With nine weeks in the books, the San Francisco 49ers are officially halfway through their 2024 regular season. And now that their bye week has concluded, it’s a good time to recap how they’ve played on the field so far. This is the first of three articles detailing how the 49ers have performed this season.
This article covers offense; the next one covers defense, and the last one covers special teams. The 49ers have Super Bowl aspirations and to reach those aspirations, they must first understand what they have done well and what they need to improve on for the rest of the season. Without further ado, let’s begin.
Brock Purdy
Brock Purdy has had an up-and-down year in his third NFL season so far. His statistics have been less than stellar, throwing for over 2100 yards, with ten touchdown passes to seven interceptions to go with three rushing touchdowns and five fumbles. Simply put, Brock Purdy has been too careless with the football so far this season, and it’s undoubtedly hurt his team’s offensive production.
Granted, three of his seven interceptions came in one game against Kansas City, but even outside of that game, Purdy hasn’t been as good statistically as he was in his first two seasons. Part of that is due to injuries at the skill positions, as Christian McCaffrey has yet to play this season. CMC’s absence has no doubt the San Francisco 49ers offense, particularly in the passing game. It has allowed defenses to be more aggressive with blitzing Purdy and playing man-to-man coverage, which he has uncharacteristically struggled against in 2024.
As far as the tape goes, Purdy is playing better than his stats would suggest. He’s being asked to do more than ever, and the San Francisco 49ers still have an elite offense, ranking in the top eight in points and yards per game through eight games. That being said, Purdy is far from perfect. He’s still prone to a couple of inaccurate throws per game. Still, despite his flaws and statistics, Brock Purdy has been good so far this season.
The Running Game
Even without Christian McCaffrey, the San Francisco 49ers have still been able to run the football very well. In CMC’s absence, backup Jordan Mason has taken on the role of bellcow well, rushing for 685 yards in eight games, and two of those games saw him leave early in the first half with an injury. Mason has filled CMC’s shoes about as well as any fan could hope for.
Even when Mason got hurt, the San Francisco 49ers run game continued to hum along with contributions from Isaac Guerendo, Patrick Taylor, and Deebo Samuel. Even Purdy has contributed on the ground this season. For the 49ers under Kyle Shanahan, this next man up mentality at the running back position has been nothing new. Seemingly throughout the entire Shanahan era, no matter who was in the backfield, the 49ers have consistently had a dominant run game.
With Christian McCaffrey slated to return at some point in November, this already deadly rushing attack should get even scarier. The San Francisco 49ers have already averaged 159 rushing yards per game without him, and with him, the entire offense will open up fully.
The Receiving Game
Unfortunately for San Francisco, the receiving game has been the weakest aspect of their offense so far in 2024. Even before the injury to Brandon Aiyuk, the passing attack was off its game for most of the first half of the season. That chemistry that Purdy mastered with his receivers in 2023 has taken a step back in 2024. The Sam Francisco 49ers under Shanahan have always been about establishing the run to set up the play-action passes over the middle of the field. Unfortunately for the 49ers, those plays have been way less frequent than in prior years.
A big reason for that is the lack of McCaffrey to dictate what coverages the defenses are comfortable running. When CMC was on the field, San Fran saw more zone coverage which they’ve always excelled at dismantling in the Brock Purdy era. Without him though, teams are free to run more man-to-man or match zone coverages to disrupt San Francisco’s timing. Deebo Samuel especially has struggled in man-to-man coverage scenarios this season, being the second-worst receiver against man coverage through Week 7.
All these struggles are amplified the most in the red zone. That’s been the biggest issue for the San Francisco 49ers offense so far. They were an elite red zone offense for years, but due to injuries, miscommunication, and incorrect decision-making from Purdy, they’ve been average to below average at turning red zone trips into touchdowns.
In the wake of Deebo’s struggles and Aiyuk’s down year before injury, Jauan Jennings has had a career year in 2024. He’s had over 400 receiving yards and three touchdowns in six games. George Kittle has also been excellent this season, arguably taking the mantle as the league’s top tight end. Kittle also contributes massively to the run game.
The Offensive Line
The San Francisco 49ers offensive line has been better than they’ve been given credit for in the first half of the season. Through eight games, they’ve only given up 16 sacks and have allowed the San Francisco 49ers to average over five yards per carry in the run game. Now, it’s important to acknowledge that a good chunk of the credit should go to Shanahan and his scheme, but at the end of the day, the San Francisco 49ers still need at least competent players on the line to make their scheme effective, and to their credit, they’ve done their job.
Jake Brendal and Aaron Banks have been decent but not great for the most part this season. They’re prone to giving up pressures if the pocket isn’t manufactured for them in the play-action pass game, but they are good at executing Shanahan’s zone run concepts. Colton McKivitz has been the lineman to take the brunt of the criticism this season, giving up multiple pressures a game this season.
Trent Williams has been his usual dominant self this season. There was some concern from San Francisco 49ers fans about him being out of shape coming into the season due to him sitting out training camp, but those concerns have been put to rest. Williams is still the league’s best left tackle and arguably the league’s best offensive lineman still at 36. The San Francisco 49ers have left him on an island for most of the season and he’s responded with another all-pro caliber year in the run and pass game.
Niners Offensive Line This Season
The real breakout star of the San Francisco 49ers offensive line is Right Guard Dominick Puni. So far, he’s the league’s twelfth-highest-graded guard according to Pro Football Focus, and has yet to give up a sack. He’s been good in both the run and pass game, and if he continues to improve, this will help San Francisco when they face tough defenses.
George Kittle and Kyle Juszczyk also deserve shoutouts for their contributions to the run game. Kittle is good for at least one highlight reel pancake block a game, and Juszczyk is crucial in terms of opening up holes for Mason and company to run through. Juszczyk has also been big in the San Francisco 49ers passing game for years.
Final Thoughts
The San Francisco 49ers have much to be happy with offensively through the first half of the season. They’ve run the ball well despite missing their most dynamic weapon, they’ve protected Brock Purdy, and they’ve managed to craft an elite offensive unit once again. If they can clean up their red zone problems and get CMC back, this offense should be even better in the second half of the regular season.
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