Texans vs. 49ers: 5 Biggest Takeaways for San Francisco

2 of 6

Aug 14, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Chip Kelly walks down the sideline during action against the Houston Texans in the fourth quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Texans defeated the 49ers 24-13. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports /

Chip Kelly’s offense showed promise

One big takeaway from last season was just how woeful the 49ers offense was – worst in the NFL with a measly 238 points scored (14.9 points per game) for the whole season.

There was also trouble in running the football later in the year and the passing game in general was below par.

Last night showed signs of a turnaround. The running game looked good. The backs ran 34 times for 236 yards (160 yards in the first half) at a handy average of 6.9 yards per rush. Though Driskel ran for 61 of those yards, Mike Davis made one huge run and finished at five carries for 72 yards, and Hyde (five carries for 27 yards) and Harris (six rushes for 29 yards) looked good carrying the ball.

Gabbert made one nice throw to tight end Vance McDonald, who ran for a 43-yard TD in the second quarter.

The 49ers finished with 173 passing yards, and the offense finished with 409 total yards (302 yards in the first half). For reference, the 49ers had six total games last season where they totaled more than 409 yards in a game.

The 49ers played quickly when the first-team unit was on the field, and more importantly, didn’t give up any pre-snap or motion penalties.

Third-down conversions were marginal, finishing six-for-18. There were once again some throws short of the first-down marker, leaving it up to the runner to make it work. Let’s hope this was just ironing out some kinks – this cannot be repeated in 2016.

Next: There is room for improvement for Blaine Gabbert