The return to the lineup of left offensive tackle Joe Staley was huge for the 49ers last week in their victory over the New York Giants.
With Staley back after missing a game with an injury to the area around an eye, Trent Brown was able to move back to right tackle. That gave the line some cohesion and it helped San Francisco’s blocking unit turn in its best game of the season. The 49ers were able to both run the ball and protect quarterback C.J. Beathard – something it hadn’t been able to do in the rookie’s previous starts. The blocking efficiency gives the 49ers some hope for improved offensive production over the final six games of this season.
San Francisco put up 474 yards of total, averaging 8.2 yards per play. Carlos Hyde and Matt Breida led a rushing attack that produced 186 yards in the Niners’ first win of the season after nine losses under first-year head coach Kyle Shanahan.
This week, the 49ers’ offensive line was graded as having the second-best performance in the NFL by Shaun O’Hara of NFL.com. O’Hara noted the linemen opened big holes for Hyde and Breida, and the pass protection was a huge step forward for the embattled group that had given up 32 sacks in its first nine games, all losses.
In the loss to Arizona the week before with Staley absent, Beathard was sacked five times and hit 16 times.
“Beathard was only touched twice in the contest, as the O-line allowed a single quarterback hit and one hurry,” O’Hara wrote. “Beathard notched the first victory of his NFL career, showing signs of improvement in almost every category.
“The third-round pick completed 19-of-25 passes for 288 yards and two touchdowns (against one interception). That equaled a 123.4 passer rating – the highest mark for a 49ers starting QB since Colin Kaepernick’s 128.2 in Week 6 of 2015.”
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The Niners also were able to convert on eight of 12 third-down plays.
To the veteran Staley, who was part of the 49ers team that went to three straight NFC title games and a Super Bowl under Jim Harbaugh, coming back to be part of the victory over New York was huge.
“I’ve been part of a lot of wins with this franchise over the 11 years I’ve been here,” Staley told the Bay Area News Group. “This win felt just as good as winning the NFC championship. I mean, it was unbelievable. Because I know how close this team is. On the outside looking in, we’re 0-9 and a young team. Not everybody sees what we see in the locker room. They don’t understand how close we are. No one has wavered. No one has pointed fingers. We’ve all just buckled down. That’s a tribute to Kyle and the leadership group that he brought in.”
The 49ers will resume play Sunday, Nov. 26 against the Seahawks.
