With you on taking the hits. That’s a legit concern.
I'd much rather see Tampa, not because of the Week 14 result but simply because Dallas is a much better team this year.
Yeah, if Dallas has a good game they have the talent to go toe to toe, even though they're inconsistent. I don't think Tampa has a shot unless either the 49ers OL or their front seven completely trips over their own dicks and ruin the game, even if the Bucs play great.
I am not sure about this. I mean Dak has been a turnover machine lately and the San Francisco secondary thrives off of turnovers. I was at the first SF vs TB game and if they don't call a really weak roughing the passer on the first play and a 68 yard TD doesn't get called back, the game is closer.
Leonard Fournette has arguably been the worst running back in football this year.
I guess you could argue that. It's a bad argument, but you could argue it.
Okay, so is Ryan Jensen's presence alone going to change the context in which he's played really poorly into one in which he could be a weapon? Brady goes his way in the passing game because they have no consistent third option (Gage has been hobbled and a disappointment, Julio Jones is washed, the two young TEs still aren't there mentally). He's done very little with his opportunities and I have no idea why anyone would project that to change against better competition.
This little conversation started with me stating, "If the Tampa OL is healthy and playing well...". Your response was that Fournette sucks. I replied that no he hasn't - the issue has been their offensive line. To which you replied with the above.
I'm arguing Leonard Fournette doesn't deserve to be cited among the reasons the Bucs would go on a playoff run in year-of-our-lord 2023, even if their OL plays well.
This is insane. Fournette has 73 catches this year, he's a weapon in the passing game. And the most yards receiving in his career in 2022.
The fact that he has 73 catches this year is maybe the purest reflection of the struggles they've had in pass protection and throwing the ball in general and helps explain why their offense is scoring more than 10 points per game less than last season. They have no good third receiving option and no actual receiving back, that coupled with a bad pass blocking OL means a ton of dumpoffs that go for 5 yards on 3rd and 9. If the Bucs make a run, it'll be because the OL holds and Brady can actually get the ball down field to his receivers, Fournette catching a lot of passes will very likely mean they're struggling in a similar way as they have all season on that side of the ball.
Would Trey Lance fetch a 1st rounder this year?
I agree they can’t keep everyone (e.g. McGlinchey is likely gone), but having two legit QB options making a combined $10M helps a ton with keeping the other top end talent like Bosa and Aiyuk.
Yep, it's all about making the right choices. Kwan Williams was a great slot corner, but they couldn't afford to keep him so Jimmy Ward at slot with Gibson at safety has worked out well.
Bosa had an option picked up. He's back in 2023. But they should sign him long term ASAP.
Ward, McGlinchey, Al-Shaair, and Moseley jump out as the key guys.
Ward just signed a 3 year deal last March, so he isn't going anywhere this offseason. Unless you're talking about the other Ward that messed up so many people in the game thread.
I like Jimmie Ward and I know Shanahan loves him. He's also one of the very very very few guys leftover from the non-Lynch Shanahan years.
I feel like some of this is people trying to squint to find fault. Purdy throwing to the wide open receivers is why Shanahan is throwing a lot more than with Jimmy or Trey. Kyle doesn’t want tight window throws because Jimmy kept throwing bad ints on them.
Isn’t the simplest answer that Purdy’s success so far is the result of both Shanahan and his play? Trey Lance looked like shit in Week 1 throwing the ball and we can’t use the young QB excuse with him because Purdy is a rookie who had even less experience . I don’t think anyone is claiming Purdy is some savant or anything but it’s impossible not to be impressed with his performance and the coaching staff who got him ready. How someone divides up the credit is up to the individual but I agree with you that it’s probably more Shanahan than Purdy but I don’t think Purdy should be short changed here. He stepped into a team that was/is primed for a SB run and hasn’t really blinked once.
Here's the thing. Brock Purdy may not be a future hall of famer, but he has risen to the occasion.
Maybe this further illustrates your point about how loaded the 49ers are - if Jennings was on the Patriots this season, where would he have ranked in their WR depth? I'd guess he'd be a starter in New England and on more than a few other teams.
Of course he's going to be overhyped. Dude is basically the first QB since Tom Brady to be so unknown he doesn't even have a true rookie card.
Agreed and to be clear, I wasn't suggesting that Purdy needs to be planned around. I was simply wondering if the absence of a lot of film of him works in the 9ers favor. I am guessing its mixed given how his lack of experience also limits their play calling.
I agree with most of this. My only caveat is to say I'm not sure if he's anything special yet, instead of he isn't. I say that because the kid is literally yet to fail. This might be the last week I can say that, but he hasn't had a single failure since entering a game in the 1st quarter vs a surging at the time Dolphins team. And he's not just winning because of the defense, he's putting up 35 points a game.
Purdy came through when the Niners were absolutely out of options and played at an extremely high level.
I think the easiest answer to a lot of this is:
I've watched just about every Jimmy snap in a 49ers uniform and agree with you. On the plus side, Jimmy has a great release. He gets it out incredibly fast and I think that shows up in his completions over the middle. On the negative, he (to my eye) became fixated with his first read, lacked mobility post-ACL, and didn't push it down field. Purdy fixes those three faults to varying degrees of success and has a similar release. He's not superman, but he is also a slightly better Jimmy thus far.
This is exactly the way I feel about this game. Dak can be had. Unless Parsons destroys the game, I can easily see a double digit 49ers win.
Well, if you also made some money today on SF kudos to you. The only game that surprised me was CIN-BUF so far but weather heavily impacted that.
