5 biggest reasons behind SF 49ers ugly start to 2020 season

No. 4: SF 49ers’ poor offensive line play

One area of the field that hasn’t really been decimated by injuries is the SF 49ers offensive line, which outside of Weston Richburg, has been more or less unchanged from the expected group since Week 2.

And yet this is the position on the field that has been consistently poor throughout the entirety of the season, leading to problems other places on the field.

SF 49ers quarterbacks Jimmy Garoppolo, Nick Mullens, and C.J. Beathard have all experienced the same problem: no time to throw. According to Pro Football Focus, Garoppolo has had 2.55 seconds to attempt his throws (22nd), Mullens has had 2.54 seconds (23rd), and Beathard just 2.48 seconds (28th), all out of 48 eligible quarterbacks.

For all three, the percentage of dropbacks with 2.5 seconds to throw or less sit at 50 percent, 48.8 percent, and 59 percent, respectively.

Football Outsiders‘ adjusted sack rate corroborates those numbers, as the line also has the league’s 31st best (or worst) number by that metric at 9.0 percent through Week 4, better than only the New York Giants.

And while NFL’s Next Gen Stats suggests Garoppolo has had a little more time in the pocket than PFF at 2.71 seconds (Mullens is at 2.7, Beathard doesn’t qualify), the numbers are concerning either way.

Worse yet, it’s not just the pass blocking that’s an issue, as the 49ers adjusted line yardage, per Football Outsiders, is also 31st in the league at 3.30, also ahead of just the Giants (for reference, the Browns lead the league through Week 4 with 5.25).

This is a team that made a living out of solid if unspectacular line play during its Super Bowl run last season, but so far in 2020, the line has suffered from poor technique across the unit and often times embarrassing attempts at blocking players in front of them.

When the season started, the question was whether the interior of the line was going to be good enough to match the expected quality at tackle with left tackle Trent Williams and right tackle Mike McGlinchey seemingly set to go.

But as the year as gone on, the question resounds for the entire unit and unless they figure out a way to gel and get better, there’s little the rest of the offensive will be able to do to make up for their poor play.