SF 49ers: Kyle Shanahan not upset with Robbie Gould after Week 16 misses

The SF 49ers could have lost their Week 16 bout versus the Cardinals because of Robbie Gould’s missed kicks. But Kyle Shanahan isn’t upset.

The SF 49ers can feel pretty good about their shocking 20-12 upset over the Arizona Cardinals, which both gave the Niners some much-needed confidence to round out the season and put a massive dent in Arizona’s playoff hopes.

But if there was one player who wasn’t celebrating the win as much, it was veteran kicker Robbie Gould.

Gould missed both of his field-goal tries in Week 16 and one of his extra-point attempts, which proved to be quite uncharacteristic for a veteran kicker who owns a career-87.0 field-goal percentage and has a 89.8 field-goal conversion mark in three-plus years with San Francisco.

Late in the fourth quarter with the SF 49ers clinging to a one-score lead, Gould could have iced the game with a field goal to make it 23-12, requiring a near miracle from Arizona to come back with 1:09 remaining in regulation.

Fortunately for the Niners, the defense held. But Gould’s misses were one of the few dark spots on what was otherwise a great day for head coach Kyle Shanahan and Co.

Yet it could cast a large shadow over the veteran’s immediate future with the team.

When Gould signed his four-year, $19 million contract extension back in 2019, the last two years were going to be team options. Interestingly enough, San Francisco has a decision to make this week regarding Gould’s future next year and whether or not the option will be picked up.

Based on one game, it would seem the SF 49ers wouldn’t want to retain Gould on what could be a total cap hit of $5.25 million in 2021.

Shanahan isn’t sold on that drastic action, though.

“You got to look at the body of work, and Robbie has been unbelievable,” Shanahan told reporters after Saturday’s bout.

And according to The Athletic’s Matt Barrows, Shanahan’s words and tone seemed to indicate the Niners would pick up Gould’s option, not decline it at a would-be cap savings of $3.75 million:

Interesting.

Of course, this could be Shanahan trying to keep his proverbial cards close for the offseason, not revealing much ahead of some very challenging months for San Francisco’s front office. Those challenges include a salary cap potentially dropping down to as low as $175 million with the SF 49ers currently having over $150 million committed in player salaries next year with 40 others scheduled for some form of free agency.

Or, just as possibly, Shanahan is merely trying to defend a player who has done a lot for the franchise since joining it back in 2017.

If there’s one thing clear, Gould didn’t have a good day at all. But his pre-Week 16 89.8 field-goal percentage remains a franchise best for players who have kicked in at least 16 games for San Francisco.

From that vantage point, Shanahan makes a good case.