Tag: 49ers stats

49ers 1st NFC Defensive Player of the Week is major surprise

Yetur Gross-Matos was awarded for his monster game vs. the Bears.

The San Francisco 49ers for the first time this season have the NFC Defensive Player of the Week, and it came via an unlikely source.

On a defense littered with stars like Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, Javon Hargrave, Deommodore Lenoir, Charvarius Ward and Talanoa Hufanga, it was offseason addition Yetur Gross-Matos who earned the defense’s first NFC Defensive Player of the Week award of the 2024 campaign.

Gross-Matos earned the nod after notching three sacks in San Francisco’s 38-13 blowout win over the Chicago Bears.

It was a glimpse into what the 49ers were hoping to get when they signed Gross-Matos to a two-year, $18 million contract in the offseason. A knee injury in the preseason derailed the first part of his year as he tried to play through the ailment before eventually landing on IR.

Prior to his IR stint, Gross-Matos had one tackle and one quarterback hit through three games. Since returning, he has 4.0 sacks and 14 tackles, five tackles for loss and five quarterback hits in four games.

The 49ers pass rush has really struggled this season, particularly with DE Nick Bosa absent because of hip and oblique injuries. If Gross-Matos continues ascending the way he has over the last four games he could become an important player for the 49ers beyond the 2024 campaign.

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Deebo Samuel denies struggles in 2024, blames opportunities

San Francisco 49ers WR Deebo Samuel appears to blame play calling for his lackluster production in the 2024 season.

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel is struggling this season.

His limited production was put under a spotlight Sunday in a 38-13 win over the Chicago Bears where virtually everything worked for the 49ers offense except for the touches designed for Samuel. He had 13 rushing yards on five carries and hauled in two receptions for 22 yards.

This season the 2021 All-Pro has 40 catches for 553 yards and one touchdown on 64 targets. He’s also been limited to 92 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown on 32 carries.

Samuel on Monday took to social media and blamed his lack of production on the team’s play calling, writing on Twitter (currently X) that he isn’t getting opportunities:

Samuel in 12 games this season has 72 total touches — 6.0 per game.

Last season he averaged 6.5 touches per game in 15 contests. In 2022 he was at 7.5 per game.

The problem is his touches aren’t nearly as effective as they used to be. In his first five seasons Samuel averaged 11.6 yards per touch. This season he’s at 9.0 per touch, including a career-worst 2.9 yards per rushing attempt.

According to Pro Football Focus, Samuel’s yards after catch per reception is a career-low 7.5, while is yards per route run sits at a career-low 1.73.

He’s also forced only eight missed tackles this season on 40 catches per PFF. Last year he forced 33 missed tackles on 73 catches. The trend is the same as a runner where he’s averaging a career-low 2.4 yards after contact and he’s broken only eight tackles in 32 attempts. In 2023 he forced 22 missed tackles on 43 carries and averaged 3.2 yards after contact.

Samuel may be getting fewer opportunities this year, so his frustration is understandable. But his dip in opportunities has coincided with a clear decline in his success once the ball is in his hands.

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Which games on Week 13 NFL schedule can help 49ers playoff hopes?

Here are the Week 13 games that impact the 49ers playoff hopes.

The San Francisco 49ers, despite careening toward the abyss of NFL mediocrity, still have a path to the postseason as they enter their Week 13 showdown against the Buffalo Bills.

Yet, thanks to the rest of the NFC West’s tussle with the .500 mark, there’s a clear way for the 49ers to win the division and punch their ticket to the playoffs.

Here are the Week 13 games that will impact the 49ers’ playoff chances and which team the 49ers need to win:

Cardinals (6-5) at Vikings (9-2)

49ers need: A Vikings win. Every NFC West loss is gold for the 49ers.

Spread: Vikings (-3.5)

Seahawks (6-5) at Jets (3-8)

49ers need: A Jets win. See above.

