SF 49ers roster: Identifying needs in 2021 for each position
By Peter Panacy
SF 49ers Special Teams Needs
There shouldn’t be a lot of drama with special teams units on a year-to-year basis, and the Niners essentially solved one dilemma by committing to kicker Robbie Gould for another two years.
That said, San Francisco’s special teams could use some much-needed help in 2021 after Football Outsiders‘ DVOA of minus-2.1 ranked this particular group in a tie for 23rd best in the league last year.
SF 49ers Specialists (Kicker, Punter, Long-Snapper): Retaining Taybor Pepper
The SF 49ers will still have Gould and punter Mitch Wishnowsky around for the foreseeable future, yet long-snapper Taybor Pepper, who’s becoming something a fanbase cult hero, is a free agent this offseason.
Long-snappers are cheap, so it shouldn’t be much of a problem for the Niners to retain him.
Punt/Kick Returner: Getting a Potent Return Threat
If there was one glaring weakness San Francisco had, it was in the return game.
A revolving door of return specialists was the norm in 2020, and the combinations of Richie James, Trent Taylor, Jerick McKinnon and no-longer-with-the-team Dante Pettis didn’t pan out. In total, SF 49ers punt returners averaged 9.0 yards per punt return, which isn’t terrible, but the fact Taylor had a whopping 14 fair catches while being used in a rotational role here isn’t exactly a promising stat.
Additionally, kick returners averaged 19.3 yards per takeout, the fourth-worst in the league.
It’s about time the Niners had a prolific return specialist within their ranks.