No. 2: Emmanuel Sanders’ Production Is Misleading
On the surface, Emmanuel Sanders’ numbers in a 49ers uniform were impressive enough, justifying the third- and fourth-round draft picks given up to the Denver Broncos to get him.
In total over 10 games, which included Sanders being injured, the veteran accumulated 502 receiving yards on 36 catches and three touchdowns.
But it’s helpful to look at the splits, as 49ers Webzone’s Al Sacco pointed out:
There’s no doubt Emmanuel Sanders is a good fit & helps the #49ers, but if you take out the NO & first Cardinals game, Sanders caught 27 passes for 304 yards and 1 TD in his other 10 games.
— Al Sacco (@AlSacco49) February 19, 2020
Would you pay $8-$10 mill per for what amounts to a 3rd option in the passing game?
How about those per-game splits:
| Rece | Rece | Rece | Rece | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | Date | Week | Tm | Opp | Result | Tgt | Rec | Yds | TD | |
| 8 | 2019-10-27 | 8 | SFO | CAR | W 51-13 | 5 | 4 | 25 | 1 | |
| 9 | 2019-10-31 | 9 | SFO | @ | ARI | W 28-25 | 9 | 7 | 112 | 1 |
| 10 | 2019-11-11 | 10 | SFO | SEA | L 24-27 | 4 | 2 | 24 | 0 | |
| 11 | 2019-11-17 | 11 | SFO | ARI | W 36-26 | 5 | 3 | 33 | 0 | |
| 12 | 2019-11-24 | 12 | SFO | GNB | W 37-8 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 0 | |
| 13 | 2019-12-01 | 13 | SFO | @ | BAL | L 17-20 | 6 | 4 | 41 | 0 |
| 14 | 2019-12-08 | 14 | SFO | @ | NOR | W 48-46 | 9 | 7 | 157 | 1 |
| 15 | 2019-12-15 | 15 | SFO | ATL | L 22-29 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 0 | |
| 16 | 2019-12-21 | 16 | SFO | LAR | W 34-31 | 6 | 3 | 61 | 0 | |
| 17 | 2019-12-29 | 17 | SFO | @ | SEA | W 26-21 | 4 | 3 | 25 | 0 |
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 3/11/2020.
Sacco was right about pointing out merely two games in which Sanders was a true X-factor. There were other plays, yes, including Sanders’ key grab against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 16 on a 3rd-and-16 play.
And one can’t overlook the element of what Sanders does on the field without those efforts being reflected in the stat sheet, either.
Still, one has to wonder if the 49ers can generate that kind of production elsewhere, particularly at a much lower cost and without having to spend roughly $10 million on an aging veteran.
Maybe getting younger is the key.