49ers 2017 season review: Full position grades and analysis

Quarterback

Besides two games, Week 3 against the Los Angeles Rams and Week 10 against the New York Giants, it was a forgettable experience with a combination of Hoyer and Beathard at quarterback for the first 11 weeks of the season.

Granted, Beathard earned a lot of respect for enduring the drubbing he did. There was that brutally epic game against the Washington Redskins in Week 9 in which he was hit sixteen times. Part of that was on Beathard, who held on the ball for too long.

Whether it be Hoyer or Beathard, the offense struggled. Three-and-outs were far too common, scoring was down and sacks were being given up at an uncomfortable rate.

Once Garoppolo took over, all aspects of the San Francisco offense changed. It changed for the better, as the 49ers ended up finishing in the top 10 for three-and-out percentage and No. 12 in yards per game (349.3).

Garoppolo put together a five-game stretch where he passed for 1,542 yards with six touchdowns and five interceptions, breaking Kurt Warner’s record for most passing yards in first four starts with a team.

The fourth-year player was the catalyst for the team’s late-season revival. The 49ers won five straight to close out 2017, with two of those wins coming against playoff opponents (the Rams rested their main starters). Garoppolo also personally engineered late drives in two victories.

Against the blitz, Garoppolo excelled. His ability to stand in the pocket and deliver the ball while taking the hit became a weekly occurrence. In the season finale, Garoppolo was 10-13 for 144 yards with one touchdown and a 138.0 passer rating when blitzed.

Garoppolo is certainly impressive in the pocket, but his improv skills are underrated. Rolling out of the pocket seems to be no issue for Garoppolo (video via our own Ikaika Valeria):

The numbers do not lie either. This is where Garoppolo ranked out of 33 quarterbacks with a minimum of 30 dropbacks out of the pocket, per David Neumann:

• 76.7 percent of passes in catchable location (first)
• 116.5 passer rating (first)
• 8.0 adjusted yards per attempt (fifth)

For the season, the Eastern Illinois product finished as PFF’s No. 10 graded quarterback at 85.2. According to Jeff Deeney of PFF, Garoppolo’s 8.8 yards per attempt would have led the NFL if he had qualified.

Now, San Francisco has a decision to make in the offseason — offer Garoppolo a massive long-term contract or place the franchise tag on him. Either way, the 49ers have their quarterback.

Grade: B+

Running back

There was much debate surrounding running back Carlos Hyde heading into the first year of the new regime. Would he do enough to be brought back in free agency? It is too early to tell, but one thing is certain — Hyde wants to be back.

He nearly reached 1,000 rushing yards for the second consecutive season, finishing with 940 yards on 240 carries (3.9 yards per rush). Hyde had his most fruitful year in the receiving department, recording a career-high 59 receptions for 350 yards.

The fourth-year back also had a career-high eight rushing touchdowns. But, there were stretches of games where he struggled heavily. Hyde also had to deal with the increased role of undrafted rookie free agent Matt Breida.

Breida, out of Georgia Southern, slowly began to eat into Hyde’s usage. The rookie had 465 yards on 105 carries (4.4 yards per rush) with two rushing touchdowns.

Whether or not management decides to keep Hyde, it is certain that there will be much more of Breida in 2018.

Grade: B-

Wide receiver

Signed in the offseason, wide receiver Pierre Garçon was brought in to be a stabilizing force. Before going down with a neck injury, Garçon was on his way to doing just that.

The 10-year veteran had 40 receptions (on 67 targets) for 500 yards in eight games with Hoyer and Beathard at quarterback. Then with the injury to Garçon, it was another free agent acquisition who stepped up.

Wide receiver Marquise Goodwin, known more for his time as an Olympian long-jumper, morphed into a respectable NFL wide receiver. It was a career-year for Goodwin, who finished with 962 yards and two touchdowns on 56 receptions.

Before, Goodwin had never eclipsed 30+ receptions or 435+ yards in a single season. Goodwin certainly benefited from the arrival of #10, with two of his three 100-yard receiving games coming with Garoppolo under center.

Another receiver who massively benefited from Garoppolo was rookie Trent Taylor. The fifth-round selection from Louisiana Tech is turning out to be a value pick — the rapport between Taylor and Garoppolo displayed was strong.

Taylor finished with 43 receptions for 430 yards and two touchdowns. Per Pro Football Focus, 27 of Taylor’s 43 catches (62.8 percent) were on third down. Moving the chains became one of Taylor’s fortes.

Grade: B

Tight end

Techincally, Kyle Juszczyk is not a tight end. He is a fullback. That does not quite properly label Juszczyk though, as he does so much more than just block.

Signed in the off-season to a four-year, $21 million contract, the deal was on the receiving end of much criticism. Now Juszczyk is set to line up in the Pro Bowl as the starting fullback for the NFC, the only player from San Francisco to earn such honors.

Juszczyk finished the season with 33 catches for 315 receving yards, the second-highest yard total of his career.

Rookie tight end George Kittle had a bumpy start to the season. An injured hamstring that limited his mobility — combined with uneven quarterback play — factored into Kittle being virtually nonexistent in some games.

But even that could not prevent Kittle from being one of the better rookie tight ends.

Kittle finished with 43 receptions (on 63 targets) and 515 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the first tight end in NFL history drafted in the fifth round or later to record those kinds of numbers.

He ended the season on a particularly high note, putting up four receptions for 100 yards against the Rams in Week 17 — PFF’s No. 2 graded tight end at 86.0.

Teammate Garrett Celek, like Goodwin and many others, enjoyed the change from Beathard to Garoppolo. In wins against the Houston Texans and Tennessee Titans, Celek had five receptions for 130 yards and two touchdowns.

Grade: B-