San Francisco 49ers Only Scratching Surface Of Potential On Offense

The San Francisco 49ers have a roster decimated by injuries. For the second straight week in New York, it hasn’t mattered.

San Francisco, with backup Nick Mullens at quarterback and a host of starters missing on both sides of the ball, cruised to a 36-9 win over the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium, a week after crushing the New York Jets 31-13 at the same venue.

It was a game in which the Niners controlled things throughout, dominating on both sides of the ball despite starting an array of backups. While the defense also excelled, what was most striking was the efficient performance of an offense missing starters at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end and center.

Mullens threw for 343 yards and a touchdown while Jerick McKinnon, rookie receiver Brandon Aiyuk and Jeff Wilson Jr all ran for touchdowns as the 49ers went the entire game without punting the ball or committing a turnover, their only drive that did not result in points coming when Robbie Gould missed a field goal in the second quarter.

Their ability to gash the Giants was testament to New York’s extremely underwhelming pass defense and the excellent depth the 49ers have at their disposal.

In addition to McKinnon and Aiyuk, tight end Jordan Reed has emerged as a valuable contributor across the two games in New York, though he left early against the Giants with knee and ankle injuries.

Kyle Shanahan, per The Niners Wire, is optimistic those injuries are not serious and, with tight end George Kittle and wide receiver Deebo Samuel nearing returns and running back Raheem Mostert not expected to be a long-term absentee, San Franicsco could soon have one of the deepest and most diverse offenses in the NFL.

Kittle, widely considered the best tight end in the NFL, has long been the player that makes this offense go. He has exceptional athleticism, excels at picking up yardage after the catch and is remarkably effective in the blocking game.

The 49ers have not had much chance to use Kittle and Reed in two tight-end sets, nor have they had the opportunity to deploy Aiyuk and Samuel in the same formation.

Aiyuk displayed his upside as a runner out of the backfield on his 19-yard touchdown rush in the third quarter. With much of 2019 second-round pick Samuel’s impact as a rookie coming on similar designed runs, having two receivers who offer that kind of threat on the ground provides Shanahan – a play-caller who is among the most frequent users of pre-snap motion – with another potential layer of disguise with which to confound opposing defenses.

McKinnon’s explosive start to the season as a both a runner and a pass-catcher has given San Francisco’s backfield a case for being the most exciting in the league when healthy. He and Mostert have already accounted for five scores this season.

Health is, of course, the caveat that must be applied for the 49ers. Shanahan has not had his full complement of active offensive skill players so far this season and he likely won’t have that luxury until Week 5 against the Miami Dolphins, which is the game the Niners are targeting for Samuel’s return, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

The 49ers haven’t needed all their weapons to dice up arguably the two worst teams in the NFL and they will be favored to do the same to the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dolphins in the next two weeks even if some key names are still missing.

It is after the visit of the Dolphins to Levi’s Stadium that the Niners’ schedule gets markedly tougher with games where the absence of defensive lineman Nick Bosa from the pass rush will be more keenly felt. The Niners face the Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints before a Week 11 bye.

For San Francisco to emerge from that stretch as one of the premier teams in the NFC, the offense will need to fire on all cylinders and the backups that have held the fort over the last two weeks have the attack in an exciting rhythm, albeit having taken advantage of two very accommodating defenses.

The Niners’ performance against the Giants was among the best of Week 3. However, with Shanahan at the controls and Garoppolo, Kittle, Samuel and Mostert all set to shortly re-join the starting lineup, theirs is an offense that is not even close to realizing its potential.


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