Jimmy G. or Shanahan... Who should shoulder more of the blame?

[Robotech]

He was also football ret**ded. Couldn't read a defense to save his life; repeated the same mistakes over & over again.

But is Jimmy better? I hope he is, but it's fair to question it at this point. Kaepernick played a much better Super Bowl than Jimmy did. Kaepernick also did more than just hand off the ball in his playoff wins.

 

[NinerSickness]

But is Jimmy better? I hope he is, but it's fair to question it at this point. Kaepernick played a much better Super Bowl than Jimmy did. Kaepernick also did more than just hand off the ball in his playoff wins.

Kaeptard couldn't do anything when defenses figured out all he could do is 1 read & run. Before that, he was a threat. At least Jimmy can run an offense (but not to the level the team needs, unfortunately).

I suppose if he had a receiver like Mahomes does (Hill), that might be enough to put him over the top. But that's a tall order, considering they have to keep the defense from falling apart.

Side note: why the f**k do they stick with RG Mike Person? He's worse than the backup. That guy is a hot poop sandwich.

 

[Robotech]

Kaeptard couldn't do anything when defenses figured out all he could do is 1 read & run. Before that, he was a threat. At least Jimmy can run an offense (but not to the level the team needs, unfortunately).

I suppose if he had a receiver like Mahomes does (Hill), that might be enough to put him over the top. But that's a tall order, considering they have to keep the defense from falling apart.

Side note: why the f**k do they stick with RG Mike Person? He's worse than the backup. That guy is a hot poop sandwich.

I'm still optimistic about Jimmy. His release and mechanics are good, he surely has better coaches than Kaepernick had, and the team is truly committed to him as the franchise QB. Every thing is lined up for Jimmy to have more success. The chances are against him, though, to make it to another Super Bowl.

The Niners will just have to hope that they find a young WR in the draft or already on the roster.

I don't really watch the offensive line play that much, but it didn't seem like Person was that bad this season.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I just dont get why anyone has to "be to blame". Jimmy played well. SF led late. KC won. It was a good game where the Chiefs offense proved to be better than the Niners D when it mattered most. Thats pretty much what most of us expected isnt it?

Well, from my vantage point, your next to last sentence is spot on....only you gloss over the details of the game.

SF was noted to have a very good OFC and very good DEF...SF had a two possession lead and the ball following a turnover with roughly 12 mins remaining...they did not score another point.

Jimmy G was 3 for 11 in the 4Q.

You can just chalk 20-31 up to what? Sure, the SF DEF was not up to the task for 60 mins, but the OFC wilted even more. With the game hanging in the balance, SF went away from their strengths when KC had not stopped it...that's one question that Shanahan should have to answer.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I'm still optimistic about Jimmy. His release and mechanics are good, he surely has better coaches than Kaepernick had, and the team is truly committed to him as the franchise QB. Every thing is lined up for Jimmy to have more success. The chances are against him, though, to make it to another Super Bowl.

The Niners will just have to hope that they find a young WR in the draft or already on the roster.

I don't really watch the offensive line play that much, but it didn't seem like Person was that bad this season.

Outsider POV

Jimmy G...no question he's a better QB, better option than Kaep. But, he's got some limitations. Clean pocket he's solid, under pressure, he's pretty average and I think Shanny knows that and probably won't trust him with the OFC as much as he did Matt Ryan. Still plenty of weapons and he's accurate...that will serve them well for the 16....Will have to get more out of him in JAN, can't rely on a repeat of this NFC postseason.

Mike Person...he had him in ATL. He knows the blocking scheme, serviceable, but not really a guy you want as your long term starting G.

DEF...I called it a very good DEF vs an elite QB, and while I think the SF OFC aided in the comeback, Mahomes just got too many chances late in that game and eventually was going to make a play. It's going to be curious to see how Lynch moves forward on this side of the ball.

 

[Robotech]

Outsider POV

Jimmy G...no question he's a better QB, better option than Kaep. But, he's got some limitations. Clean pocket he's solid, under pressure, he's pretty average and I think Shanny knows that and probably won't trust him with the OFC as much as he did Matt Ryan. Still plenty of weapons and he's accurate...that will serve them well for the 16....Will have to get more out of him in JAN, can't rely on a repeat of this NFC postseason.

Mike Person...he had him in ATL. He knows the blocking scheme, serviceable, but not really a guy you want as your long term starting G.

