3 stats in which 49ers may regress in 2021

No. 1: 49ers’ Penalties Against

2020 Stats: 85 accepted penalties against, tied for 10th fewest in NFL

Bad teams often incur a lot of penalties, yet that was one anomaly the 49ers didn’t suffer over the course of 2020 despite the poorish record.

It’s possible this is an endorsement of Kyle Shanahan and the coaching staff, who have cut down on the penalties that plagued the team quite a bit back in 2017 and 2018.

San Francisco 49ers

In total last season, the Niners allowed an average of 45.7 penalty yards per game, though, which was right in the middle of the pack. Perhaps that’s the stat that should be of most concern heading into 2021.

Rookies can be awfully susceptible to penalties early in their respective careers. Two, in particular, come to light: cornerbacks Ambry Thomas and Deommodore Lenoir. While neither is a shoo-in to start this season, any injury and/or performance attrition within the secondary could lead to one or both of these two seeing significant field time this season.

Both corners are of the press-man variety and weren’t exactly known for their zone-coverage skills at the collegiate level. And both had tendencies to get a bit grabby in coverage. While those traits may have worked at the NCAA level, a typical trend for players of this ilk is to see an increase in yellow flags early on.

It’s possible, perhaps even likely both Thomas and Lenoir wind up being penalty liabilities.

This could eventually work against San Francisco early on, which would prompt an increase in the number of penalties per game and for the entire season.