Spread: Seahawks (-2)

Titans (3-8) at Commanders (7-5)

49ers need: A Commanders loss, although the 49ers can render Washington’s involvement moot by stringing together wins while the other clubs in the division start stacking up a few losses. Washington is the No. 7 seed entering Week 13.

Spread: Commanders (-5.5)

Buccaneers (5-6) at Panthers (3-8)

49ers need: The 49ers have a head-to-head tiebreaker on Tampa Bay, but another 5-6 team getting a loss is helpful, so a Panthers win is ideal for San Francisco.

Spread: Buccaneers (-6)

Rams (5-6) at Saints (4-7)

49ers need: Another NFC West game means another game the 49ers need the NFC West foe to lose. A Rams win wouldn’t be terrible since it would further remove New Orleans from the conversation, but the NFC West loss is preferred.

Spread: Rams (-2.5)

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Kyle Shanahan calls out ‘unfair’ speculation about 49ers offensive superstar

Kyle Shanahan pushed back against the negativity and “unrealistic” expectations regarding Christian McCaffrey’s production in his return.

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey is three games into his return from injury.

The two-time first-team All-Pro and reigning Associated Press NFL Offensive Player of the Year missed the 49ers’ first eight games this season because of bilateral Achilles tendinitis.

McCaffrey was activated off the injured reserve on Nov. 9 and made his season debut in San Francisco’s 23-20 Week 10 win at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

McCaffrey carried 13 times for 39 yards and also caught six receptions for 68 yards in the win over the Bucs.

Then, in the 49ers’ 20-17 loss versus Seattle, McCaffrey rushed 19 times for 79 yards and reeled in four passes for 27 yards.

But, after carrying 11 times for just 31 yards against the Green Bay Packers in San Francisco’s frustrating 38-10 loss this past weekend, questions about McCaffrey’s readiness emerged in earnest.

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan pushed back against any of that negativity.

“Yeah, I think, we haven’t been, we haven’t played that well these last two weeks or we haven’t got the running game going these last two weeks,” Shanahan said. “Thought it was better versus Tampa, we just didn’t get a big one. But I mean, the speculation on Christian, I think, is a little bit unfair to him. Christian’s playing very well, he is playing his ass off.”

Shanahan pointed out that McCaffrey never got to truly ramp up during the offseason either.

“But to think a guy who misses an entire offseason is just going to be the exact same the day he gets back would be unfair to any player in the world, I feel like.” Shanahan said. “Guys who miss offseasons and miss training camp, usually it takes them a little bit of time at the beginning of the year to get back into how they were the year before, let alone missing half the season also on top of that.

“So, I think Christian’s doing a hell of a job. But to just think him coming back in week eight with not being able to do anything for the last nine months or whatever it is, and to think he’s just going to be in MVP form is a very unrealistic expectation.”

Shanahan said that McCaffrey looks physically right to him. Instead, Shanahan said the 49ers need to do a better job of consistently creating running lanes and that McCaffrey missed one or two big runs with his vision that would have altered the outside perspective.

“I think he looks real good,” Shanahan said. “I think he’s playing very well. I don’t think he’s had a bunch of clean lanes. I think he had a couple versus, when I say a couple, I actually mean two versus Tampa, and if he hits those two which maybe is just half a step off just with seeing it.

“But you hit those two and it’ll completely change yards-per-carry, which will look better from an outside perspective, but it won’t change anything in actually what’s happening. So to sit here and talk like he’s struggling, not going to do that at all. But for us to be disappointed that he’s not exactly how he was or just right in MVP form, that’d be unfair with any player.”

McCaffrey had a 23-yard reception early in the fourth quarter of the 49ers’ loss at the Packers, but he fumbled the football away.

Shanahan noted that McCaffrey’s response to those types of moments is what makes him a special player.

“I think that’s what makes Christian great,” he said. “Christian, I’ve told you guys, he’s a psycho in the best way possible. Christian had a fumble there at the end of the game. No matter what I say to him, he is not going to forgive himself for a fumble for probably the rest of his life, he’ll still be mad at himself for that. That’s just how he rolls.

