We take a look at three 49ers players we think may have fallen out of head coach Kyle Shanahan’s good graces so far this year.
As we enter the scheduled Week 6 bye for the San Francisco 49ers, it’s already becoming clear who is in the coaching staff’s good graces, and who’s on the brink of being a total zero on gameday.
It’s no secret that head coach Kyle Shanahan is absolutely ruthless when it comes to the development of young players, and he expects near perfection in the early stages of their career. He often uses media sessions to express concerns and issues he is having with players, and more often than other coaches around the league, lets everyone know certain players are falling out of his good graces.
Shanahan has close to zero interest in what NFL Draft round a player has been selected in once the season has started, and he will ultimately ride the hot hand regardless of draft stock.
We’ve seen this countless times during his tenure as the Niners head coach with some notable players, to name a few, who have received this treatment before, namely the infamous second-round wide receiver, Dante Pettis, or the third-round bust, running back Joe Williams.
This year is no different, as Shanahan has already made it clear some players will need to step it up if they want to be incorporated back into the weekly game plan and move out of the doghouse.
Let’s take a look at three players who have already been banished to Shanahan’s doghouse so far this season.
No. 3: 49ers Offensive Lineman Aaron Banks
There is plenty of disappointment in rookie right guard Aaron Banks so far this season already, but it’s time to reiterate the point once again.
The 49ers passed on a seeming superstar rookie cornerback in Asante Samuel Jr. for Banks in this year’s NFL Draft when they selected the former Notre Dame standout in the middle of the second round. It might have prompted a little shock at the moment, but it was understood one of the team’s biggest needs was to bolster the right side of the offensive line, so it made sense even if grabbing Banks wasn’t a glamorous pick.
Fast forward about six months, and Banks hasn’t even been active for a single game so far this season. Sure he got hurt in the preseason, but it should be almost expected a right guard drafted in the second round is at least fighting for a starting spot, let alone be on the gameday roster.
Banks has clearly failed to impress the coaching staff and has already cemented himself as a potential bust. Kyle Shanahan clearly feels Banks is nowhere close to ready to even be considered a backup option on Sundays, so you can only imagine how far away the team feels he is from being ready to contribute to this team.
Banks has sadly cemented himself as a member of the Shanahan doghouse and will have to do a lot in practice to try and show everyone why the Niners even selected him so high in this year’s draft.
I have my doubts Banks will even play this season, but I hope he can turn things around and impress Shanahan and Co.
No. 2: 49ers Running Back Trey Sermon
Another player who has had his share of gameday scratches is rookie running back Trey Sermon.
Unlike Banks, Sermon has actually had the chance to play in a handful of games and even got to start in a couple. The issue with Sermon, though, is his appearances have mostly been due to the slew of injuries the 49ers have experienced at the position so far this year.
The media world was shocked when Sermon was a healthy scratch for the Niners’ Week 1 game against the Detroit Lions, and fellow rookie sixth-rounder Elijah Mitchell was given the backup duties to now-injured starting running back Raheem Mostert.
Sermon actually caught a stroke of luck as Mitchell was injured in his first game as the starter, which ultimately forced the Niners to take a look at Sermon. Sermon failed to impress in his first start against the Green Bay Packers, registering 10 rushes for a total of 31 yards and a touchdown.
He followed this up with a decent display versus the Seattle Seahawks when he produced 89 rushing yards on 19 carries, which gave some Niners fans hope Sermon would hopefully come into his own and show everyone why San Francisco traded two fourth-round picks to move up in the 2021 draft and select him at the tail of the third round.
These dreams came to a crashing halt in Mitchell’s first game back from injury, as the 49ers’ other rookie took back the reigns to the starting role and out-touched Sermon nine carries to one.
Yes, you read that correctly, Sermon had only one carry in the game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Sermon is undoubtedly in Kyle Shanahan’s doghouse, and the Niners head coach has to unquestionably regret his selection of Sermon in this year’s draft. It’s hard to blame Shanahan, as Sermon seems to be the wrong player for the Niners’ rushing system.
Though talented, Sermon is a better complimentary bruising back than an elusive rusher whom the Niners are so keen on leading their rushing attack.
Mitchell has probably supplanted himself as San Francisco’s leading running back for the rest of the year, as Sermon will have to work wonders to find himself back in Shanahan’s good graces.
Hopefully, Sermon can turn things around for himself, because he may be on his way out in the next year.
No. 1: 49ers Wide Receiver Brandon Aiyuk
It pains to write this, but second-year wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk may be the captain of this year’s Kyle Shanahan doghouse.
It was easy to believe the coachspeak Shanahan stated earlier that indicated Aiyuk’s lack of involvement in the game plan was due to his offseason hamstring injury, but every game that goes by makes this less and less believable.
Aiyuk has been an utter disappointment this year, and it’s more than just a little disbelieving.
Sure, the 2020 Niners receiving corps, along with star tight end George Kittle, dealt with plenty of injuries, which many predicted would be a reason for success, but you can’t ignore the fact Aiyuk was still able to produce a stat line of 60 catches for 748 yards and five touchdowns in only 12 games as a rookie.
Having said this, Aiyuk looks like a totally different player this year for San Francisco and is the clear second (and maybe even third) fiddle to fellow receiver Deebo Samuel, who is currently No. 2 in receiving yards in the entire NFL, by the way.
Shanahan is clearly disgruntled with Aiyuk, as he and general manager John Lynch have expressed their issues with Aiyuk’s contributions this year, citing his lack of concentration and ability to take the next step in his development as one of the reasons for his shortcoming this season.
So far through five games, Aiyuk has produced a mere 90 yards receiving on eight catches and one touchdown.
That is no good for a player selected at the end of the first round in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Luckily, Aiyuk has flashed enough talent to merit being given another chance at proving he is the player fans saw last year, but this isn’t the ideal trajectory for a second-year receiver. We all know Dante Pettis flashed in a similar fashion his rookie season, yet even he wasn’t spared the doghouse treatment a year later and eventually found himself off the team in 2020.
Let’s hope Aiyuk doesn’t see a similar fate, but it’s kind of hard to see any other outcome at this point, given the lack of production we’ve seen from the young wideout. Aiyuk has to get out of Shanahan’s doghouse and prove to fans, and more importantly the team, he is someone that can be relied on for years to come.