Sports Illustrated Ranks 49ers' Offensive Triplets 7th-Best in NFL

The 49ers revamped lots of their roster this offseason, but they kept their offensive triplets intact.

Jan 28, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) hands the ball off to running back Christian McCaffrey (23) during the first half of the NFC Championship football game at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images | Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

The 49ers revamped lots of their roster this offseason, but they kept their offensive triplets intact.

"Triplets" are a team's starting quarterback, lead rusher and lead pass catcher. When the 49ers won the Super Bowl in 1995, their triplets were Steve Young, Ricky Watters and Jerry Rice.

This year, their triplets are the same ones they had when they lost the Super Bowl most recently -- Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle. And this group is the NFL's seventh-best offensive trio according to Sports Illustrated's Matt Verderame.

"If San Francisco can stay healthy, expect its offense to return to top-end form," writes Verderame. "Purdy has a new contract and is hoping to bounce back from a relatively down year, going for 3,864 passing yards and 20 touchdowns in 15 games. McCaffrey is also trying to rebound after playing in just four games, while Kittle is coming off a fantastic campaign of 1,106 yards and eight touchdowns."

Verderame makes good points, but expecting a 29-year-old running back to stay healthy and return to prime form after tearing his PCL and suffering from bilateral Achilles tendonitis seems like a stretch. And without McCaffrey at his best, this trio doesn't seem nearly as scary.

Kittle had a great season individually last year, but Purdy did not -- his efficiency took a major dip without McCaffrey on the field. McCaffrey is the force multiplier who makes everyone else better, not Kittle or Purdy. And unless McCaffrey has one more Hall-of-Fame-caliber season in him, this group could drop in the rankings.