Assigning Blame for the 49ers' Humiliating Loss to the Broncos

Can't blame the 49ers defense for their Week 3 loss in Denver. It was great, other than not forcing any turnovers.

The Broncos are the only NFL team in the last 30 years to win a game despite having at least 8 more 3-and-outs than their opponent (Broncos had 9, 49ers had 1).
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) September 26, 2022

Can't blame special teams, either, other than no big kick returns or big punt returns.

Can't blame Trey Lance, as he's out for the season.

I blame Jimmy Garoppolo the most. Lots of inaccurate throws, including one that Deebo Samuel caught where he went out of bounds that likely would've been a touchdown if the throw was on target. Another one was way behind Samuel that allowed K'waun Williams to break up the pass. Another pass to Samuel in traffic resulted in a dagger interception by former 49ers linebacker Jonas Griffith. The worst pass might've been the one that was on target to Brandon Aiyuk, who was blanketed by Patrick Surtain II, while Samuel ran free for what could've been an easy touchdown on a blown coverage by the Broncos. If that's not enough, Garoppolo lost a fumble on what appeared to be a good snap from Jake Brendel. Stepping out of the end zone for a safety was the difference in the score of the game. The Niners offense scored 10 points. The Broncos offense scored only 9 points. The crazy part is that stepping out of the end zone kept Garoppolo from throwing a pick 6. Bravo, Jimmy!

Where is the We Are Better With Jimmy G Crew now?

Here are the 49ers offensive third-down conversion splits by quarterback this season.

Trey Lance: 47.4%
Jimmy Garoppolo: 26.1%
— Grant Cohn (@grantcohn) September 26, 2022

I think some people are stuck in 2019 when they talk about Garopollo.

After starting 19-5, #49ers are 12-10 since 2020 with Garoppolo starting. Jimmy’s thrown 18 INTs & lost 4 fumbles in those 22 games.

In 46 regular season starts as SF’s starter, Garoppolo’s thrown 39 INTs & lost 9 fumbles (48 total turnovers). 49 if you count the safety.
— Al Sacco (@AlSacco49) September 26, 2022

I blame the offensive line the second most. Not for Trent Williams going down, which was huge, but for the interior playing poorly and committing multiple penalties. Spencer Burford struggled the most, but he is also likely to improve. I blame Mike McGlinchey for a costly hold and many whiffed blocks in pass protection. He is very unlikely to improve at this point.

I have resisted blaming Kyle Shanahan for a long time, but that is starting to change, after two games in which the Niners offense failed to score 11 points out of their first three games. Yes, one was a monsoon. Yes, last week was Garoppolo's first week of practice with starting quarterback reps. Yes, Shanahan has had some subpar and/or young quarterbacks, but he chose them and he ran Trey Lance too often and way too often up the middle.

The 49ers offense currently ranks 23rd in yards gained and 28th in points scored. Chip Kelly must be proud.
— Grant Cohn (@grantcohn) September 26, 2022

At least Shanahan admitted that he was part of the problem.

Kyle Shanahan on what he could've done better:

"I thought we made way too many mistakes across the board. To me, that always starts with coaching... There's too much stuff going on like that. We got to make sure guys are more consistent... That always starts with me."
— Jake Hutchinson (@hutchdiesel) September 26, 2022

The 49ers are 1-2, which isn't too far off for the 2-1 record that I had predicted before the season started. The season isn't over, but I'm very concerned about the next 4-6 games without Trent Williams. Injuries in general seem to be way to common and that seems to be the norm for this team since Shanahan took over. He needs to continue his ownage of the Rams next Monday at Levi's Stadium if the Niners want to have a realistic shot at making the playoffs this season.