Forty Niners Forever

At the beginning of the season, there were very few prognosticators touting the greatness of the Jaguars. Shit, even local boy ROB!!! didn’t really think the Jags were all that. Most predicted a 7-9 record as their best-case scenario. And the rest were saying 4-12. Thing is, the Jags have had 5 games vs teams with winning records. Baltimore (44-7 win), Pittsburgh (30-9 win); Tenn (37-16 loss), LA Rams (27-7 loss), and Seattle (30-24 win). Not too shabby till you see that they lost to the Jets and the Cards amid their wins over shit teams like Cinn, Cleve, Hou, and Indy. They have us and Tenn, so that’s a grand total of 6 games vs winning teams. And Tenn may not even finish with a winning record, which would knock that down to 4 games.

Blake Bortles is doing his best Alex Smith impression by being conservative and not turning the ball over amid the 250 yard passing days, and the running of Leonard Fournette. And, of course, their epic defense. They are #1 in points allowed, turnovers, and sacks. Sounds like a pretty imposing thing, but then again, they have feasted on the bottom-feeders of the NFL, mainly their compadres in the AFC South.

Thing is, this could very well be the 49ers next year. We could  be the surprise team that takes the league by storm. The 49ers have a weak last-place schedule in 2018, and this favors us immensely going forward. As it did for Jacksonville this season. The 49ers this season play 10 games vs winning teams, but that will change dramatically next year.

Glancing at the sched,

• HOME: CHI, DEN, DET, OAK, NYG, AZ, LAR, SEA
• AWAY: GB, KC, LAC, MIN, TB, AZ, LAR, SEA

and we see 2 home games vs teams with winning records (LAR, Sea), and 4 road games vs teams with winning records (KC, LAR, Sea, Minn). Granted, this is a fluid situation as GB looks to be better with Aaron Rodgers back, but really, AZ is on a downward spiral, and Seattle may very well follow them down. The Rams are the team to beat now, but the Giants, Denver, Detroit, LAC, TB, Oak, and AZ should all be wins. Take one from Sea and that’s 9 wins right there.

10 wins is a possibility, but 9-7 seems pretty achievable.

Well, the Jimmy G story just got a little more cred as the 49ers beat a solid playoff contender in the Tennessee Tuxedos and our ex-WR-turned-TE Delanie Walker. Walker paid early dividends for us by dropping a TD and fumbling, the drop gave us 4 points on the FG, and the fumble led to our only TD of the day, But the story of the day was the passing attack.

Jimmy G was 31-43 for 381 yards and a score. He didn’t take as many shots as last week, but did get sacked 3 times. He threw passes to 10 different receivers, including himself, and including 10 for 114 to Marquise Goodwin.  The defense had a very mixed day but in the end did a good enough job to keep the score close. Close enough for the last FG drive with 1:20 left in the game.

Encouraging signs were the 7-14 3rd down conversions and the 414 total yards. Discouraging were the red zone struggles, the lack once again of a pass rush, the 7 penalties (better than recent games but some really killer ones), and the 6-12 3rd down conversion rate given up.

In the end though, a solid win against a playoff team.

Hey I don’t know. I don’t know too much about the Titans, but Mariota is having a strange year and the Titans are all over the place. Our 3 wins are against teams with a combined 10-30 record, so no great shakes. A win against the Titans would be an indicator of actual improvement over a playoff team. Then again, we are hurt, undermanned, and young. Things that have affected us all year.

Still, if they can somehow get the penalties under control, and keep consistent pressure up on Marcus Mariota, they could come out of this with win #4. Not holding my breath, but I think they pull this one out.

I had 27-14 last week. Not bad.

Today? 31-20. . .

Call me Mr. Rosey Sunglasses, but for me, I think the 49ers aren’t that far away. As proven earlier this year, we were close in 5 games with one of the thinnest and shittiest lineups in the league, and we could have been 5-1 from the get-go. Now we are winning some close ones, and the team seems to be gathering momentum and learning how to win. As shakey as all the play has been, we have some talent, but no depth. To me, the minimum number of things we need are:

a) A #1 WR
b) A consistent pass rusher
c) A strong CB
d) A guard

That’s bare minimum. Sure it sounds like a lot, and we need more depth at CB, O line, and WR, but as parity often shows, any given team can make the jump (well, not the Browns) to relevancy quickly. No one picked the Jags to be this dominant, and really, no one saw the Saints riding this high.

The places where we are fairly solid are quarterback (shocking!), interior D line, RB, and safety. I’m on the fence with our TEs. Kittle is OK, and Celek is OK as well. Hikutami (sp?) was hurt and is unknown, but a big red zone target would be nice.

