Will the 49ers Pass More in 2024 than They Did in 2023?

There are reasons to think they will.

Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) throws a pass / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The 49ers had the highest-rated quarterback in the league by a wide margin last season, and yet they attempted the fewest passes of any team in the NFL. Will they throw the ball more in 2024 than they did in 2023?

There are reasons to think they will.

Teams load the box nearly 85 percent of the time when the 49ers run the ball, so passing more frequently would make sense. That's what they did in the Super Bowl when the Chiefs loaded the box -- they passed the ball 38 times, which is a lot for them. And they often passed from empty formations, meaning no running back in the backfield.

Then this offseason, the 49ers drafted wide receiver Ricky Pearsall in Round 1 and wide receiver Jacob Cowing in Round 4. Those are strange draft picks for a team that attempted merely 491 passes last season and needs to find more targets for Brandon Aiyuk, who's an ascending star.

Perhaps the 49ers offense will evolve this year, and they'll start using four- and five-wide receiver formations. Maybe they'll suddenly rank top 10 in pass attempts for the first time under head coach Kyle Shanahan. Maybe he will completely alter the way he does things and put his full trust in Purdy.

Maybe, but I doubt it.

Even when Shanahan had Matt Ryan in Atlanta, his offense ranked 26th out of 32 teams in pass attempts. So the 49ers might pass a little bit more this year than last year, but Shanahan won't fundamentally change anything about his offense, because he thinks it's perfect as is.