3 biggest reasons why SF 49ers fell short of expectations in 2020
By Tee Epps
No. 2: Injuries to too many key SF 49ers players
Aside from those two significant losses, the Niners continued to lose more players than any other team in the league, and that’s putting it mildly.
Prominent contributors such as defensive end Dee Ford, star lineman Nick Bosa and even quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo were all hurt and/or lost very early in the season. Ford appeared in just one game before falling to a season-ending back injury, while Bosa’s season-ending ACL tear in Week 2 seemed to foreshadow the problems to come on the injury front.
The Niners would go on and continue to get decimated by injuries which forced them to incorporate a league-high 79 different player combinations.
The SF 49ers had very little firepower to be fully competitive. Although the Niners had five games in which they lost by 10-plus points, it just felt like all their losses were blowouts. Many games saw San Francisco close the point gap late in garbage time.
Injuries are part of the game and are expected to impact teams at certain points of the season. Unfortunately, the SF 49ers seemed like they were losing at least two to three players per game, and that’s a hurdle that proved too much to overcome. In order for San Francisco to regain its competitive form, overall team health must be a focal point this upcoming offseason.
There are currently 38 players scheduled to become free agents this year and of those players, over 10 of them were unable to finish the season due to injury and/or COVID-19 concerns. If this team was able to maintain at least 85 percent health for the year, they would’ve been competing for a top spot in the NFC.
That’s not just being a little too optimistic neither. Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams had a similar outlook as well.
During the team’s final interview presser, Williams clearly supported his team and the current direction they’re trending in, saying, “I honestly think that we would be fighting for the No. 1 seed right now. I put our healthy roster up against anybody’s roster.”
That’s not such a far fetched statement.