How Have San Francisco 49ers Addressed Biggest Weaknesses from 2014?
For the most part, the San Francisco 49ers addressed all of their major weaknesses this offseason.
Especially on offense—they gave it an overhaul. And it needed an overhaul. It was slow as molasses in more ways than one the past few years. Now, it might be one of the faster offenses in the league. Opposing defenses won’t know what to expect. The Niners offense will be totally different.
The defense should be similar—it’s still a 3-4. But it lost a couple of starting corners, a couple of starting linebackers and a couple of starting defensive ends. And the Niners didn’t really replace any of them, at least in the short term.
Here’s how the 49ers did or did not address their five biggest needs this offseason.
5. Speed on Offense
1 of 5
The 49ers offense had one fast player last season—Colin Kaepernick.
The top three wide receivers were Anquan Boldin, Michael Crabtree and Stevie Johnson, and all three were slow.
The speedy scatback was Kendall Hunter, but he tore his ACL during training camp. The tight end, Vernon Davis, used to be the fastest player on the offense, but in 2014 he battled injuries that slowed him down.
All in all, the Niners might have had the slowest offense in the NFL. But this offseason, they said goodbye to most of their slow offensive players. Crabtree, Johnson, Frank Gore, Mike Iupati—they’re all gone.
In their place, the Niners signed fast players, such as running back Reggie Bush and wide receivers Torrey Smith and Jerome Simpson. All three are faster than Kaepernick.
If Davis and Hunter are 100 percent healthy next season, the Niners offense will have six fast skill-position players—up 500 percent from last season.
4. Tempo on Offense
2 of 5
The Niners didn’t just have slow offensive players last season—they had a slow offensive system.
Seemingly by design, they took forever getting their plays off. They’d break the huddle late and try to squeeze in a shift or a motion at the line of scrimmage before the play clock expired. A lot of times they didn’t get the play off. They committed nine delay-of-game penalties in 2014—most in the NFL, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee.
But that was the old coaching staff’s system. The new offensive coordinator, Geep Chryst, is installing an uptempo offense, per Barrows. Instead of putting pressure on itself, now the Niners offense will put pressure on the opposing defense.
What a concept.
3. Inside Linebacker Depth
3 of 5
The 49ers like to be strong up the middle on defense, and they were before Patrick Willis and Chris Borland retired and NaVorro Bowman tore his ACL and MCL.
The Niners seemed likely to address the inside linebacker position at some point during the draft, if not the first round. But they didn’t.
They didn’t draft a single inside linebacker.
They must feel confident Bowman can make a full recovery from his gruesome knee injury. He is a three-time All-Pro player, after all.
And he seems to be playing well during OTAs, although he’s wearing a knee brace and says he doesn’t feel 100 percent, according to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.
If Bowman suffers a setback or doesn’t fully recover next season—or if he’s a part-time player who wears a knee brace and can’t really run—the Niners will have a gaping hole in the middle of their defense.
So much depends on Bowman’s knee.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
2. Top-End Defensive End Talent
4 of 5
The 49ers used to have two of the best 3-4 defensive ends in the NFL: Justin Smith and Ray McDonald.
Both are gone. The Niners cut McDonald in December, and Smith retired in May.
Smith will be particularly difficult to replace. He was a premium talent, the fourth pick in the 2001 draft and a perennial All-Pro as a member of the 49ers.
The Niners drafted Tank Carradine, hoping he might replace Smith when the time came. The time has come, and Carradine doesn’t seem ready. He has played only 146 snaps during his career, according to Pro Football Focus.
He might be able to replace Smith one day. If so, terrific. But the Niners aren’t putting all of their eggs in that basket.
They spent their first-round pick on Arik Armstead, a 3-4 defensive end from Oregon. He is a premium talent with as much potential as anyone in the draft this year.
Armstead may never be as good as Smith, and the Niners might never truly replace the future Hall of Famer. You can’t say they didn’t try, though.
1. Cornerback
5 of 5
The Niners lost both of their starting cornerbacks from last season during free agency. Chris Culliver signed with the Washington Redskins, and Perrish Cox signed with the Tennessee Titans.
Still, the Niners didn’t draft any cornerbacks this year.
They signed free-agent corner Shareece Wright to a one-year deal, which is not a ringing endorsement of his value. He is projected to start next to Tramaine Brock, who was supposed to start last season but missed 13 games with turf toe and hamstring injuries. The Niners seem confident in those two.
Already, Wright has an undisclosed injury, and Brock has a hamstring injury, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee. Neither player participated in practice when the media was present last Friday.
Behind them, the Niners have veteran Chris Cook, who missed 10 games with a hamstring injury last season.
Behind him, they have second-year cornerbacks only hardcore 49ers fans have heard of: Dontae Johnson, Keith Reaser and Kenneth Acker.
Maybe one of those no-name corners will break out next season. If not, the 49ers will have one of the worst groups of corners in the NFL. The Niners didn’t do nearly enough to address their biggest weakness.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
