49ers Mailbag: What can Kyle Shanahan do to fix receiving corps?
We had to put together a shorter mailbag than usual now that the 49ers are on a short week following Monday night’s loss to the Seahawks. Let’s get to your questions, starting with the receiving corps.
Box Kev asks: What changes, if any, can be made to this receiving corps?
They can get Emmanuel Sanders — and George Kittle, for that matter — healthy. Otherwise, all the team can hope for is getting improved play from Dante Pettis, Kendrick Bourne and the like.
The 49ers already made their big move in getting Sanders at the trade deadline. Perhaps the only bullet left in the chamber is rookie receiver Jalen Hurd, who isn’t expected to begin practicing this week. Hurd isn’t eligible to return from injured reserve until Dec. 1 against the Ravens, at the earliest.
Keep in mind, Hurd played in just over one preseason game and missed the majority of his first training camp. Once he returns, he’ll have to play well in practice to unseat players that have been on the field throughout the year. Does he know the offense? Can he develop chemistry with Jimmy Garoppolo so he can excel in the slot, where body language and the ability to read defenses after the snap is hugely important?
It would be tough to ask Hurd to be a massive part of the offense. It’s clear the 49ers need to get their top two pass catchers, Kittle and Sanders, back from injury.
That Guy asks: Why isn’t Richie James Jr. getting more snaps?
It’s a great question.
James didn’t play a single snap on offense Monday. That’s likely because the team had six receivers active for the first time all season. The offensive game plan didn’t include James — and he didn’t get on the field after Sanders left in the second quarter.
James has just five catches on the year. But he’s averaging 21.6 yards per completion. Perhaps one of San Francisco’s answers to address the receiving corps is getting James more involved. He has steady hands, is fearless and has been around long enough to know all three receiver positions.
If there’s a knock on James, it’s his run blocking, which is paramount to getting on the field in Kyle Shanahan’s offense.
Karen Guacamole asks: Would the O-line go back to starting Daniel Brunskill and Justin Skule then integrate Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey In later reps?
Only if Staley and McGlinchey aren’t healthy enough to play. They’re the team’s starting tackles. Full stop. And it will take a whole lot more than their lackluster performances from Monday to lose their starting jobs. The medical staff determined they were healthy enough to play, so they played.
Sometimes you get outplayed. Jadeveon Clowney had the best performance from any defensive player the 49ers have seen this year. He was the No. 1 draft pick in 2014 for exactly that reason.
One reason he was traded from Houston, however, was his inconsistencies. He hasn’t been able to string together those kinds of performances enough throughout his career.
49ers fans should be familiar with that feeling. It’s what Nick Bosa’s been doing all year to opposing offensive lines, no matter how good they are. Clowney wrecked that game.
Kevin You asks: How problematic could the early bye week be for the rest of the season?
It was the only real gripe the 49ers had with the schedule when it came out. Having the bye after three games, which was the earliest bye possible, didn’t really help anything aside from giving Staley an extra week as he recovered from his fractured fibula.
Making up for it was the recent “mini bye” the 49ers had between their Thursday night game against the Cardinals followed up by the Monday contest versus Seattle. It left 11 days between games, but it didn’t prove all that helpful given the team dealt with injuries to Kittle and Sanders in back-to-back weeks.
Surely they’d prefer to have a more traditional bye in the middle of the season which usually offers a better chance to get more players healthy. From here on out, the 49ers don’t have any extra time between games. They have a short week this week against Arizona and then another short week later when they play the Rams on Saturday, Dec. 21.
They’ll combat that by staying in Florida between their trips to Baltimore on Dec. 1 and New Orleans on Dec. 8. It worked between the first two games of the year when they stayed in Youngstown.
Jeff Stoefen asks: Had been wondering about Kentavius Street. Any chance we see him activated this season given Ronald Blair’s injury last night?
There’s a chance, but Shanahan said Tuesday he thinks Street is more of an interior rusher, similar to DeForest Buckner, Arik Armstead and Solomon Thomas. Street isn’t considered a natural defensive end.
That doesn’t mean he won’t be the one who gets the call. But the team is having tryouts on Wednesday, which include preseason standout Damontre Moore, according to a report from The Athletic. The team also has Jeremiah Valoaga on the practice squad. He led the team with 4.5 sacks in the preseason.
