Quarterback C.J. Beathard went 1-4 as a starter while throwing for 1,185 yards with three touchdowns and five interceptions in those games before giving way to Jimmy Garoppolo last year. Beathard finished the season passing for 1,430 yards with four touchdowns and six interceptions through six appearances.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan admitted that opposing defenses would have seen some new wrinkles in his play calling with Jerick McKinnon. When the running back was lost before the start of the season, Shanahan had to adjust to the absence of his versatile weapon.
"I'm not going to lie, it changes things pretty drastically," Shanahan said before the start of the regular season. "When you go for, that was your first target in free agency, so once you do it, you have a plan on how to use him, especially going into Week 1."
Now the 49ers are dealing with the worst-case scenario for the season — the loss of Garoppolo. There are no plans to trade for a veteran quarterback. Beathard will take over as the starter for the remainder of the season. What does that mean for Shanahan and his game plan? Will he change things up as he was forced to do in McKinnon's absence?
Shanahan took part in a Thursday-night interview on KNBR and discussed the plan with Beathard at quarterback.
"Nothing really changes," Shanahan said on the "Tolbert & Lund" show. "They're similar type quarterbacks. I think you can ask the players and stuff, the game plan seems very similar. We run the same types of passes, the same types of runs. Any time you are dealing with two guys who are dropback quarterbacks, who can play inside the pocket, and we'll mix in our bootlegs and things like that, and our play-actions, but they are similar style guys, which makes it an easy transition for the players on offense."
The general belief is that Beathard has a much better surrounding cast than he did last year. While the right guard position has been riddled with injuries, the team worked this offseason to remake the offensive line. Running back Matt Breida, who co-leads the NFL in rushing, has given the offense an explosive and reliable weapon coming out of the backfield. Tight end George Kittle is healthy and on pace for a phenomenal season.
"One, I think the team is better around him, so that will give him a very good chance to be better," Shanahan said. "Last year, I thought he came in that first game against Washington and played pretty well. He went through about a four-game span or three-game span, especially after that Philly game, where we were down a number of O-linemen, we lost Pierre (Garçon), we were playing with some receivers who had not played much in their careers yet, Kittle was very banged up, we didn't have a run game at all at the time. Not many quarterbacks are going to succeed in that situation."
General manager John Lynch also believes Beathard has more talent around him and is better equipped to succeed.
"I think one thing that hopefully translates to the film and the way he plays is that we've surrounded him with a better surrounding cast," Lynch said during his own KNBR interview on Friday morning. "I think we have a much better running game. I think we have a healthy George Kittle. I think there's better players around him, a better offensive line."
Despite his seemingly rough outings as a rookie, Shanahan saw a lot of good in Beathard last year and hopes it translates to growth as he prepares to once again take over as the starting quarterback.
"What I liked about C.J. is he did a lot of good things, and he hung in there, and he competed and showed some things that were very promising," Shanahan said. "I think he's one of the main reasons we were able to beat the Giants in that game."
The 49ers and Chargers kick off at 1:25 p.m. PT on Sunday from the StubHub Center in Carson, California.