49ers grades, analysis from refreshing Week 8 win vs. Bears
By Peter Panacy
49ers Week 8 Grades: Offensive Line
After being largely dominated by the Indianapolis Colts’ defensive front in Week 7, it was refreshing to see the 49ers offensive line get back to a point of strength at Chicago.
True, the Bears were without their own star edge rusher, Khalil Mack, which made pass protection a lot easier for the O-line in front of Jimmy Garoppolo. But even against a depleted Chicago pass rush, it’s still commendable for the Niners to keep Jimmy G upright.
He didn’t take a single sack or suffer a quarterback hit in the game.
Garoppolo being well protected was a bonus, but the proverbial bread and butter of San Francisco’s offense is the run game, and a healthy return of left tackle Trent Williams from an ankle injury opened up the door for the 49ers to obtain 145 rush yards and average 5.6 yards per carry in the process.
If there were any gaffes, one happened on a late snap from center Alex Mack, forcing Garoppolo to scramble in for his first touchdown on the ground instead of handing the ball off to wide receiver Deebo Samuel:
https://twitter.com/49ers/status/1454886769833435139
Kind of an odd play. But it worked in the end, so few will end up caring.
Garoppolo also had passes batted down at the line of scrimmage, which often falls upon the O-line, too. Considering the trade-off in pass protection, though, it’s an issue few would truly complain about.
Good day from this unit.