In the NFL, if you don’t have a serviceable offensive line, your team has a microscopic chance of moving the football up and down the field.
Last year, the 49ers’ offensive line played pathetically, and were partially at fault for Colin Kaepernick’s meltdown. Pro Football Focus ranked the unit 30th in run blocking, they checked-in tied for 31st in sacks allowed (53), and out of necessity, Blaine Gabbert was forced to run a check-down offense. It was a complete and utter mess and there are Pro Bowl quarterbacks who would’ve caved behind this unit.
This year? Going into the 2016 season, the offensive line is the strength of Chip Kelly’s offense and the play up front will have a major impact on the 49ers’ win total.
“It’s not one of those situations where I’m nervous about where we are with the offensive line,” Kelly said after watching the unit against the Texans. “I’m really positive about where we are from an offensive line standpoint.”
The revelation on Thursday was Anthony Davis volunteering to play right guard, something the 49ers briefly experimented with during practice in Denver. Down 40 pounds, Davis has potential to be a breakthrough at the spot — a position that’s already in good hands. Andrew Tiller has been so sturdy during training camp that first-round pick Joshua Garnett hasn’t been able crack the starting lineup yet.
And that in itself tells you the story about this 2016 49ers offensive line: this unit has depth, an absolute luxury in the NFL.
Joe Staley remains the rock at left tackle. Zane Beadles, signed away from Jacksonville in free agency, has control of the left guard spot, with rookie Garnett backing him up. Daniel Kilgore is locked in at center, and has high hopes for playing his first full season since 2013. The 49ers could go with either Tiller, Davis or Garnett at right guard and feel good about all three. Trent Brown (6-foot-8, 355 pounds) had several key blocks against the Texans that led to 161 yards rushing in the first half, and is doing a hell of a job holding off Davis in the right tackle competition. But even if Davis is able to unseat him, Brown becomes one of the better backup tackles in the NFC.
A year ago, the 49ers were terrified each and every Sunday about how poorly the offensive line would play. Now? They have so many options, they can’t decide on a starting lineup.
The decision of who plays where is much more of a chemistry thing than some understand. Kelly brought his zone-blocking scheme to San Francisco. And while the offense will still use some power-blocking concepts, zone-blocking is mostly predicated on two offensive linemen working together in a tandem. The inside-zone running play, a staple play of Kelly’s offense, won’t work unless offensive linemen are able to effectively communicate pre-snap on which defenders they are going to zone together. Quizzes with the offensive linemen in the film room could be the deciding factor on who wins the right guard and right tackle spot.
If the 49ers are on the same page up front, the expectations for the offense will catapult from the basement. A clean pocket for Gabbert and/or Kaepernick theoretically means more passes that go for first downs. And if the 49ers are throwing successfully, safeties and linebackers will have to slide back, opening up running lanes for Carlos Hyde. And running Kelly’s up-tempo offense all summer has this unit in tip-top shape.
The offensive line won’t be an upper-tier unit with the snap of a finger. They’ll have to deal with several outside factors — a shaky wide receiving corps who’ll struggle to get open, two inconsistent quarterbacks and an opening September slate against the gaudy Rams, Panthers and Seahawks.
But maybe, just maybe, there’s a chance the 300-pound boys upfront can mask some of the 49ers’ other flaws on offense. Because if this team wants to avoid another dreadful season, the offensive line’s improved play is their strongest hope.
