Top 5 Most Important Players on the San Francisco 49ers in 2015
If there is one team the 49ers should emulate this offseason, it’s the Dallas Cowboys.
The Cowboys won eight games in 2013. Then they took an offensive lineman in the first round of the 2014 draft, ran the ball 508 times during the regular season and won eight games on the road, 12 games total, plus a division title.
The 49ers won eight games in 2014. They have 28/1 odds to win Super Bowl 50, according to OddsShark.com. The Detroit Lions and Buffalo Bills also have 28/1 odds. The voting public lacks confidence in the 49ers.
But the voting public also lacked confidence in the Cowboys before last season. Remember? The Cowboys were supposed to finish last in the NFC East.
Can the 49ers be the new Cowboys? Can the Niners win 12 games if they follow the Cowboys’ blueprint?
Yes, if the following five players play like Pro Bowlers. These five players are the most important players on the 49ers. Not the best. There is a big distinction between best and most important. In this case, most important is synonymous with underachiever. The Niners need each one to have the best season of his career.
5. Tramaine Brock
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On the afternoon of March 11, 49ers’ general manager Trent Baalke was asked how he feels about his cornerbacks. Both starting cornerbacks from last season—Perrish Cox and Chris Culler—are free agents.
“Feel good about it,” Baalke said. “Feel real good about it. We’ve got Tramaine Brock coming back.”
Apparently, Baalke is counting on Brock to be the Niners’ No. 1 cornerback, the cornerback who covers the opposing offense’s best receiver.
No pressure, Tramaine.
Brock was supposed to be that guy last year, but he injured his toe Week 1 against the Cowboys and missed the next five games. Then he pulled his hamstring against the Broncos and missed eight of the Niners’ final nine games. The 49ers could not count on him.
In Brock’s entire career, he has started just nine games—seven in 2013, two in 2014—and in those games he gave up a passer rating of 93.9, per Pro Football Focus. Not good.
The 49ers need him to be one of the 30 best corners in the league.
All quotations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
4. Vernon Davis
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You could make the argument Vernon Davis was the best tight end in the NFL in 2013.
And you could make the argument Davis was the worst tight end the very next season.
In 2013, Davis was a good blocker, a deep threat (16.1 yards per catch) and a threat to score in the red zone (eight touchdown catches inside the opponent’s 20-yard line).
Davis was none of those things in 2014. He averaged 9.4 yard per catch, scored just one touchdown in the red zone and Pro Football Focus gave him a -8.2 run-blocking grade. That’s one repugnant grade.
In Davis’ defense, he never seemed to recover fully after hurting his back, ankle and knee Week 2 against the Bears. He should be healthy and ready to bounce back in 2015.
The 49ers offense won’t go anywhere without him.
3. Anthony Davis
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The Cowboys had three offensive linemen make the Pro Bowl last season—left tackle Tyron Smith, center Travis Frederick and right guard Zack Martin.
The 49ers have one Pro Bowl offensive lineman—Joe Staley. One is not enough. They need a couple more.
Anthony Davis has to be one of them. The 49ers are scheduled to pay the 25-year-old right tackle $5.65 million in 2015, according to Spotrac. They’re counting on him to become the dominant player they envisioned. And he has more than enough talent to fulfill the Niners’ expectations. Davis may establish himself as the premier run-blocking tackle in the NFL next season.
Talent isn’t Davis’ issue. Health is. Davis is a 323-pound man whose body broke down last season. He missed OTAs and minicamp as he rehabbed his surgically repaired shoulder. Then he pulled his hamstring in training camp. Then he hurt his knee Week 4 against the Eagles. Then he got a concussion Week 11 against the Giants.
Were those fluke injuries or a sign of things to come?
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2. Carlos Hyde
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If the 49ers are going to replicate the Cowboys’ 2014 season, they need someone to replicate running back DeMarco Murray.
Murray had 392 carries and 57 catches. He carried the Cowboys’ offense so Tony Romo didn’t have to. That was the key to Dallas’ season.
For a long time, the 49ers haven’t had a running back like Murray. Frank Gore is the greatest running back in 49ers’ franchise history, but he never carried the 49ers like Murray carried the Cowboys last season. Gore wears down if he carries the ball too much. He has carried the ball 300 times in a season only once—in 2006 when he was 23.
Now Gore is a Colt, and Carlos Hyde gets his shot to carry the 49ers’ offense. Can he do it? Can he carry the ball 300 times next season?
Why not?
He carried the ball 208 times in 11 games his final season at Ohio State. At that pace, he would have carried the ball 302 times in 16 games. He’s 23 years old and 235 pounds—there is no way should he wear down.
1. Colin Kaepernick
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The running game was the catalyst of the Cowboys’ resurgence. But Tony Romo was crucial, too. The quarterback always is the most important player.
The Cowboys’ dominant running game took the focus off Romo, which allowed him to be more efficient and dangerous as a passer than he had ever been. He threw 34 touchdown passes, completed 69.9 percent of his passes and posted a passer rating of 113.2.
Those numbers might seem unattainable for Kaepernick. But think about this: In his career, his quarterback rating has been a whopping 101 on play-action passes, per Pro Football Focus. Kaepernick is an excellent play-action passer.
Now that the 49ers finally have a legitimate deep-threat wide receiver—Torrey Smith—opposing defenses should struggle even more to defend Kaepernick’s play-action passes.
At least that’s the hope.
Kaepernick is the most important player on the 49ers. At some point, he may even be the best.
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