Niners Nation
How do you feel about the 49ers right now?
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The 2024 49ers have had a disappointing start. 5-6 can’t be categorized as anything other than disappointing. Resting in last place in the NFC West was not in the cards for the 49ers. Funny enough, the team is one game from securing a top-ten pick. Cincinnati sits at the tenth pick with a 4-7 record. A slight regression was possible, considering how great the 49ers were last season, but this hasn’t been a slight regression.
The question is: what factor is the most to blame for the 49ers’ disappointing 5-6 start?
Injuries
You can’t discuss the 2024 49ers without pointing out the 49ers’ unfortunate injury luck. Christian McCaffrey has just returned, Javon Hargrave and Brandon Aiyuk are out for the season, and Nick Bosa, Brock Purdy, and Trent Williams are dealing with injuries. Even George Kittle has missed two games in 2024 during his fantastic season. Dre Greenlaw’s practice window has been opened, but it may be too little, too late.
Injuries are a part of football, but impact injuries like this are too tough to overcome. Considering the 49ers had such good injury luck in 2023, this season has been the opposite.
Coaching
Kyle Shanahan is a fantastic coach who has steered this franchise from the bottom of the league to a yearly contender. Unfortunately, this season hasn’t been Shanahan’s best job. No, Shanahan shouldn’t be fired. Based on the performance of the team plus their undisciplined nature, the discussion has to turn to the head coach.
Even with the injuries, the team isn’t executing and, at times, looks lifeless. The coach is tasked with rallying the team and making adjustments. Shanahan isn’t on the hot seat, but this season hasn’t been his best. Removing Steve Wilks for Nick Sorensen doesn’t look good in Week 12, and the constant issues with special teams have led to critical mistakes leading to losses.
Offense/Defense/Special Teams
Playcallers can dial up the correct play at the right moment facing the coverage look to take advantage of, but players have to execute. Offensively, the 49ers don’t struggle to move the football. The issues are in the red zone. The team was at the top of the league in red zone touchdown percentage in 2023. That has completely flipped in 2024. If not for Kittle’s performance in the red zone, the situation would be even worse. Kittle leads the league in red zone receptions and touchdowns.
On defense, the 49ers are ranked number 11 in the NFL. But the lack of pass rush, more specifically clutch pass rushing, has put the 49ers in bad spots to get off the field on third down and to close out games. Missed tackles have become a constant issue....
