Last Sunday night, 49ers saw a comfortable 17-0 lead at their home opener turn into a last minute loss. Looking to shake off the loss, 49ers went into Arizona and experienced yet another blowing loss. As a fan of the 49ers, it is easy to rush to judgment and write them off after 3 games. It is safe to say after the first 3 games of the year, this team is going through some growing pains and some trying times. Against Arizona, Colin Kaepernick found consistency and better decision making against a solid Arizona defense. Kaepernick can not be blamed for the most recent loss. Although Kaepernick showed signs of consistency and what looks like a positive down the road, 49ers had some more issues during that game. Penalties totaling for 107 yards, lack of a running game, the pass rush being stuffed, Greg Roman's play calling, and a bonehead penalty by Anquan Boldin took the 49ers out of this ball game. Does this game indicate the last 13 games of the year will be like this? No, but there are some issues I feel that will linger around this season. The guys the 49ers suited up on Sunday (including the coaching staff) didn't give their all and they missed some bodies on both sides of the ball which would've helped some of the bleeding. There are two issues I find lingering throughout this season on the 49ers: lack of a pass rush and inconsistency of Greg Roman's play calling.
Issue #1: The Pass Rush - In 2011, the 49ers brought in arguably one of the most athletically gifted outside linebackers in quite some time, Aldon Smith. Aldon was setting pace to break some records down the road and place himself with some of the greats of this game. Off-field issues seemed to take over his life the last couple of seasons, clouding his future with the team and the hard decision on whether to cut or keep him. When Aldon Smith is on the field, the defense takes on a different look and adds more fear to defenses. With no Aldon Smith on the field, it doesn't open up the field for other guys to make a play. Aldon Smith can create plays for himself or open it up for the rest of his defense. Currently on the pass rush, the 49ers lack that fear placed on offenses. With Navorro Bowman and Aldon Smith not available, offenses have been able to relax and take advantage of the 49ers defense. 49ers the last couple of seasons have focused on restoring the secondary and haven't paid much attention to boosting the pass rush. Ahmad Brooks is getting older and coming off a great 2013 NFL season but odds are he will never recreate that year. Ray McDonald already has a cloudy present and future in this league, he is easily replaceable. The only current defensive lineman putting pressure on the quarterback is Justin Smith, Corey Lemonier, and Aaron Lynch. Three guys out of a starting front 7 is concerning. 49ers have added some youth in the last couple of drafts but they are not fully ready yet. For the 2015 NFL Draft regardless where the 49ers finish the season, I see them looking to address the pass rush early on, and bring in a play-maker ready to play now. Until Aldon Smith is back to provide pressure and Bowman is inserted back into the lineup after injury to provide tackling and smart plays on defense, the 49ers need their pass rush to step up, otherwise it is a long season for that defense and the team.
Issue #2: Greg Roman - In 2011, 49ers brought in Greg Roman to repair the offense that had been stagnant for half a decade. When Greg Roman came in, he started to create some success on the passing game and establishing the run game. Jim Harbaugh soon arrived from Stanford where Roman was on his coaching staff. In San Francisco, they reunited and provided a magical season in 2012 reaching the Super Bowl and almost winning. Greg Roman has done good things for this team and the offense and saw instant success. For 2013 and currently this year, Greg Roman has seemed to lose some of that magic. Roman has a quarterback who has one of the highest ceilings in the NFL to be successful, and it seems he is bottling him up in his offense, and expects him to perform where Kaepernick has to rush a decision. Against the Bears, Kaepernick threw the ball under 30 times, and this past Sunday he threw close to 40 times. By throwing the ball more this week, Roman abandoned the run game with an abysmal 9 carries between both his running backs. The passing game looked fantastic, but for the 49ers to drive the field, they needed to establish their run game against the Cardinals. The inconsistency each game whether to throw more or run more is hurting the offense and affecting Kaepernick's potential. Harbaugh's future was already becoming shaky this offseason, but if Greg Roman keeps bottling up the potential of the offense and doesn't spread the field, he could be headed out the door before Harbaugh.
This is only three games into the season, but the panic button should be avoided right now. If three more weeks is looking like the first three games, the season may start to cause to open up for judgment. There is still some things to cheer about and Kaepernick looked sharp on his decision-making against the Cardinals. The return of Navorro Bowman & Aldon Smith is near, and both Vernon Davis and Vance McDonald will be back in the coming week it looks like. It has been a stressful season to say the least so far, but it is far from over for disaster to take over, but the pass rush and Greg Roman have to step it up to jolt this team.
