Niner Noise takes a look at the San Francisco 49ers’ red-zone prospects and concerns in an attempt to see how critical this area will be in 2017.
The 2016 San Francisco 49ers may not have done a lot of things right, but they were good in at least one notable area.
The red zone.
According to TeamRankings.com, the Niners finished with a touchdown-success rate of 68.18 percent — second in the NFL last year. While so many other issues plagued former head coach Chip Kelly’s offense, at least we knew the 49ers had a good chance to score when they were within opponents’ 20-yard lines.
Things will be different under head coach Kyle Shanahan this year. In addition to Shanahan’s scheme, the Niners roster — especially on offense — looks almost nothing like what it did a year ago at this time.
A crop of new faces, especially in the receiving game, will create a look altogether different than what was seen under Kelly.
It’s far from a perfect scenario though. Only a handful of wide receivers are 6-foot-0 or taller, the tight end group has question marks and one can only wonder how effective quarterback Brian Hoyer will be within this crucial area.
Regardless, let’s take a look at some of the factors facing San Francisco and why this area of the field will be so important in 2017.