OTA's 2022

[Yoop]

The reason I still believed we could win a SB even with our poor STs was because our defense was so good and offense had playmakers.

STs is the one group where a bad unit can escape with no impact because it's the easiest to "just get by". It has the most safe alternatives by kicking in the endzone, booting punts high and you expect to be able to block your guy for 2 seconds.

It's just that our STs literally couldn't even do the bear minimum basics when it came to it.

please list offensive play makers, I come up with 4, Rodgers, Adams, Jones, and Dillon, Dillon was hurt early, Rodgers was under pressure most of the game, Adams had double and even triple coverage at times, about the same with Jones, both did there part for plus 200 yrds, so we did lack play makers imo, we could not afford to lose Dillon, and even with him we where still short play makers, those four get it done during the season and against a average opponent, PO opponents bring there A game, there A defense, against that theres no such thing as to many playmakers.

[Drj820]

Saying our special teams was bad is doing a disservice to all the bad special teams unit out there.

That performance last season was the worst special teams in the history of the NFL. I’ve seen bad kickers. I’ve seen bad punters. I’ve seen bad holders, returners, long snappers, coverage teams. I’ve never seen a unit that was bad in every single phase of special teams.

Crosby had a bad year. I don’t think it was entirely on him but at the same time not being able to get the ball into the end zone on kick offs is entirely on him. Bojo was just as inconsistent as every other punter we’ve had here over the past decade and was an awful holder. Our long snappers both sucked. Our punt returner was uncomfortable, indecisive, and unreliable. Our coverage teams were a big play waiting to happen. Our protection units were bad on punts and field goals.

3/4 through the year it was blasphemy to point this out because we had destroyed our competition in the NFCN.

[Pckfn23]

No, it absolutely was not blasphemy to point that out last year. Pretty much EVERYONE agreed that the STs was very bad. The debate was around firing Drayton mid-season. Some didn't want to. Some felt it needed to happen. NO ONE believed the STs was even remotely fine.

[Yoop]

Saying our special teams was bad is doing a disservice to all the bad special teams unit out there.

That performance last season was the worst special teams in the history of the NFL. I’ve seen bad kickers. I’ve seen bad punters. I’ve seen bad holders, returners, long snappers, coverage teams. I’ve never seen a unit that was bad in every single phase of special teams.

Crosby had a bad year. I don’t think it was entirely on him but at the same time not being able to get the ball into the end zone on kick offs is entirely on him. Bojo was just as inconsistent as every other punter we’ve had here over the past decade and was an awful holder. Our long snappers both sucked. Our punt returner was uncomfortable, indecisive, and unreliable. Our coverage teams were a big play waiting to happen. Our protection units were bad on punts and field goals.

And look how long it took LaCoach to can the ST coach and hire a new one .....

I know normally this is a HC thing, but we are not a normally run operation, Murphy over see's everything, which includes the coaching hires, so Lafluer has to ask his approval to hire cords, and against popular belief around here, it's cheaper to promote a intern to cord, then to buy a proven prospect as we just did, ya get what ya pay for apply's in this situation to some extent.

also I think constant roster turnover which can't be helped in a D&D process hurts ST's chemistry, the longer players are together the easier it becomes to know what a team mate will do in a given situation.

[Labrev]

Our STs was a godawful unit last year, but in *THAT* game, the 49ers game? It's a lame excuse for the outcome.

It's one thing if your whole team plays well and your special teams lets up game-changing plays and points. In that case, yeah, makes sense to focus on STs as the problem. And that quite plausibly could have happened if we advanced, hence the need to fix it.

But that isn't what actually happened; our whole team didn't play well. Our defense was amazing, but the offense had one good drive (their first) and then were horrid from the Lewis fumble onward.

In the end, the ST's let up like 10 or 13 points. Our D let up 0. It's inexcusable for STs to let up that many points, yet the offense's job is to put more points on the board than the other team regardless of where those points come from, and 13 points(!!!) should not have been too much to ask for an offense with the league's MVP at home. The O's task was no different than if the ST let up 0 points, as is to be expected, and the defense let up 13 points, which would still be considered a great day by the defense and more than enough for even a middling offense to win the game.

[Yoop]

Our STs was a godawful unit last year, but in *THAT* game, the 49ers game? It's a lame excuse for the outcome.

It's one thing if your whole team plays well and your special teams lets up game-changing plays and points. In that case, yeah, makes sense to focus on STs as the problem. And that quite plausibly could have happened if we advanced, hence the need to fix it.

But that isn't what actually happened; our whole team didn't play well. Our defense was amazing, but the offense had one good drive (their first) and then were horrid from the Lewis fumble onward.