“That’s his mindset in everything. You should see him in OTAs, if he drops the ball and how he acts after that and apologizing to us later in the day for a dropped ball in OTAs on period one. That’s what makes him great and it means a lot to him.”

McCaffrey joined the 49ers at the trade deadline during the 2022 campaign. In his first full season with San Francisco during the 2023 season, McCaffrey led the NFL in rushing yards (1,459), yards from scrimmage (2,023) and touchdowns (21).

McCaffrey racked up all of those gaudy numbers in spite of sitting out the regular-season finale after San Francisco had clinched home-field advantage and a bye in the playoffs.

Fans are hoping to see more of that explosion from McCaffrey moving forward.

San Francisco (5-6) returns to action on Sunday, Dec. 1 with a date at Buffalo (9-2) on Sunday Night Football. Kickoff is set for 5:20 p.m. PT and the game will be broadcast on NBC and stream on Peacock.

Kyle Shanahan discusses 49ers’ sense of urgency with playoff hopes dwindling

Kyle Shanahan and the San Francisco 49ers know that they have very little margin for error moving forward.

After an embarrassing 38-10 loss at the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, the San Francisco 49ers are running out of room for future errors.

The loss dropped San Francisco to 5-6 and saw the 49ers lose back-to-back games for the second time this season.

Fortunately for San Francisco’s sake, no team has truly grabbed hold of and seized command of the wide-open NFC West. Even with its current record, San Francisco is level with the Los Angeles Rams and sits just one game back of the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals who are each 6-5 after Week 12 action.

Looking at the overall NFC Playoff picture, though, a division crown could very well be the only pathway forward into the postseason for the 49ers.

San Francisco saw firsthand on Sunday the strength of the NFC North. The Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings and Packers appear poised to swallow up three playoff bids and the NFC East looks like a two-bid division with the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders.

In his meeting with the media on Monday, San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan expressed the sense of urgency that he and the 49ers know they need to have moving forward.

“Yeah, without a doubt. I think everyone knows. You’ve just got to look at it for a couple minutes to realize where we’re at. It’s nice when you’re one game out of first in your own division. So that does say a lot, especially being able to play two of those teams left of our six games.

“But you also know, you look at the whole NFC picture and if you don’t win the division, it’s 10-7 not guaranteed to get in as a Wild Card by any means this year. So I think everyone understands completely outside and inside what the situation is,” Shanahan said.

As Shanahan also discussed, it’s why the 49ers’ consecutive losses versus the Seattle Seahawks and at the Green Bay Packers the past two weeks sting so much.

“That’s why that Seattle game was so tough of a loss and that’s why last night was even worse. We know what we got ahead of us. We know exactly what that playoff situation is. That is what it is,” Shanahan said.

Now that it’s dug itself a hole, San Francisco truly can’t think much beyond the task at hand.

“But really all that matters is this week. When you do need to go on a run and put a lot of wins to even think of that, then you better make sure you’re only thinking of one thing and that’s Buffalo.

“And so, we’ve had to take care of a lot of stuff today. I’m hoping that guys will take care of their bodies stuff here over the day and a half they’re away from us. We’ll come back Wednesday fully understanding the situation we’re in and coming back ready to fight because that’s all we can do right now is just fight our butts off. And I’ll be very surprised that not every guy in this building when I see them Wednesday isn’t ready for that exact mindset that we’re going to need to pull off what we feel we can,” Shanahan said.

If San Francisco can win at Buffalo (9-2) this week, that will go a long way toward restoring the belief that this team can make a push during the season’s stretch run.

After Buffalo, the 49ers close with games versus Chicago, versus the Los Angeles Rams, at Miami, versus Detroit and at Arizona.