So there you have it. Barring injuries, this team could very well be on its way soon. Next year’s schedule is easier than this year’s:

HOME
Chicago (4-9)
Denver (4-9)
Detroit (7-6)
Oakland (6-7)
New York Giants (2-11) or Washington (5-8)
Arizona (6-7)
Los Angeles Rams (9-4)
Seattle (8-5)
AWAY
Green Bay (7-6)
Minnesota (10-3)
Kansas City (7-6)
Los Angeles Chargers (7-6)
Tampa Bay (4-9)
Arizona
Los Angeles Rams

Amazingly our furthest trip east is Green Bay. But wins right off the bat appear to be Chi, Denver, Det, maybe Oak, NYG, TB. AZ is trending way down so that could be 8 right there. The Rams and Seattle are the big dogs at this point, and Minn, KC, and Green Bay on the road look daunting. Shit even the Chargers are a challenge. but we stand to possibly get above .500 next year.

We shall see.

Talk about enigmatic. The Titans were a team at the start of the year that was destined for greatness. Yes, they have played well, very well at times, but they have also stank pretty bad as well. This is a team that beat the Seahawks and Jaguars, but lost to the Raiders, Miami,  and stunningly to the Texans 57- 14. AZ just beat them as well.

Still and all they are 8-5 and in the playoff chase. Mainly from beating the dregs of the NFL. They barely beat the Browns 12-9, the Colts 20-16, and got their revenge on the Texans 24-13. Marcus Mariota has been less than consistent, what with 10 TDs and 14 picks. He’s either hot or cold. The run game is solid with DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry putting up decent numbers. Ex-Niner Delanie Walker is still playing well despite his usual issue of the all-important drop at the worst possible time.  Rookie speedster Corey davis has gotten off to a slow start, but he’s a dangerous WR that we need to track.

Us? Well, we are on the ‘up’ escalator finally so there is reason to think we can pullthis off for an unprecedented 3 game winning streak. That is provided we get our CBs in order (sorry Dontae), and keep up with the pressure. The 49ers did a good job harassing Long Tom Savage in the 1st half, but the 2nd half of Rowdy Yates saw less pressure as Houston adjusted. Still and all, we won that game on the back of Jimmy Garoppolo and his accurate passing.

I would be thrilled to see the run game get going as this would lessen the amount of shots that Jimmy G is taking. He stood tall under a lot of pressure and a lot of hits this last game. Hopefully we get Trent Brown back as he and Joe Staley set the edges and keep Garoppolo upright. Beadles shifting to tackle is painful to watch. The shuffling that goes with it leads to stretches of false starts, holding calls, and general suckitude. Most of the team’s penalties stem from bad line play. Straighten that out, and we’ve solved a big problem.

After a bit of a shakey start, and a hiccup trying to cover DeAndre Hopkins, the 49ers won their second game in a row. Jimmy G himself had a bad start as he threw an early pick that led to a Houston field goal. But he settled down and threw for 334 yards and a TD to go along with the early mistake. He took shots all day and stood tall in the pocket. His ability to throw flat-footed is pretty amazing given the accuracy he possesses. The hope is that he doesn’t take this kind of abuse week in and week out, but Houston’s defense, even without JJ Watt is pretty tough.

Hyde had a good game running, but inexplicably alligatored a sure TD by slowing down and missing a sure TD. Goodwin looked a lot more comfortable with Garoppolo as his thrower, and had 6 for 106. Juschzckycldk made a spectacular catch on the sideline on a that went for  30, and Garrett Celek had himself a game as well with some nice catches and a short TD. For all the action Nuke Hopkins got, The D had a 4th and 1 stop, a lot of early pressure, and a forced fumble by Adrian Colbert on a great hit to Nuke. The game got a little dicey when Tom Savage was knocked out of the game, and TJ Yates came in and led a quick TD drive early in the 2nd half to give Houston a 16-13 lead, but the 49ers behind Garoppolo scored 13 unanswered point to put the game away.

Garoppolo was only sacked twice, but took around 10 hard shots during the game, if not more. The line play was spotty at best, if not awful at times as Beadles struggled his way through playing RT in place of Trent Brown, and Tomlinson had a couple holds and a false start to add to the miasma of flags called against the team. Dontae Johnson had the unenviable task of trying to cover Hopkins, and was benched for his efforts in favor of rookie Greg Mabin.

All in all, a strong effort against a decent team. A road win is a road win in a road win. A tough accomplishment for any team. Just ask the Raiders . . .

The Niners are back on the road, looking for that elusive 2 game winning streak. Something not accomplished since the stagger down the stretch that was the Harbaugh exit back in 2014. That 7-4 mark was followed by a) Brady Hoke being fired from Michigan; and b) the 49ers losing their next 4 games to fall out of the playoff race. Coincidence? Who knows? And that is a whole other story.

The story now is the Jimmy Garoppolo era. And whether he can win 2 road games to kick off his 49ers career. No mean feat, as the Bears defense isn’t bad, and neither is Houston’s, although they have been hit with the injury bug as well. In a big way. DeShaun Watson was having a stellar offensive start to his career when he tore his ACL in practice leading up to game 5. Then J.J. Watt broke his leg in that week 5 against KC.But they do still have Jadaveon Clowney, so he’s always a threat. But their promising start was derailed and they are now relying on ex-porn star Tom Savage to salvage their season. 2-6 ain’t getting it done however.

