Despite the ongoing saga involving wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who hasn't taken the field for more than 13 months after tearing the ACL, MCL, and meniscus in his right knee in a Week 7 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs last season and may never take another snap in the Red & Gold, the San Francisco 49ers head into their Week 13 matchup with the Cleveland Browns with an 8-4 record and currently own the final wild-card slot in the NFC.
Throw in all the other injuries this team has been forced to suffer through this season, and that 8-4 mark looks even more impressive.
Despite the success San Francisco has had this season, that doesn't mean the offense hasn't missed having Aiyuk on the field. The 49ers have made due, of course, and it actually might surprise some to know that they rank third in the NFL in passing yards per game at 249.4, trailing only the Dallas Cowboys (271.2) and the Kansas City Chiefs (256.5).
Nevertheless, there are a couple of things that stand out that show just how much the Niners' offense is missing the presence of No. 11.
Christian McCaffrey leading the 49ers in receptions (and ranking second in the NFL) isn't ideal
Despite all the injury issues running back Christian McCaffrey has endured throughout his career, he's ironically been one of the healthiest players on the San Francisco roster this season.
And the 49ers have certainly taken advantage of that good health, running him a league-high 217 times through the first 12 weeks of the season, with those 217 attempts going for 796 yards. But it's McCaffrey's receiving numbers that have genuinely stood out, as the 29-year-old has already racked up 81 receptions for 785 yards.
Before Ja'Marr Chase upped his season total to 86 with seven grabs in the Cincinnati Bengals' win over the Baltimore Ravens on Thanksgiving night, McCaffrey's 81 receptions actually led the entire NFL. And he obviously leads the Niners in receptions, with Jauan Jennings sitting in a distant second with 37. While it's kinda cool to see a running back lead the league in catches, that's obviously not the most ideal situation, especially when that running back has the injury history CMC does.
Now, McCaffrey is no stranger to high reception totals, as he's been a dual-threat kind of a back from the moment he entered the NFL with the Carolina Panthers. And there's no getting around the fact that the 49ers needed to utilize his receiving skills more than they have in the past, given Aiyuk's absence and the injuries to George Kittle and Ricky Pearsall.
But 81 catches through 12 weeks is a lot for anyone, let alone a running back. In 2023, which was McCaffrey's first full season in San Francisco and also the season in which Aiyuk earned Second-Team All-Pro honors, CMC wasn't asked to do as much as a receiver, tallying 67 catches on 83 targets. Aiyuk led the team with 75 receptions that year, with Kittle going for 65 and Deebo Samuel notching 60. A balanced attack is a better attack, and that balance hasn't been there this season.
The 49ers have had problems throwing the ball deep in 2025
The second issue with Aiyuk's absence has been the 49ers' inability to throw the ball deep this season. It's not that they haven't had any success in that regard, as Brock Purdy connected on several passes of 20 yards or longer in San Francisco's Week 11 win over the Arizona Cardinals. But that success certainly wasn't there a week ago, as Purdy threw three interceptions in Week 12 against the Carolina Panthers, all of which came on longer passes.
Now, to be fair, Kyle Shanahan's offense is set up for shorter passes, and Mac Jones did a fantastic job in Purdy's absence attacking the short and intermediate areas of the field.
But let's again go back to 2023 when Aiyuk was at his best. That season, Purdy had the second-highest passer rating among all quarterbacks who made at least 20 throws of 20 yards or longer at a robust 138.1, trailing only the Houston Texans' C.J. Stroud.
Purdy threw 11 touchdowns against just one interception on such throws, with five of those TD passes going to Aiyuk, who had the best rating of any wide receiver with at least 20 targets of 20 yards or more at 149.1.
This season, Purdy's passer rating on throws of 20 yards or more is 82.3, which ranks 30th among all QBs. And Jones is all the way down in the No. 46 position with a rating of 51.9. So, while the 49ers can do plenty of damage in the short and intermediate range, the deep ball just hasn't been there.