The current NFC Playoff picture looks like this:

1. Detroit Lions (10-1)
2. Philadelphia Eagles (9-2)
3. Seattle Seahawks (6-5)
4. Atlanta Falcons (6-5)
5. Minnesota Vikings (9-2)
6. Green Bay Packers (8-3)
7. Washington Commanders (7-5)

Arizona is just outside the playoff picture in eighth place, while San Francisco is in a logjam with fellow 5-6 squads Tampa Bay and Los Angeles.

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Kyle Shanahan explains how 49ers can get struggling All-Pro going

San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan discussed what it will take for the 49ers to ignite receiver Deebo Samuel’s production.

It’s no secret that the best version of the San Francisco 49ers over the past several seasons has typically featured the best version of sixth-year wide receiver Deebo Samuel.

Injuries and illness have played a part in keeping Samuel from looking like the superstar receiver that the 49er Faithful are familiar with.

Samuel dealt with a calf injury during Weeks 3 and 4. Then, it was a wrist injury combined with pneumonia-like symptoms that landed Samuel in the hospital prior to Week 8. An oblique injury had Samuel’s status up in the air against Tampa Bay in Week 10, too.

After catching just one pass for 21 yards on four targets during the 49ers’ 38-10 loss at the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, reporters asked San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan whether or not Samuel had the necessary burst to deliver his typical production.

“I think he has the burst that he needs. He didn’t get a lot of opportunities last night. He had a pretty good kick return that I thought would’ve changed the huge momentum of the game. Unfortunately, it got called back with that holding call.

“I thought he had a good screen. And then the two plays he’s got to do, he’s got to catch both of those balls, and if he catches both of those balls, he’s got a chance to do what he’s good at after that and run with it. And he didn’t get that opportunity because he didn’t catch both those balls. So, if he does, then that would be two more opportunities,” Shanahan said.

Shanahan also made sure to point out that it wasn’t just Samuel that struggled in San Francisco’s worst-ever loss to the Packers.

“And as far as anyone, we didn’t get anybody going in that game. We weren’t consistent and we didn’t participate very much in the first half and the second half with those turnovers and everything just killing our drives. I think we had a total of 50-something plays but we really weren’t able to stay out there consistently enough to get any player going,” Shanahan said.

In addition to protecting the football and extending drives, a good bill of health for starting quarterback Brock Purdy’s right shoulder could help reverse San Francisco’s fortunes in a hurry.

Igniting Samuel’s production during the stretch run of the season will be paramount to the 49ers’ playoff hopes as well, though.

Thus far in 2024, Samuel has 34 grabs for 511 receiving yards with one touchdown reception. The 6-foot, 215 pound receiver also has 27 carries for 79 rushing yards with one score on the ground as well.

Currently in the midst of a two-game losing streak, San Francisco (5-6) returns to action on Sunday, Dec. 1 at Buffalo (9-2). Kickoff is set for 5:20 p.m. PT from Highmark Stadium with the game set to air on NBC.

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49ers biggest cause for concern vs. Packers is familiar flaw in 2024

The Packers biggest strength this year is one of the 49ers biggest weaknesses.

Finding one clear issue with the San Francisco 49ers this season is nigh impossible. They’ve been plagued by a slew of problems throughout their 5-5 start.

All of those shortcomings have culminated one overarching flaw: the 49ers can’t close games.

They’ve had fourth quarter leads in three of their five defeats, and four of their five losses have been by one score. Their inability to finish games could rear its head again Sunday in a crucial matchup with the Green Bay Packers.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Wednesday in a press conference was asked about Brock Purdy’s up-and-down season, and used it as an opportunity to identify why the team’s inability to close teams out could be a problem in Green Bay.

“And to me that’s come all the way down to how we finish games,” Shanahan said. “And we’ve had four games here that have come down to the last two possessions and we’ve only won one of those. And that’s the difference between eight-and-two and five-and-five with the one we won being Tampa. In contrast, you look at a team like Green Bay, they’ve had seven games come down to the last possession and they’ve won six of them, with the only one they lost being the opening game versus Philly. And that’s why they have such a good record.”