In the end, the ST's let up like 10 or 13 points. Our D let up 0. It's inexcusable for STs to let up that many points, yet the offense's job is to put more points on the board than the other team regardless of where those points come from, and 13 points(!!!) should not have been too much to ask for an offense with the league's MVP at home. The O's task was no different than if the ST let up 0 points, as is to be expected, and the defense let up 13 points, which would still be considered a great day by the defense and more than enough for even a middling offense to win the game.

there are reasons for the dismal offensive production, and they are valid excuses, for one we couldn't establish the run game,, and Rodgers often had no time to even read route progressions, the OL was a sieve, and once Dillon was hurt our skill positions amounted to Adams and Jones, and Lazard the few times he was able to get open, (2 targets, 1 catch for 6 yrds) minus our defense and the ability of Adams and Jones to at least burn clock and keep the Niners offense off the field and this would have been a blow out, and possibly our worst PO loss in the Rodgers era, the less skill position players you have to work with the easier it is for the opposing defense to defend them, still Jones and Adams produced about 240 yrds, so they sure did there part, same with Rodgers, people want to keep blaming these guys and all 3 played well enough for us to win, problem is those 3 are not enough.

[Labrev]

people want to keep blaming these guys and all 3 played well enough for us to win.

No.

[Realist]

The special teams excuse has gone way beyond lame. Pathetic.

[Backthepack4ever]

No, it absolutely was not blasphemy to point that out last year. Pretty much EVERYONE agreed that the STs was very bad. The debate was around firing Drayton mid-season. Some didn't want to. Some felt it needed to happen. NO ONE believed the STs was even remotely fine.

100%. I haven't seen a post that supported the STs in 10 years. We just arguing who thought it was worse than the other haha

[go pak go]

Our STs was a godawful unit last year, but in *THAT* game, the 49ers game? It's a lame excuse for the outcome.

It's one thing if your whole team plays well and your special teams lets up game-changing plays and points. In that case, yeah, makes sense to focus on STs as the problem. And that quite plausibly could have happened if we advanced, hence the need to fix it.

But that isn't what actually happened; our whole team didn't play well. Our defense was amazing, but the offense had one good drive (their first) and then were horrid from the Lewis fumble onward.

In the end, the ST's let up like 10 or 13 points. Our D let up 0. It's inexcusable for STs to let up that many points, yet the offense's job is to put more points on the board than the other team regardless of where those points come from, and 13 points(!!!) should not have been too much to ask for an offense with the league's MVP at home. The O's task was no different than if the ST let up 0 points, as is to be expected, and the defense let up 13 points, which would still be considered a great day by the defense and more than enough for even a middling offense to win the game.

Yup. Just like the 2014 Title game, the offense was simply terrible and never took advantage of the multiple opportunities the defense gave them.

[lupedafiasco]

I have never understood for the life of me how anything but special teams could get the blame in 2014 or last season considering if they just execute and don’t give up scores on special teams you win the game.

That’s not even to mention executing field goal protection or onside kick recovery.

Honest to god people just want to hate Rodgers every chance they get. I’ve never understood it.

[Labrev]

Honest to god people just want to hate Rodgers every chance they get. I’ve never understood it.

Yeah, some people can never understand nuance, so (to them) it has to be as black-and-white as just hate or worship for Rodgers.

[go pak go]

The reason I still believed we could win a SB even with our poor STs was because our defense was so good and offense had playmakers.

STs is the one group where a bad unit can escape with no impact because it's the easiest to "just get by". It has the most safe alternatives by kicking in the endzone, booting punts high and you expect to be able to block your guy for 2 seconds.

It's just that our STs literally couldn't even do the bear minimum basics when it came to it.

please list offensive play makers, I come up with 4, Rodgers, Adams, Jones, and Dillon, Dillon was hurt early, Rodgers was under pressure most of the game, Adams had double and even triple coverage at times, about the same with Jones, both did there part for plus 200 yrds, so we did lack play makers imo, we could not afford to lose Dillon, and even with him we where still short play makers, those four get it done during the season and against a average opponent, PO opponents bring there A game, there A defense, against that theres no such thing as to many playmakers.

If Adams had triple coverage, then 2 WRs were wide open.

And the strange thing is...there are specific plays where that was the case.

[go pak go]

I have never understood for the life of me how anything but special teams could get the blame in 2014 or last season considering if they just execute and don’t give up scores on special teams you win the game.

That’s not even to mention executing field goal protection or onside kick recovery.

Honest to god people just want to hate Rodgers every chance they get. I’ve never understood it.

This is exactly what I was meaning when saying I still had hope last year we could win it all even with an obvious terrible STs unit because the expectation still exists that a STs can block for 2 seconds or not royally screw up basic plays.

But I would also say I expected our offense to produce more than 13 points of production. Like being that ineffective is also not good. My bar is usually hope the defense can hold a team under 20 points. Which means I expect our offense to put up 21 points or more.

[Drj820]

There is a difference between the following things:

1) Our special teams are bad, many teams have a weakness to overcome

2) Our special teams are all time awful but it can be overcome (most people were here)

3) Our special teams are all time awful. It will sabotage this team in the playoffs when the margin for error is so tight. We win not win a Súper bowl this year because of special teams.

