The San Francisco 49ers not only got knocked out of the NFL postseason by a division rival, but they had to watch that foe, the Seattle Seahawks, win the Super Bowl in Levi's Stadium.
We're well into an offseason in which the 49ers are trying to restock the cupboards and find a recipe to beat the Seahawks. Can they figure out how to beat the defending champs? Specifically, can they find a way to score on that talented Seattle defense?
Last season, the 49ers knocked off the Seahawks in week one, 17-13. It wasn't an offensive explosion, but it was just enough to win. And it was mostly done without George Kittle. So there was some optimism that perhaps the Seahawks wouldn't be the team standing in the 49ers' way. But Seattle's defense was just getting warmed up.
In week 18, with the NFC's top seed on the line and the 49ers at home, the offense managed only three points. It was even uglier in the NFC Divisional Playoff loss in Seattle. Although the 49ers managed to double their scoring (six points), the offense was even more overwhelmed than it had been two weeks before, leaving many to wonder what they could do in the offseason to figure out Mike Macdonald's defense.
On the latest episode of "The Richard Sherman Podcast," the former 49ers and Seahawks CB was asked what the 49ers needed to do offensively to combat a tenacious Seattle defense. Sherman did not hold back on sharing his thoughts regarding the 49ers' offense.
"Well, they got bullied," Sherman said. "They got bullied. They had a chance in San Francisco. The bobbled Christian McCaffrey pass to the flats that ended up getting intercepted, ended up telling that game, was the damning factor. But then you look at the playoff game, and it was decimation."
Sherman is right. It was a decimation. The 49ers lost 41-6. Brock Purdy was only 15-27 for 140 yards and an interception. He was also the team's leading rusher with 37 yards. I'll remind you that Christian McCaffrey also plays for this team.
The 49ers managed only 236 yards and turned the ball over three times. Two Eddy Pineiro field goals were all the offense could muster. So what's the solution?
"You gotta get some attitude back on that offensive line," Sherman added. "I think that's where you gotta go. And I think that's what the San Francisco 49ers have focused on this offseason, just to whether it's depth guys, versatile guys. But I think they're going to continue that in the draft, and they're going to have to. And then you're going to have to get some defensive linemen.
"But to combat this Seahawks defensive line that understands that they have been able to control you, you haven't been able to move them. You haven't been able to move Byron Murphy, and Jarran Reed, and Leonard Williams. You haven't been able to move them, whether it's double-teamed or not. That means your guys aren't strong enough. That means your centers and guards aren't strong enough to move these men. They are taking on double teams and standing pat. And you've seen it consistently in those games. And if you can't move them with the double team, then you gotta get people in there that can."
If Sherman is the preacher, the 49ers fanbase is the choir, shouting some "amens" all over the sanctuary. Ask any fan of the team where Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch need to improve the roster year in and year out, and they'll likely answer offensive line. But Shanahan, Lynch, and perhaps Offensive Line coach Chris Foerster haven't invested as heavily into the offensive line as they have the defensive line or the playmakers. They seem to believe they can win a Super Bowl with an offensive line that is not made up of high-tier players. And to their credit, they've come close twice.
Still, you have to wonder if the offensive line was better in the two Super Bowl losses, if the outcome might have been different. After all, a botched assignment by RG Spencer Burford in Super Bowl LVIII may have cost the 49ers a chance to win the game.
Sherman sounds like one who believes the 49ers must get better along the offensive line.
"You can try to do it with scheme," Sherman said. "You can try to scheme around, like running around them. But they're fast, too. They're really fast. They're disciplined. They know what you're trying to do. So you're going to have to get body movers. You know, at the end of the day, you've got to get guys who can move people. And if you can't move them, then you're going to have the same problem next year. You know, unless you just want Brock Purdy to throw it 45 times and you think you're going to beat the secondary, you're going to beat the scheme that way, which could happen."
You can watch Sherman's entire podcast below:
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