What’s wrong with 49ers? Is the Christian McCaffrey absence playing that big a factor in another slow start?

Another year, another slow start for the San Francisco 49ers. 

The defending NFC champions have been in this territory in recent years, having a .500 or worse record through the early stage of the season before rallying to garner one of the top seeds in the conference. This year, it feels different. 

Perhaps the uncertainty of Christian McCaffrey’s injury — and how long he is actually out — is playing a role. The 49ers have not had McCaffrey for a single game this season, finding a way to function without their best offensive player. There have been other injuries and internal factors that have affected the 49ers, who are off to a 2-3 start and don’t have a single victory against a division or conference opponent. 

Is the McCaffrey injury the key to the 49ers season? Or are there other issues why this team is off to a 2-3 start? 

The blown 10-point leads

Kyle Shanahan has a history of blown 10-point leads as the play caller in all three of his Super Bowl losses. That has carried over into 2024, as the 49ers have blown two double-digit second half leads through the first five games of the season. 

Of course both were to NFC West opponents. The 49ers led the Los Angeles Rams by 10 points in the fourth quarter before allowed 13 unanswered points to end the game and led the Arizona Cardinals by 13 points at halftime before going scoreless in the second half and losing. 

The 49ers have two blown 10+ point leads in the second half this season, while the rest of the NFL has two combined. They are the first team since the 2020 Atlanta Falcons with multiple losses holding a 10+ point lead in the fourth quarter over the first five games of a season. That Falcons team missed the playoffs. 

San Francisco is 23rd in the NFL in fourth quarter scoring (4.4 points per game), while ranking 29th in third down conversion rate allowed (50%) and 25th in yards per play allowed (5.6). The 49ers just…

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Author : Jeff Kerr

Publish date : 2024-10-10 14:40:42

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