That leaves Jimmy G and the slowly healthying up 49ers. Trent Brown is back, as well as Joe Staley and Eric Reid. The D line is gradually getting more and more pressure, and rattling Savage shouldn’t be too difficult. That leaves it to our offense getting into the end zone.  2 in a row!

The playoff picture is pretty muddy, but hey, we’re getting close so, double-you tee eff.

The haves in both conferences are pretty cut-and-dried in Pittsburgh and NE in the AFC and the Vikes and Eagles in the NFC. Color me blown away that the Vikes are smoking hot under Case Keenum, but no one saw this coming. Sam Bradford went down quickly in game 1 with a knee injury, and then a setback trying to come back in game 5. Case got off to a slow start, but after a 1-2 start, the Vikings have reeled off 8 straight wins. Sure, Case is only 14th, but most thought Minn was doomed without him.

Philly on the other hand is flying high under Carson Wentz. A guy who I thought was a reach, but hey, I don’t get paid for being right or wrong.

In the AFC it’s (surprise) New England and Pittsburgh. No surprise there. NE is riding Tom Terrific through the express-lane to the playoffs that is the AFC East. Pittsburgh usually has a tougher slog to the playoffs, what with Baltimore and Cincinnati in their division (witnessed by the ultra-violent game that was last night’s).

All these teams are 10-2. The AFC however has a lot of tier II teams beating the shit out of each other, including the entire AFC West. KC, the Raiders, and the LA Clippers are neck and neck in quicksand at 6-6. KC of course being the team going in the wrong direction. Poor Alex Smith had the team at 5-1 and have gone 1-5 for various different reasons. The Sacksonville Jags are the biggest surprise with Blake Bortles leading the charge. The Titans are another mirage destined for their one and done.

The NFC? Well, they have a whole set is strong talent in the mix for WC with the Rams as surprise West winners, and the resurgent Panthers and Saints. And of course the always-dangerous Seahawks. Looks like a great playoff run this year.

Us? Well, we have a fairly good shot of winning 3 of 4 down the stretch for a stellar 5-11 record. No mean feat based on where we started. Why not? Might as well hit the offseason with some confidence. Jimmy G needs to build on his nice game last week and get into the end zone. For a guy who has llimited playbook knowledge, he looks pretty good.

Yes, it was a game that looked like a lot of games this year. Too many penalties (waaay too much Ed Hochuli), too many mental mistakes, and not enough touchdowns. But, a funny thing happened on the way to the loss. The once and future quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo, engineered a game winning drive, starting from their own 8, to lead the Robbie (red and ex-Bear) Goulds to a 15-12 win.  In Chi-town no less.

No mean feat, as the Bears and their QB savior Mitch Trubiski came up short as the 49er defense had a good day in holding Chicago to one TD. These two teams will be forever tied together by the draft-day trade that John Lynch made with the Bears. The one that gave SF Solomon Thomas AND Reuben Foster, AND a 2nd round pick next year.

Thing is, this would have been a hard loss to swallow as the 49ers dominated the game statistically. In numbers not seen hardly ever, the Niners held the ball for nearly 39 minutes to a paltry 21 and change for Chicago. We crushed them in yards (388 to 147), 1st downs (23 to 8), passing (278 to 85), rushing (110 to 62), and unfortunately, penalties (8-53 to 4-29).

The penalties were the issue keeping the 49ers out of the end zone, and drive after drive stalled in the red zone. Flexin’ Ed missed an illegal block in the back on Chicago’s improbable punt return for a TD, as that looked like the game-winning play, and made seemingly random calls to stall drives late in the game. But still and all, a nice road win for a team that is trying to find their identity.

Jimmy Go certainly looks the part of being the franchise QB as he threw the ball well, had a commanding presence in the pocket, and had a contested pass that was actually a completion wrestled away from Louis Murphy for a pick and his only blemish. And the defense kept Chicago out of the red zone most of the day. A solid day for an upstart team.

Bleacher Report is, uh, reporting that Jimmy Garoppolo has been named the starting quarterbacker for the upcoming Chicago Bears game. Time to show the world if the braintrust knows what they are up to. So it looks like barring yet another injury, Jimmy G will be the starter for the rest of the season, as in the next 4 games.

Huzzah.

Thing is, this is the part of the schedule that I thought the team would be coalescing around their young buck coach and  gaining momentum as we head off into the sunset and the bright future with our new QB. Instead,  the team is in tattered rags around him. The latest to hit the bricks is back up RT Erik Magnuson, who is out with a foot sprain, and Trent Brown is still day-to-day with his shoulder injury. The backup to the backup is rookie Darrell Williams Jr, or (gulp) Zane Beadles. Magnuson kinda sucked at center, and the rest of the line has been shakey as fuck, so . . . I hope Jimmy G has a quick trigger finger. He may have a very short run.

In other news, ST star gunner, Raheem Mostert is heading to the IR with a knee injury, and free safety Adrian Colbert, who looked great against the Giants, is questionable for the Bears game.  Woof!