The Seattle losses all fit the same pattern in recent years.

Originally posted by SanDiego49er:
You make some interesting points there and I agree with some. I hope they begin to get depleted by FA over the next few years.

to be honest some very subjective points. But maybe the more subjective ones come into play more if they lose a number of guys to free agency.

Originally posted by Dr_Bill_Walsh:
roman doesnt know how to do shiiiiyyyyeeettttt

/thread

What do you want him to do different with a QB who can do 1 read?

Originally posted by Dr_Bill_Walsh:
roman doesnt know how to do shiiiiyyyyeeettttt

/thread

What do you want him to do different with a QB who can do 1 read?

Well, let's just all throw up our hands and say we're doomed vs Seattle. B.S.!! We lost Sunday's game because Kap didn't take care of the football in the 4th qtr...he's fessed up to that. The officiating didn't help, either. Not just my opinion...it was shared by Mike Pareia (sp). At any rate, this game could've gone either way...we proved we can go toe-to-toe with those guys. Despite Kap's lapses, he outplayed Wilson. Defense was simply outstanding. All this crap about Harbaugh's offense not being good enough to win is also B.S. It's about the execution...that needs to get better. For whatever faults Kap has, he's also taken this team to the SB and NFC Championship his first 1.5 yrs as starter. As Joe Montana said, he needs to fine tune his game to get to the next level and his team to their 6th NFL Championship. I'd expect Lattimore to be the starting RB next year...love Gore, but let's face it, his best games are behind him. True enough, he dearly missed Bruce Miller, but the difference was Lynch didn't go down with the first hit, Gore did. We counter Seattle's "beast mode" with Lattimore, things will even out, I guarantee they will. Definitely need a speed WR to stretch the field. The offense needs to use Patton, McDonald & Hunter more. Feature Dixon in short ydg/goal line situations...he can get the job done. Don't tell me we can't make up for 2 inches short on Kap's pass to beat these guys next year.

I was reading an article on bleacher report that brought up some items mentioned in the OP's list.

The one point that hit me the hardest was the same issue I've been frustrated with all season.

The 49ers employ a lot of motions and formations to run a fairly simple set of plays. They depend on the defense worrying about not being placed correctly to create openings. However, the plays themselves (the type of run/pass and direction) can fit on a Tecmobowl playbook.

The better defenses don't bite and sink their defenders to where they anticipate the play instead of worrying about a potential formation imbalance.

This is compounded by the fact that they seem to know what play will ultimately be called; making formation imbalances mute because they already know where to run.

Fact is, Pete Carroll isn't an idiot, neither are many other NFL coaches. Rams figured this out last year and Roman has yet to adjust. I'm almost certain this is one of the reasons why he's not getting a HC job. If I was an interviewer, this is the first place I'd go in an effort for him to explain why he hasn't adjusted.

Originally posted by JTsBiggestFan:

Originally posted by SanDiego49er:
Ultimately you would have to say the Seattle RB, Seattle kick return game are far more explosive than the 49ers. And the Seattle defense may be even better than people give it credit for. Lynch and their return game is better than what we have. Only an insane homer would say otherwise.

If we can all agree on two things:

49er OL > Seahawks OL in run blocking
49er front 7 > Seahawk front 7 for run defense

Then the fact that Lynch constantly is 4-5 ypc against our defense while Gore can maybe get 1 or 2 of those runs the entire game means Lynch is clearly superior at this point. About the only thing Gore is better at at this point maybe is breaking off a sole long run based on pure vision alone, and that is happening less and less each year.

The homers in the house might feel that the 2006 Gore was better than Lynch ever was. Imagine if we had that Gore now??

Also agree about the difference in return games between our teams. Maybe one return the whole game Tate or baldwin gets stopped after a few yards, as opposed to the big returns they all seemed to have. We haven't been quite the same in this regard since Teddy left. Lavelle Hawkins was the biggest bright spot and unfortunately his antics cost him any possible shot at the roster.

True that Gore has seen better days and needs to be used in a limited role next year. The big disparity in YPC between him and Lynch has more to do with the way the Seahawks don't respect our passing game and crowd the line of scrimmage. Until we get our 30th ranked passing attack improved we will struggle to beat top level teams like the Seahawks.