The only Packers games to not be decided by one score this year were a 30-14 blowout win over the Tennessee Titans, a 34-13 win over the Arizona Cardinals, and a 24-14 loss to the Detroit Lions.

Their close wins involved blocking a Chicago Bears field goal last week and getting a walk-off field goals vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans the two weeks prior. Their 24-19 win against the Los Angeles Rams saw their defense hold late after LA got down inside the Packers 40.

Their penchant for winning close games has helped them hold the No. 6 seed in the NFC, two games ahead of San Francisco.

If the 49ers can figure out a way to get and hold a late lead against Green Bay on Sunday it would go a long way toward helping them get back on the path to a playoff berth. The problem is they’ve yet to show that ability this season, and failing to do so again Sunday could put them well outside the playoff picture with only six games to go.

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49ers breakout offensive star quickly became an afterthought

Don’t expect Jordan Mason to be involved more in the offense any time soon.

The San Francisco 49ers appear to be falling into a pattern where they’re leaving good players on the sideline since running back Christian McCaffrey returned.

In McCaffrey’s absence, RB Jordan Mason posted 685 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns on 134 carries. Over that eight-game stretch he averaged 5.11 yards per rush, which is tied for the seventh-best mark in the NFL. He ran for more than 100 yards thrice, and the only time he ran for fewer than 58 yards was the Week 8 game vs. the Dallas Cowboys where he exited with an injury after only six carries.

Now that McCaffrey has returned, Mason has reverted to being an offensive afterthought. In the two games with McCaffrey in the lineup Mason has played only five snaps and received three carries for 18 yards.

It appeared through eight weeks that Mason had proven to be enough of a weapon that the 49ers could lean on him more once McCaffrey returned. Mason could not only spell McCaffrey to help manage his Achilles injury, but he could offer some explosive play potential with a different running style than the starter.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan doesn’t appear to be planning on adding more to Mason’s workload any time soon.

“Yeah, I like all those guys playing,” Shanahan said. “But it depends on the situation, depends how many times you’re getting the ball, it depends on the drives, it depends if we’re going to put two backs out there. When you do two backs, then you’ve got to take either a big off or another receiver. But I’m not always thinking of how to get Christian off.”

There’s potential for Shanahan to operate with McCaffrey and Mason (or rookie fourth-round pick Isaac Guerendo) on the field together, and he acknowledged as much in Wednesday’s press conference. However, he didn’t sound eager to make that personnel grouping part of the offense.

Instead we’ll likely see more of what we saw a season ago. When McCaffrey is healthy, he’s going to be on the field and the 49ers are going to rely on him to be their go-to playmaker. That appears to be the case no matter what kind of wrinkle another RB on the sideline might be able to add to the offense.

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49ers found new way to lose in Week 11 vs. Seahawks

Good news: Special teams didn’t lose the 49ers a game on Sunday. Bad news: They have a new thing that did lose them the game.

Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of the San Francisco 49ers 2024 season is that all five of their losses seem to come down to something different.

There’s not one discernible thing they have to fix, but rather a smattering of issues that vary each week in how much damage they inflict on the club’s chances to get a victory.

In a damaging Week 11 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, it appeared the offense was a major problem. That unit turned the ball over once and averaged only 4.9 yards per play in their least efficient outing of the year. They were also unable to hold onto the football for 3:56 at the end of the game, giving Seattle a chance to win.

Despite the offensive struggles, head coach Kyle Shanahan wasn’t necessarily displeased with the play from that unit in their latest loss. Instead, he pointed to penalties as the reason for their season-low output.

“Yeah, that was a huge thing. I thought that was one of the biggest problems for the offense on the day,” Shanahan said of the penalties. “And I actually thought we played a better game offensively than we did on that Thursday night game. We didn’t get, you know, on that Thursday night game we got the busted coverage on [WR] Deebo’s [Samuel] 70-yarder and we got those two explosive runs which really helped. But we played better football this game. We just didn’t at all with the penalties and you know, we had one 14-play drive where, I don’t know how many 14-play drives that I’ve been a part of that don’t end with points or a missed field goal or turnover. To go 14 plays and then punt it, we had eight plays inside the 50 after that turnover for the field goal having to overcome it a couple times and get them again. So, that was our biggest problem on the day I felt offensively.”

