The San Francisco 49ers were ousted by the Las Vegas Raiders in brutal fashion, losing 34-7 in their first preseason bout during a game where nearly none of the starters played on either side of the ball.
San Francisco significantly struggled offensively, with their lone scoring play coming off a near interception, while the defense struggled to contain both quarterback Aidan O'Connell and the run game in a disappointing effort.
Here are the grades for the offense for the 49ers in their loss to the Raiders.
Quarterbacks
I graded Trey Lance and Sam Darnold's performances from the game here.
Running Backs: B
Tyrion Davis-Price continued to look the part as one of the lone bright spots on the offensive side of the ball Sunday, rushing for 29 yards on nine attempts.
Now, the 3.2 yards per carry statistic might not be impressive, but the stats don't do the performance justice, as there weren't lanes for the running back to power through on a number of plays, leading to minimal or no gain.
However, Davis-Price did exhibit some nice plays, lowering his shoulder on a third-down carry to convert a first, while bouncing to the edge on two plays with good vision. He looks much improved.
Jordan Mason had a fine day on the ground with his physical style, earning 17 yards on five carries, but had a crucial drop on a screen pass that ultimately could've gone for at least 20 yards, given the blocking on the play.
On another note, it seems the 49ers may be protecting their undrafted rookie Khalan Laborn, who only got one touch, compared to recent free agent signing Jeremy McNichols's four on the ground.
Wide Receivers: B+
It was a day fully of the backups at receiver, as Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, Jauan Jennings, and Danny Gray all didn't suit up, meaning the 49ers had Ronnie Bell, Tay Martin, Chris Conley, Willie Snead, and Isaiah Winstead as their top targets.
Bell was the standout of the day, taking an end-around for a first down in the first half before catching three passes for 58 yards in the second half, including a deep 37-yard go-route. However, the lone wrinkle in Bell's day was a wide-open drop on a nice intermediate pass from Brandon Allen that went right through the wideout's hands into the grasp of cornerback Sam Webb, who returned the interception all the way to San Francisco's two-yard line.
Chris Conley continued to look good, earning a majority of his opportunities from Trey Lance, which included a 24-yard catch and a 17-yard pass as well. He's enjoyed a solid training camp and has found ways to get open on a number of occasions. I thought there were two additional intermediate/deep plays that Lance could've let it rip to his receiver, but the quarterback was indecisive there.
Tay Martin enjoyed a good day as well, catching two passes for 15 yards, but running a number of solid routes. He's a dark horse candidate to make the roster, although the 49ers may try and stash him on the practice squad once again.
Tight Ends: F
While it was a solid day for the running backs and wide receivers, it was the exact opposite for the tight ends.
Cameron Latu really struggled, fumbling the ball on his lone catch deep in 49ers territory, while also committing a holding penalty on a different play. Latu had drop issues through training camp and the joint practices, and fumbling the ball only adds to the disappointing start for the 2023 third-round pick.
Brayden Willis was the best option of the backups during camp, but didn't see much action in this game until the second half, catching just one pass for five yards. Willis also committed a holding penalty on a kick return by D'Shawn Jamison that was declined, due to another 49ers penalty.
Ross Dwelley was targeted four times, although one was an inadvertent touchdown, catching three passes for 18 yards on the day. However, Dwelley looked slow coming out of breaks, and didn't appear to have the best route on one of Trey Lance's sacks, flattening out too early instead of attacking vertical, leading to a non-throw from the quarterback, although it should've been released.
This group has disappointed so far in the offseason.
Offensive Line: D+
When you've given up four sacks in the first half, it's usually not a great indictment on your offensive line. Now, three of those were on Trey Lance, in my opinion, but the offensive line didn't have a great day either.
The entire backup unit started, with Jaylon Moore, Jason Poe, Jon Feliciano, Nick Zakelj, and Matt Pryor working in unison from left to right, and it was constant pressure for Lance, who was pressured on a reported 50% of his dropbacks.
Nick Zakelj really stood out, as the offensive lineman was bull-rushed on a few occasions, giving up a team-high four pressures, and was the offensive lineman responsible for a few of the sacks. But, it wasn't a pretty day overall, with the tackles really struggling as well.
Jaylon Moore gave up three pressures, and Matt Pryor didn't look good at all either, while Leroy Watson had a bad pressure allowed, which led to Lance's fourth sack.
The blocking in the run game wasn't ideal either, as the 49ers couldn't move the ball efficiently on the ground, despite some solid carries from the halfbacks.
The offensive line will hope to flush this performance away, and have a fresh slate next week against the Denver Broncos at home.
- Rohan Chakravarthi
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Written by:Writer/Reporter for 49ers Webzone
