The 49ers can still be a contender in the NFC this season.
Yes, their 11-10 loss to the Denver Broncos Sunday night was as brutal as the scoreline suggests.
And yes, they have a 1-2 record amid the softest part of their schedule this season.
But this campaign is anything but over. It's just getting started.
Any notions of raising a sixth Lombardi Trophy might seem far-fetched now, but the Niners can still make the playoffs this season because the team's defense is exceptional, and its competition in the NFC is mediocre.
Man, is that defense awesome.
The Niners' defense is the NFL's top-ranked unit by Pro Football Focus because it does everything well while being the best in the league in pass coverage. This defense is the team's backbone — one that's strong enough to warrant January football.
But the defense will need some help from the Niners' offense.
Kyle Shanahan has been handed the "genius" moniker by countless people around the league. His scheme and play-call sequencing are the envied coast-to-coast — as evidenced by how many former Shanahan assistant coaches are now head coaches.
So long as Shanahan is calling the plays, there's no excuse for his offense to be one of the NFL's worst through three games — a unit that doesn't do anything particularly well.
Every NFL head coach has a specialty: offense, defense, or special teams.
What does it say about a head coach if his unit — the one he coordinates — is the weak link in the chain?
Yes, the Niners have injuries on offense. They have them on defense, too. What team doesn't have injuries? It's professional football.
And yes, those injuries make the margins thin for the Niners, but good coaching makes more with less. Shanahan once turned Nick Mullens into a legitimately prolific quarterback.
The truth is that this 49ers' offense still has plenty.
It still has Deebo Samuel — a mismatch for any defender on the field.
It still has George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk, too. Those guys are good.
Jeff Wilson is a more-than-competent running back, and I'm sure there are two or three more in the stable. A Shanahan team can always find a running back.
And while the team might be down Trent Williams for a few weeks, the young players on the interior line have played better than expected and have plenty of room to grow further.
Shanahan also has a quarterback who has started 46 games for him, Jimmy Garoppolo, at the helm of it all.
That should be more than enough to be competent on a week-in, week-out basis.
The 49ers' offense doesn't need to be on par with the Chiefs, but surely the Niners' offense can be better than the Lions or Commanders when it has the ball.
It's not a high bar.
So far, that has not been cleared.
The Niners don't have any more ramp-up time. This team's schedule is brutal — the sport is brutal — so the offense needs to produce now. Complementary football gives this team a legitimate chance to compete for something bigger.
A "genius" gets this offense to score more than 15 points per game, its current average.
A "genius" can find something repeatable and successful in this offense.
A "genius" makes this work.
Shanahan has received criticism this season, but these are his hand-picked players, his hand-picked quarterback. If this kind of offensive ineptitude continues, it's actually worth scorn.
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