DEF...I called it a very good DEF vs an elite QB, and while I think the SF OFC aided in the comeback, Mahomes just got too many chances late in that game and eventually was going to make a play. It's going to be curious to see how Lynch moves forward on this side of the ball.

Jimmy is pretty good, but Kaepernick played a lot better in the Super Bowl. People build narratives on Super Bowl performance, so maybe Jimmy's behind Kaepernick as a Niner QB until he can get back to the Super Bowl and play better.

Mike Person is a great story. He gives you all that he can, but it just doesn't seem like he's all that talented. Otherwise he wouldn't bounce around the league like he has.

In the defense of the Niners D, I think that things were tilted in favor of the offense in this game. For example, I don't think there was a single holding call the entire game. Obviously, it's even, so I can't complain, but I just think that the Niners D shouldn't be judged too harshly. The 4th quarter blown lead had a lot more to do with the Niners offense not coming through.

 

[poewelch84]

As a 49ers fan I'm blaming them equally or maybe slightly skewed toward Shanahan like 60-40. The end of half debacle and moving away from the running game late were big mistakes on Shanahan's part. Garappolo missed some passes late to the right guy and on one of those plays it was to Kittle. So yeah they both can take some blame.

 

[flyerhawk]

Ultimately I would blame JG more than Shanahan. But I'm not sure how much blame I would give JG even.

The Niners won their games because they would build leads, run the ball down the throats of the other teams, and let their vicious pass rush feast on other teams.

Mahomes was simply superior to the pass rush. At least in the 4th quarter. JG wasn't really asked to put the team on his back all season. And its unclear if has that capability.

 

[Myles]

Ultimately I would blame JG more than Shanahan. But I'm not sure how much blame I would give JG even.

The Niners won their games because they would build leads, run the ball down the throats of the other teams, and let their vicious pass rush feast on other teams.

Mahomes was simply superior to the pass rush. At least in the 4th quarter. JG wasn't really asked to put the team on his back all season. And its unclear if has that capability.

What you wrote makes me believe you really put more blame on Shanahan. They built their lead, but did not run the ball.
You mentioned that JG wasn't asked to put the team on his back all season, but Kyle decided that with a 10 point lead in the 4th quarter of the Superbowl was the time to try it.

 

[flyerhawk]

What you wrote makes me believe you really put more blame on Shanahan. They built their lead, but did not run the ball.
You mentioned that JG wasn't asked to put the team on his back all season, but Kyle decided that with a 10 point lead in the 4th quarter of the Superbowl was the time to try it.

That really isn't true.

49ers vs. Chiefs - Play-By-Play - February 2, 2020 - ESPN

1st series after the Niners had a 20-10 lead to start the 4th quarter.

Run, short pass to Kittle(incomplete), run, pass, penalty, pass, pass, punt. He started with runs and safe passes.

Chiefs get the ball and score in 2:40 seconds. It's now a 3 point game with 6 minutes left.

Next drive is perhaps the one you can criticize but I think hindsight is in play here. Niners series. Run, short pass(incomplete), short pass(incomplete).

Chiefs get the ball again and march down and score in 2:26.

Now time matters and they can't just run the ball. They have to score a TD.

So that one series you could, perhaps, argue that they should have run on 2nd and 5 or 3rd and 5. But throwing the Kittle has been their bread and butter all season. JG simply couldn't hit him.

What people sometimes forget is that teams react to what the other team is doing. The Chiefs were loading up the line and challenging the Niners to throw.

I think it is a huge assumption to believe that the Niners would be able to kill an entire quarter running the ball.

 

[Tom Ace]

LOL @Tom Ace showing up again (at another terrible juncture), to tell the world how Jimmy G is an elite QB.

Blaming the defense when they counted for the majority of SF’s points, is about the sort of alternative reality necessary. Just quit while you’re comfortably behind.

Cool strawman. I'd expect nothing less. You're welcome to point out where I said he's elite. (Spoiler alert: I didn't)

The defense gave up 2 long touchdown drives (83 and 65 yards) in the final 9 minutes of the game, and then gave up another TD in two plays to cement the win for SF. If you want to criticize Garoppolo for playing well except toward the end of the game, as if that's what cost them, then the defense is even worse in this respect.

Again Mahomes is the biggest reason for KC's win. Also, your claim that the SF defense accounted for the majority of SF's points is just weird. It doesn't even make sense.

