced last off-season that he
was possibly being traded to Cleveland the writing was clearly on the wall, by
seasons end, the worst kept secret in football was that Harbaugh was out. Jim Tomsula on the other hand, is a players
coach. He may not be as media savvy as
some but his players wherever he has coached have loved him, he may not have
the experience of a Mike Holmgren for example but someone who the locker room
know and respect could be what this team needs to move on.
The
retirements of Patrick Willis and Chris Borland would rock any team obviously,
however the Niners played most of last year without Willis, and still had one
of the better defences in the league.
Losing Borland as well was unexpected, but the returning Navarro Bowman
might be seen as an improvement. Justin
Smith although disappointing was hardly unexpected, and the Niners addressed
that possibility in the first round of the draft. The secondary holes may be more significant
but Eric Reed aside, the Niners were not blessed with outstanding talent
there. In terms of transition, they will
be hoping on a return to form for Aldon Smith, who after some rather
disappointing off field decisions probably needs to prove something to the
Niners front office this year if he wants a large pay day anytime soon. If Smith finds that 20 sack a season form the
secondary will look better anyways as opposing QBs will be under pressure to
get off the pass.
On
Offence, the losses on the OL are big, there is no underplaying that, but this
was not a line to rival the Cowboys for example. Colin Kaepernick was the second most sacked
QB in the league last year behind Jaguars rookie, Blake Bortles, that is a
disappointing statistic for any team that has the athletic ability of a Colin
Kaepernick at the position. Kaepernick
is not exempt from blame here, he can be blamed for holding on to long and
trying to make a play. From what we are
told though Kaepernick has been working hard this season, working with Kurt
Warner on timing and accuracy, if this bears out in the regular season under
new coordinator Geep Chryst, then things might just be looking upwards. Niners fans would love to see Kaepernick used
more in the run game too, similar to division rival Russell Wilson in Seattle.
The
Inconvenient Truth this season is that Frank Gore has gone to Indianapolis,
better to lose a player too early than too late, is a mantra that a team like
the Patriots would advise, seems to work out ok for them. Carlos Hyde, Reggie Bush are a fairly good
option in the backfield, Hyde showed in glimpses last year what he was capable
of and with Gore gone, Hyde figures to be the main option and needs to show
that power running game on a regular basis, then there is of course the X
factor from Australian Rugby League
Jarryd Hayne. A star and former MVP of
the league in Australia, just what he might bring to the Niners is unknown
right now.
Anquain
Boldin is still as reliable a receiving threat as there is in the league, and
he is joined this year by Torrey Smith who us a flyer and will take the edge of
most defences. The last time this
receiving pair played together they won a Super Bowl (against the Niners, if
you can not beat them, sign them I guess) then there is Vernon Davis. A quiet year last year by any standards, but
Davis figures to rebound this season, and if he does then he could well
re-establish himself in the top tier of Tight Ends in the league.
As
for Receiving out of the backfield, Reggie Bush is one of the better options you
can have, if he can stay healthy. If
Hyde is the main running option though, Bush could well be healthier than
previous seasons.
So
what do you have in San Francisco? To be
honest nobody knows yet! This time last year, The Dallas Cowboys defence was
supposed to be all-time bad, they ended up one disputed catch away from the
Championship game. Not saying the Niners
are going to the playoffs or anything like that yet, but a dumpster fire is a
tad harsh. Like so many teams this will
come down to the QB, ignore the rest of the off- season for a moment, an in
form Kaepernick, Carlos Hyde, Boldin, Smith, Davis with Bush out of the
backfield would soon pretty impressive, it will come down to Kaepernick moving
around and hitting his reads as he has been working on. Time to earn some of the big money contract for
number 7, if he can then drives will last longer the defence will be better
rested and the team will look better overall.
They
may do all of this and finish fourth in the division still, down to the pure strength
of the NFC West, but if momentum gets rolling in San Francisco who knows? Golden State Warriors rode it all the way to
the NBA Championship, just maybe the Niners get to 8-8 or dare I say a winning
record. In a city which witnessed the catch,
just maybe miracles can happen!
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