All I feel is pain these days thanks to the 49ers

What comes next for the red and gold after this weekend? The same shit that happened when the 49ers lost three straight games last year and went to the Super Bowl. They will figure it out, but these glaring team flaws should not go without discussion. This recent 49ers loss at the hands of the Rams was one that caught the NFL off guard, not just by the results, but the manner in which they let this game get away. A blown 14 point lead in the second half, accompanied by miscues on every level of the game, is something fans of the team know too well.

The 49ers haven’t been a team to start off hot in recent history and often iron out the wrinkles in the first third of the season before going off on a tear that lights up the league. I think this season will be a repeat of the past, at least on the offense. But the defense on the other end is looking to show some cracks for the first time in years.

A staple of successful San Francisco teams has seemingly gone missing this past week with the defense allowing Matthew Stafford and Kyren Williams to just pass and run all over them. The 49ers have ranked in the top ten of defensive EPA in each of their last four trips to the NFC championship and beyond. But as of week three, the 49ers rank in the bottom 10 of the league with bottom feeder teams such as the Carolina Panthers and New England Patriots.

The top heavy defense and its star players like Fred Warner, Nick Bosa, and Deommodore Lenoir have excelled well–but it is the lack of depth and replacement players for injured stars that need out of the lineup immediately. The first player who needs to either be benched or se??e his role diminish is De’Vondre Campbell. He is playing for the injured Dre Greenlaw, but has failed to even match half of the talent Greenlaw offered, and the stats prove it with Campbell having allowed a 130.6 quarterback rating so far into the season. He is tied for seventh worst in the league among linebackers with 60 or more coverage snaps.

Excluding cornerback Lenoir, the other two corners the 49ers start often Isaac Yiadom and Charvarius Ward have been abysmal in the first three weeks–both ranking 9th and 13th in quarterback rating allowed by cornerbacks with 70 or more coverage snaps. Shanahan should seek to override Sorensen on the defense and ride out young players like Dee Winters and Renardo Green at their respective positions to see what they bring to the field because it surely can’t be worse than what it is right now.

The recently announced injury to defensive lineman Javon Hargrave is a huge blow to an already shallow group of players with no one seemingly being able to hold it down in the trenches. San Francisco’s defense already ranks 4th in EPA per rush and is in the middle of the pack in both pressure rate and EPA per pass. Nick Bosa will need to carry this unit hard because the incompetence in the front office to gather serviceable talent on the defensive line will continue to show.

Outside of stud wide receiver Jauan Jennings, this offense looked utterly abysmal with not one other wide receiver being competent enough to catch the ball in crucial moments. Yes, I am talking about Ronnie Bell who dropped the most important ball of his hopefully soon to be over career. He wasn’t alone though as “Mr. Holdout” Brandon Aiyuk averaged a bottom of the league 2.3 yards of separation and added less receiving EPA than backup tight end Eric Saubert. It is apparent that this team needs both Deebo Samuel Sr. and first round pick Ricky Pearsall desperately, along with some semblance of last year’s Aiyuk back, or else this team is in for a rude awakening when Bell is the one who has to line up on the gridiron.

I could go on for days about how head coach Kyle Shanahan has mishandled the development of this team by focusing on getting elite position players rather than a solid offensive line for your franchise quarterback. This collection of linemen; outside of future hall of famer Trent Williams, lacks identity and solid pass protection. They allowed 18 quarterback pressures on Sunday with 47 percent of pass plays, resulting in the Rams getting pressure on Purdy. Teams like the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills have shown that success lies within protecting your quarterback and allowing them to analyze and dissect defenses with the time bought by the linemen. Both of these teams’ offensive lines rank at the bottom of the league in terms of pressure rate.

Don’t think I forgot about you Michigan man, Jake Moody. Having been drafted in the 3rd round last year, Moody never had it easy. Especially with replacing the ever automatic Robbie Gould. But his shortcomings have been costing the 49ers the past two years both in the regular season and the postseason. Moody must learn to stay calm under pressure and continue to make routine kicks he makes in both practice and warm-ups because when the postseason comes around there is no next week to try and make up for these misses.

In a storm of shit one of the few bright spots was quarterback Brock Purdy who has officially cemented himself as an elite quarterback in the league amongst casuals after a stellar performance that was overshadowed by the loss. After three weeks of NFL action the only quarterbacks to rank inside the top 10 of single-game passing EPA without having won the game are Joe Burrow and Purdy. Proving he could put the 49ers in a winning position without ‘The Avengers’ on offense solidifies him as a franchise quarterback for this squad.

As brutal as the season has been for the 49ers, this team was missing All-Pro players on offense such as Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, and Christian McCaffery. This loss highlights the shortcomings of the roster with lack of depth and talent along with the struggles of new defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen. Although there are many issues with this team, I think they will ultimately find a way to go back to their regularly scheduled dominance. But there is most definitely room for doubt this season than ever before.