Grading San Francisco 49ers offensive line through 5 games

It's time to take stock.

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Now that the San Francisco 49ers' offensive line has played five games, there is enough of a sample to dig into the individual analysis of these players. How has the 49ers offensive line looked so far?

Trent Williams

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Williams has been solid, but just a notch below his typical, elite level of play that would make him the unanimous best left tackle in the NFL. He has had a few slip-ups here and there in pass protection, particularly in the games against Seattle, Jacksonville, and Los Angeles. 

He looked rusty in Week 1, but beyond that, he has still been a high-end run blocker. 

Grade: B+

Ben Bartch 

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Bartch played all of Week 1 and was fine. He was not spectacular but certainly could have been worse. However, he got hurt 10 snaps into his second game, which will muddy the evaluation.

He is expected back in the next couple of weeks, and while the team hoped that his replacement would take the reins, the team will likely need Bartch healthy if they want to make a playoff run. 

Grade: C

Connor Colby 

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It is hard to grade Colby because he is a seventh-round rookie. In most cases, making the team and being active are considered wins. However, if you are grading him as a starter, he is the worst player of the top 22 players.

Colby has looked comfortable in the run scheme, but he loses to speed, power, talented rushers, and no-name players. They have to go back to Bartch at the rate that Colby is playing. 

Grade: F

Jake Brendel 

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Jake Brendel is a serviceable, replacement-level center. At times, he misses blocks at the second level and is not quite athletic enough to unlock the entirety of the Kyle Shanahan scheme.

However, he has power in the run game and does well picking up stunts in pass protection. 

Grade: C 

Dominick Puni

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Puni has been a major disappointment. It is easy to brush this off and say that he came into the season with an injury lingering from the preseason. However, we have to grade him as a starter, and he is not helping in the ways he did as a rookie.

The hope is that he can get healthier as the year goes on because there are flashes, but too many moments where he gets beat clean.

Grade: D

Colton McKivitz

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McKivitz will struggle against the smaller, speedier rushers at times, but overall, he has been passable in pass protection. The team has been very happy with his run blocking as well, which is a big reason why they extended him.

Grade: B