49ers Offensive Line Didn't Perform Badly in 2024

No unit on the 49ers in 2024 gets overly criticized more than the offensive line.
Sep 29, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers center Jake Brendel (64) reacts to a penalty call during the second quarter against the New England Patriots at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images
Sep 29, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers center Jake Brendel (64) reacts to a penalty call during the second quarter against the New England Patriots at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images / Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images
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2024 was filled with disappointment for the San Francisco 49ers.

Hardly any unit played great enough collectively. One unit that gets the brunt of the criticism for the disappointment is the offensive line. They weren't consistent and had some poor performances that factored into losses.

However, the 49ers' offensive line didn't perform badly in 2024. They weren't great at all and weren't as good enough as they should have been despite Trent Williams being out. Criticism is deserved, but to say they are one of the worst units in the NFL is incorrect.

The reason the 49ers offensive line gets so much hate is because of their pass protection. Critics see Brock Purdy running around and getting hit and believe it is the offensive line's fault. That couldn't be further from the truth.

Even Pro Football Network believes the 49ers offensive line was okay. They graded out the offensive line with an 80.2 score (B-), ranking 14th overall. So, they are right in the middle of the pack, exactly where they should be. Here is their explanation for their grade.

"With (Trent) Williams absent, San Francisco posted four individual game grades of D+ or below in seven games. That led to their fall outside the top 10, ranking 18th over the final four weeks, thanks in part to a strong finish against the Cardinals. San Francisco doesn’t have the interior depth to play well while struggling at left tackle. With a 37.1% pressure rate, the 49ers’ pass-protection numbers look bad on the surface, but their quarterbacks also hold the ball for over three seconds on average, ranking as the league’s sixth-highest rate.

"The main positive in San Francisco’s numbers has been run blocking, ranking fourth in RBYBC/rush (1.05). Yet, they rank 24th in ESPN’s RBWR metric, which suggests their yards before contact numbers are as much about the backs’ style as the line’s performance. When you combine those metrics, they average out as an average run-blocking group."

Look at that. The 49ers' offensive line was a top-10 unit for Pro Football Network with a healthy Williams. Also, notice how they mentioned their run-blocking metrics were very low. That is where the offensive line was bad at it.

It wasn't their pass protection that was poor -- it was the run-blocking. When Christian McCaffrey returned to the lineup, he had little to no running lanes. Some people chalked it up to his lack of burst or rust, but in reality, it was the offensive line's fault.

In pass protection, they were just average. Purdy had the sixth-highest time to throw in the NFL. So, the offensive line did their part. He was just holding the ball for way too long because he was trying so hard to generate an explosive play.

The offensive line is by no means a good enough unit and needs to be improved. They just get criticized way too much as if they were one of the worst in the NFL. At some point, the fault needs to get credited to the quarterback for the pressures allowed.

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Jose Luis Sanchez III
JOSE LUIS SANCHEZ III

Jose Luis Sanchez III has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily for FanNation since 2019. He started off as the lead publisher for FanNation's All49ers, then switched positions to become the Deputy Editor in 2020. Sanchez writes, edits, and produces videos daily for All49ers. He also co-hosts a show on YouTube with All49ers lead publisher Grant Cohn weekly. Prior to FanNation, Sanchez started his writing career back in 2016 for the school newspaper at Skyline college where he covered all sports team in the Bay Area. Following that from 2017 to 2019, he found a role as a contributor for FanSided's news desk along with their site's Just Blog Baby covering the Las Vegas Raiders and Golden Gate Sports every professional Bay Area sports team. Atop all of that, he was able to graduate with a Bachelors degree in Communication Studies at San Francisco State University in 2020. Sanchez is committed to ensuring he delivers transparent analysis and straightforward opinions that resonates with readers to get them thinking.