Those three things are not saying the same thing

[lupedafiasco]

I have never understood for the life of me how anything but special teams could get the blame in 2014 or last season considering if they just execute and don’t give up scores on special teams you win the game.

That’s not even to mention executing field goal protection or onside kick recovery.

Honest to god people just want to hate Rodgers every chance they get. I’ve never understood it.

This is exactly what I was meaning when saying I still had hope last year we could win it all even with an obvious terrible STs unit because the expectation still exists that a STs can block for 2 seconds or not royally screw up basic plays.

But I would also say I expected our offense to produce more than 13 points of production. Like being that ineffective is also not good. My bar is usually hope the defense can hold a team under 20 points. Which means I expect our offense to put up 21 points or more.

I’m sure the Chiefs expected more from Mahomes against the Buccs in the SB the year before as well but when you’re down both your OTs and play an injured Turner at LT against a good defense that’s kind of what you get from an offense.

[go pak go]

I have never understood for the life of me how anything but special teams could get the blame in 2014 or last season considering if they just execute and don’t give up scores on special teams you win the game.

That’s not even to mention executing field goal protection or onside kick recovery.

Honest to god people just want to hate Rodgers every chance they get. I’ve never understood it.

This is exactly what I was meaning when saying I still had hope last year we could win it all even with an obvious terrible STs unit because the expectation still exists that a STs can block for 2 seconds or not royally screw up basic plays.

But I would also say I expected our offense to produce more than 13 points of production. Like being that ineffective is also not good. My bar is usually hope the defense can hold a team under 20 points. Which means I expect our offense to put up 21 points or more.

I’m sure the Chiefs expected more from Mahomes against the Buccs in the SB the year before as well but when you’re down both your OTs and play an injured Turner at LT against a good defense that’s kind of what you get from an offense.

If 13 points is "what you get" then we had no shot at a SB regardless.

13 points is not winning football. It was only close to winning football because our defense was elite, elite, elite level that night and Jimmy G's receivers dropped a number of passes in the first half to not execute on plays that were there.

[bud fox]

This is exactly what I was meaning when saying I still had hope last year we could win it all even with an obvious terrible STs unit because the expectation still exists that a STs can block for 2 seconds or not royally screw up basic plays.

But I would also say I expected our offense to produce more than 13 points of production. Like being that ineffective is also not good. My bar is usually hope the defense can hold a team under 20 points. Which means I expect our offense to put up 21 points or more.

I’m sure the Chiefs expected more from Mahomes against the Buccs in the SB the year before as well but when you’re down both your OTs and play an injured Turner at LT against a good defense that’s kind of what you get from an offense.

If 13 points is "what you get" then we had no shot at a SB regardless.

13 points is not winning football. It was only close to winning football because our defense was elite, elite, elite level that night and Jimmy G's receivers dropped a number of passes in the first half to not execute on plays that were there.

Packers Off outscored 49ers Off - they didnt score a td.

When playing in freezing bad weather against a good def you shouldn't expect up and down football. Special teams even more important for cold/bad weather teams.

[lupedafiasco]

This is exactly what I was meaning when saying I still had hope last year we could win it all even with an obvious terrible STs unit because the expectation still exists that a STs can block for 2 seconds or not royally screw up basic plays.

But I would also say I expected our offense to produce more than 13 points of production. Like being that ineffective is also not good. My bar is usually hope the defense can hold a team under 20 points. Which means I expect our offense to put up 21 points or more.

I’m sure the Chiefs expected more from Mahomes against the Buccs in the SB the year before as well but when you’re down both your OTs and play an injured Turner at LT against a good defense that’s kind of what you get from an offense.

If 13 points is "what you get" then we had no shot at a SB regardless.

13 points is not winning football. It was only close to winning football because our defense was elite, elite, elite level that night and Jimmy G's receivers dropped a number of passes in the first half to not execute on plays that were there.

We didn’t have a shot. I said in October if the team didn’t figure out it’s special teams issue it would be a quick 1 game playoff exit. It was.

[lupedafiasco]

So this is the way playoff football goes. I feel like this is common knowledge but apparently that is not the case.

Now you can’t be dreadful in the secondary like we were in say 2016 but teams with average secondaries and strong pass rushes always improve in the playoffs. The NFL knows casual fans tune in for the playoffs. No fan wants to watch a flag fest and the refs know this as well. DBs get away with a little more contact and it forces the receivers to win based on skill and technique.

The 49ers were one of those teams with the strong pass rush and average at best secondaries. We however were down both OTs and our only field stretching weapon in MVS. Throw in a bust in Deguara, a useless in the passing game Lewis, and losing what would have been a great game for Dillon and you have an offensively handicapped team.

The offense just needed to not screw up… which Lewis did. The defense just needed to play well. The special teams just needed to do what is expected of playoff caliber units.

If you expect 2016 Rodgers vs the Cowboys in every game you’re expectations are absurd.