I think it's pretty simple. We are a power running team. We can throw okay, but it's predicated on the running game being there for us. Usually, Kaep can not win a game solely with his arm. Against weak defenses he sometimes can (like Green Bay in week 1, an overrated Ravens defense in the Super Bowl, etc), but he's not polished enough to pass on a elite defenses. He's just not.

In Seattle, the Seahawks have the advantage of us having to go to a silent count. So, because we don't get that extra jump off the snap, they can absolutely decimate our running attack and force us to throw. I don't think Gore struggles there because he's old and sucks, I think it's because Seattle's defensive is tremendously disruptive (not just because they're good, but because of the noise thing). We can and have run the ball against Seattle in San Francisco. It's not a coincidence that we are completely shut down there.

Anyway, the noise effectively forces us to adapt our offense to a style that doesn't match what the club is built for. It plays right into our hands. We are forced to throw the majority of the time, which is awful, because Seattle's secondary is clearly their strength.

GEEKED......Bingo ! You hit the nail on the head Dude. That is basically what Boldin said when they played in the super bowl against the Raven's. We knew your s**t. Roman either needs to change or he needs to go or we are going to continue to feel just like we feel right now for a long time or hope that the level of play from other teams gets worse but you know that ain't happening.

Originally posted by LEN-RHODE9er:
GEEKED......Bingo ! You hit the nail on the head Dude. That is basically what Boldin said when they played in the super bowl against the Raven's. We knew your s**t. Roman either needs to change or he needs to go or we are going to continue to feel just like we feel right now for a long time or hope that the level of play from other teams gets worse but you know that ain't happening.

Imagine if you're a QB, knowing the defense knows where your receiving options will run. How many "progressions" or "checkdowns" would you really process through, knowing the D will be right in that passing lane when you look that direction. This is why Kaep is developing bad habits. He's fighting the D and the play-caller.

I mean, seriously, is Seattle's D measurably better than the 49ers? are Seattle's receiving options superior?????

What happened to Hunter who was setting the world on fire until he got hurt? What happened to James????? What happened to the explosive Kaep???? How in the world did the rest of the league adapt to the level of talent the 49ers DO have???? How did one of the best o-lines revert to middling during half the games????

It all rests on Roman's approach... or Harboughs approach... I don't know which is more culpable. The fact is, there are OC's that would have destroyed with what the 49ers had on offense...... Imagine what Chip Kelley would have done with this talent.... that should get you fairly hot.

All the more reason to win home field advantage.

SD troll thread is strong.

We need to take a very long hard look at our offensive approach.

It's not on Roman - it's all on JH. The plays go through him.

Big plays, that's how they beat us....that's the only way they beat us.

Seattle is just a better team overall. It isn't a big gap but it is enough so that we have to play a near perfect game to beat them in their place. Little room in our house either.

The big difference is their secondary makes us one-dimensional. We can't pass against them so they load the box and take away our running game. They CAN pass against us and have beaten us with backup WRs. We need bigger, better CBs.

There is also a small advantage for them at QB. If/when Kaepernick develops as a passer, we should be able to close down some. However, Wilson will also be on an up arrow as well. Harbaugh will need to do his very best whispering to CK if we are to close the gap.

Lynch is Lynch. For my money, he is the best RB in the game, Shady notwithstanding. He just pounds and pounds and eventually takes off. You have to limit him where you can but in the end, our offense needs to improve to be able to match Lynch's scoring contributions. That is not going to be easy.

It's not the players, it's the coaching....

Harbaugh, is a great leader, mentor, and head coach, but he continues to let his emotions take over at the most inopportune times. And his game managing leaves a lot to be desired.

Roman, even if he starts out with a good game plan, usually doesn't, he continues to fail at making adjustments throughout the game.

Fangio calls a great game until we are ahead, then he does that bend but don't break BS, and guess what? they break and the oposing team is right back in it.

Brad Seely has special teams playing solid, until after a great play and the other team needs a desperate break, to steal back momentum, and they give it to them.

Sound familiar? If these things don't change, the team won't change. At this point, like it or not, we are just good enough to lose in big games.