 

[Mofo]

Cool strawman. I'd expect nothing less. You're welcome to point out where I said he's elite. (Spoiler alert: I didn't)

"Top QB in the NFL" you said. Just last week, you're sucking his dick because his team's in the Super Bowl- despite horrible playoff numbers. In the end, there's not enough data to say if Jimmy G. is a better QB for SF than Colin Kaepernick. It did take a while for analysts to claim Kaepernick was a good QB though (and even longer to admit that he might've been overrated). Similarly, both guys had capable supporting casts on offense and a strong defense though.

The defense gave up 2 long touchdown drives (83 and 65 yards) in the final 9 minutes of the game, and then gave up another TD in two plays to cement the win for SF. If you want to criticize Garoppolo for playing well except toward the end of the game, as if that's what cost them, then the defense is even worse in this respect.

Again Mahomes is the biggest reason for KC's win. Also, your claim that the SF defense accounted for the majority of SF's points is just weird. It doesn't even make sense.

Held KC to 10 points in the first half. Picked KC off twice, sometimes scoring points off the turnover, almost recovered a fumble from Mahomes too. Defenses get tired as games go on. But Jimmy G. was not good; his picks looked Favre-esque in how reckless the throws were. Blaming the HC for stupid throws of the QB is more than a little unfair. I know you want to defend sunk cost, but a Trent Dilfer-like QB generally isn't going to be the hero. Jimmy G. didn't put his team in a situation to win. Putting all the blame on Shanahan is also disingenuous; the QB can call timeouts too.[/quote]

 

[gohusk]

Richard Sherman sure didn't do the 49ers any favors late in the game. He played awful. He really looks like he's done. It's gone from qb's avoiding where he is to qb's looking for him to pick on.

 

[mrschaney]

I say Shanahan. I think the 49ers had a great run game established and didn't need to pass so much, like the gameplan they had used throughout the playoffs. I think if they would have just kept running ball down the Chiefs throats, they would have easily won and kept the Chiefs offense off the field. But no, they wanted to showcase a QB like previous Super Bowls with Montana and Young. Some games call for a lot of passing, some games call for a game manager. No shame in a Super Bowl win if Jimmy G only had 100 yards.

 

[dtgold88]

I'm not sure about mostly, but it's so very true that luck is a big factor. I learned this from sports betting. You can research upcoming matches for hours on end and read all of the expert analyses from former players, former coaches, and so called gambling experts, and you can be betting on a sport that you feel you know very well, but ultimately, sporting events are not predictable with any level of consistency. I think the reason is because luck is a big factor, and it's impossible to predict how luck will go.

If they were there would be no Las Vegas as we know it.

 

[dtgold88]

But running it and getting a first down competes both goals. They've had no issues running the ball, it was their strength. Needing 5 yards in 2 downs seems like a running opportunity. If they got no gain on 2nd and 5, then they can throw the ball. Even a no gain rush runs the clock. So a failed play still is a positive. Kyle blew it.

why do you ignore the majority of their runs were for 0-2 yards (or less)?

 

[dtgold88]

They had more issues running inside than out and were getting double chipped on the edges later in the 2nd half. It's a nuanced call and I think either or is defensible here. The end of the first half was a lot more egregious than that sequence, imo.

Fans ignore this. They just see they averaged 6+ ypc so assume it's a given they get the first down.

You are correct. And the majority of their runs went for 0-2 yards. do that and you leave JG needing to pass. Not a good situation for him.

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

Richard Sherman sure didn't do the 49ers any favors late in the game. He played awful. He really looks like he's done. It's gone from qb's avoiding where he is to qb's looking for him to pick on.

Well, to be fair, Aaron Rodgers still avoids Sherman. In the NFCCG, he didn't throw a pass to that side until the 4th qtr. Lol.

 

[flyerhawk]

Richard Sherman sure didn't do the 49ers any favors late in the game. He played awful. He really looks like he's done. It's gone from qb's avoiding where he is to qb's looking for him to pick on.

He never had great speed and he's definitely lost a step. He can do well with a really good pass rush.

 

[dtgold88]

Yep, I lost a notch or two of respect for JG, I was fairly confident he'd play better than that. So, ok, he should get another playoff run or two, he can change the narrative (like Reid did yesterday)

IF reports are true, Belichick did all he could to keep Jimmy G and move on from Brady. That would have to count for something.