The 49ers Offensive Line and Defensive Line are Signs of Things to Come

The San Francisco 49ers spent a lot of effort reinforcing their offensive and defensive lines during the offseason, which means these two critical units will go a long way in determining the direction of the franchise.

The San Francisco 49ers offensive and defensive lines are going to be much better in 2016 than they were in 2015.

If football games are truly won or lost in the trenches, general manager Trent Baalke’s offseason philosophy will go a long way in ensuring the 49ers are moving in the right direction.

Say what you will about Baalke’s efforts, and whether or not he shoulders the burden of the current state of the roster, but addressing these two critical areas should generate a good deal of praise.

Not long ago, the Niners boasted top-tier O- and D-lines. Fans can recall the days of defensive ends Justin Smith and Ray McDonald overpowering opponents at the line of scrimmage, while San Francisco’s O-line — led by stalwarts Joe Staley, Mike Iupati, Alex Boone and Anthony Davis — was one of the primary reasons the team’s run-first philosophy worked so well under former head coach Jim Harbaugh.

The results were simple. The 49ers made it to three consecutive NFC Championship games.

Everything fell apart in 2015. A slew of retirements, free-agent departures and various other factors relegated these two units to mere shadows of their former glory.

The numbers back it up. According to Football Outsiders, San Francisco’s defensive line ranked 27th against the run and 29th against the pass last year.

On the flip side, Pro Football Focus ranked the 49ers O-line 27th in the NFL. This same unit, which allowed a whopping 53 sacks last year, also came in at No. 30 in run-blocking support.

In short, there wasn’t really anything the Niners O-line did well.

The Offensive Line

Yet the offseason brought changes. Boone is no longer a part of the picture, and the 49ers wisely parted ways with right guard Jordan Devey and relegated struggling center Marcus Martin to a backup role.

In came free-agent guard Zane Beadles, and the 49ers tabbed former Stanford guard Joshua Garnett towards the tail end of Round 1 of the 2016 NFL Draft.

Oh, and Davis — who has since rejoined the 49ers after one year of retirement — is certainly an upgrade over last year’s starter, Erik Pears.

Davis, a former first-round pick, is still just 26 years old. Staley, the elder statesman of the group, is 31 years old. And while age may start to be a bit of a concern here, he likely has at least a couple more years of starter-worthy football left in his body — plenty of time for San Francisco to evalate and explore long-term options at the left side.

Center Daniel Kilgore is also just 28 years old and in the prime of his NFL career. Similarly, Beadles is 29 years old and, according to PFF’s Jeff Deeney, should benefit from the zone-blocking scheme employed by head coach Chip Kelly.

Yes, there are some concerns here. Is Davis’ reliability and dedication to stay in the league going to be an issue? And how will Garnett adjust from a power-run scheme at Stanford to the zone-blocking approach? Will his pass protection be an issue?

And, of course, there’s depth. But San Francisco has some good options here too.

Backup guard Andrew Tiller, who came on strong late last year, is a good option at any of the interior positions. The 49ers also have four options in camp — Pears, Trent Brown, Fahn Cooper and John Theus — to support the tackle positions if necessary.

The Defensive Line

San Francisco’s O-line may be improved, but the defensive line looks outright mean.

This unit did suffer a major setback though. The team lost nose tackle Ian Williams — who was the 49ers’ top-graded defender last year with a plus-24.4 overall mark, per PFF (subscription required) — to a season-ending ankle injury.

While this puts the D-line through an early test, the situation does open up the door for first-year defensive end DeForest Buckner to assume a very large role in 2016.

Buckner took first-team reps to start training camp, per Chris Biderman of NinersWire.com, and it looks as if he’ll be joining former University of Oregon teammate Arik Armstead along the line.

Armstead, who finished 2015 as the team’s second best-rated defender (plus-15.1), per PFF, looks even stronger and more capable than when he first came into the league.

These two physically imposing bookends are freakish athletes and Buckner, who is widely viewed as an even more-promising prospect than Armstead, could easily wind up being one of the mainstays of San Francisco’s defense for years to come.

Somewhat lost in the mix are defensive linemen like Quinton Dial, Glenn Dorsey, Mike Purcell, Tony-Jerod Eddie and fellow rookie Ronald Blair.

Dial likely gets the start at the nose position this season, and he’s quietly built a nice pro career for himself in San Francisco.

The rest, who are battling it out for depth along the D-line, also comprise a very nice unit.

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Simply put, the 49ers have two areas of strength entering 2016. And both were primary weaknesses for a 5-11 franchise a year ago.

Yes, there are concerns. And there is always the looming worry about young, up-and-coming players not reaching their full potential.

But, for now, both the offensive and defensive lines look to be vastly improved over what was seen in 2015.

And that’s a very, very good thing for this franchise’s future.

Next: Expect a Big Year from 49ers DE Arik Armstead

All statistics, records and accolades courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com and Sports-Reference.com unless otherwise indicated.