The 49ers had one drive just before the first half where they had a second-and-3 turn into a second-and-8 because of a false start. Two plays later on a third-and-1 they had a five-yard carry called back because of a hold, putting San Francisco into a third-and-10.

They overcame those penalties to get a first-and-10 at Seattle’s 34 after the two-minute warning. Another false start pushed them to a first-and-15, and then quarterback Brock Purdy took a sack that knocked them out of field goal range. Two incompletions later they punted. Instead of going ahead 10-6 or 14-6 before halftime, the 49ers led 7-6.

In the second half the 49ers defense came up with an interception that set the offense up at Seattle’s 27. They eventually got to first-and-10 at the Seahawks 16. An eight-yard scramble by Brock Purdy on that down was called back for a hold, giving the 49ers a first-and-20 at Seattle’s 26. Running back Christian McCaffrey immediately got the 49ers back inside the 15 with a 14-yard run, but that was negated by an illegal formation flag.

San Francisco went from first-and-10 at the Seattle 16 to first-and-25 at the Seattle 31. They settled for a field goal on that series and instead of leading 14-6, led 10-6 and allowed the next Seattle touchdown to give them a lead.

The good news is it wasn’t special teams that killed the 49ers this time. The bad news is we have a new thing to add to the list of reasons a team that was supposed to contend for a Super Bowl is fighting for its playoff life after 10 games.

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What did Christian McCaffrey do, how much did he play in return for 49ers?

Christian McCaffrey looked good in his return for the 49ers.

The San Francisco 49ers got a little closer to complete Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when running back Christian McCaffrey returned to the lineup.

It wasn’t a perfect day for the 49ers’ offense, but McCaffrey looked mostly like himself and had an immediate impact for San Francisco.

McCaffrey played 89 percent of the offensive snaps according to CBS Sports’ Dave Richard. He churned out 39 rushing yards on 13 carries, and hauled in six of his seven targets for 68 yards.

The 49ers’ offensive line struggled some against Tampa Bay’s defensive line and led to a handful of carries where McCaffrey didn’t have much room.

Despite the lack of rushing production, McCaffrey’s presence in the passing game made life easier for quarterback Brock Purdy, who made a handful of checkdown throws to McCaffrey instead of taking off running or forcing a throw into a tight window down the field.

He was also on the receiving end of a huge completion in the fourth quarter. With the 49ers trailing 17-13, McCaffrey was matched up one-on-one in coverage and had a step on his defender. Purdy was under pressure and had to throw early. He lofted a pass into the area ahead of McCaffrey, allowing the RB to race underneath it for a 30-yard completion.

That was the kind of play the 49ers weren’t able to run with Jordan Mason or Isaac Guerendo. And even if they ran it, Purdy likely wouldn’t have had the trust with one of them to air out a throw the way he did.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan after the game told reporters McCaffrey also made it through the game without any issues.

“He came out great, which was huge,” Shanahan said. “We knew it was going to be hard to load manage him, I think everyone says in the media, I just say not play him as much. We did that in the first half, we did a couple series and stuff, in the second half it got away from us a little bit. We only had one drive in that whole third quarter – didn’t have as many possessions and we weren’t taking him out on the fourth, and he didn’t need to be taken out, talking to him, he felt great. Going to be pumped to have him back next week.”

San Francisco isn’t out of the woods just because McCaffrey returned. They still struggled in the red zone, which was an area the reigning Offensive Player of the Year figured to help. He wasn’t much of a factor there, and Guerendo even got in for a couple of red zone snaps.

That’s something the 49ers and McCaffrey will need to iron out. For now they benefitted from his return enough to earn a win in Tampa Bay. They may need more down the stretch if they’re going to make a playoff run this season.

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