San Francisco 49ers: 5 biggest disappointments in 2018 so far
By Peter Panacy
No. 2: No Production from the 49ers Wide Receivers
During training camp and the preseason, San Francisco’s crop of wide receivers looked to be solid enough to fully maximize Kyle Shanahan’s playbook. After all, Marquise Goodwin was going to pick up where he left off last year, Pierre Garçon was finally going to jell with Jimmy Garoppolo, Trent Taylor was going to continue to be a third-down weapon and the rookie, Dante Pettis, was going to run route circles around everyone.
It hasn’t happened, and this stat from SFGate.com’s Eric Branch is telling:
A: 51 catches, 578 yards, 5 TDs
— Eric Branch (@Eric_Branch) October 8, 2018
B: 47 receptions, 589 yards, 3 TDs
A is the #49ers WRs this season
B is Vikings WR Adam Thielen
Yikes.
Take a look at San Francisco’s wide receiver stats in advance of Week 6. They’re not particularly inspiring:
| Game | Game | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Player | Age | Pos | G | GS | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Y/R | TD | Y/G | Ctch% | Fmb |
| 11 | Marquise Goodwin | 28 | WR | 3 | 3 | 9 | 5 | 54 | 10.8 | 1 | 18.0 | 55.6% | 0 |
| 15 | Pierre Garcon | 32 | WR | 5 | 5 | 33 | 16 | 188 | 11.8 | 0 | 37.6 | 48.5% | 0 |
| 81 | Trent Taylor | 24 | 5 | 0 | 23 | 16 | 125 | 7.8 | 1 | 25.0 | 69.6% | 1 | |
| 84 | Kendrick Bourne | 23 | 5 | 0 | 15 | 9 | 98 | 10.9 | 2 | 19.6 | 60.0% | 0 | |
| 18 | Dante Pettis | 23 | wr | 4 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 96 | 32.0 | 1 | 24.0 | 42.9% | 1 |
| 17 | Victor Bolden | 23 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 0 | 10.0 | 25.0% | 0 | |
| 13 | Richie James | 23 | wr | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 3.5 | 100.0% | 0 |
| Team Total | 26.0 | 5 | 177 | 110 | 1365 | 12.4 | 9 | 273.0 | 13 | ||||
| Opp Total | 5 | 113 | 1269 | 11.2 | 12 | 253.8 | 6 |
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/12/2018.
Garçon is the only wideout remotely close to having a modest 2018 campaign. Everyone else? Well, it’s less than desirable.
Granted, injuries to this group have hurt a lot. Goodwin has been sidelined with a quad injury, and Pettis is still out with a knee issue. Still, the remaining options haven’t exactly risen to the opportunity either.
At least tight end George Kittle has been a stud.