The San Francisco 49ers looked nowhere near the team that made it to the Super Bowl last season. Kyle Shanahan’s men are 5-7 through Week 13, placing them at the bottom of the NFC West with little hope of making it to the playoffs.
It doesn’t help that the 49ers are facing injury problems, with Christian McCaffrey out for the rest of the regular season following a PCL injury in his right knee on Sunday.
As the 49ers continue their downward spiral, former NFL Pro Bowler Robert Griffin III shared his insights on San Francisco’s problems. Griffin also detailed the possible reasons why the team has largely struggled despite the talent they have.
“The 49ers have lost their Aura and have become mistake merchants this year,” Griffin said before sharing several reasons why it has happened.
According to Robert Griffin III, Brandon Aiyuk’s offseason holdout as he negotiated a new contract with the 49ers “threw off the chemistry of the team.” While Griffin is not blaming Aiyuk, he did note that it really affected the Niners after they let it drag out.
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk
Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
The ex-QB-turned-analyst also pointed out that their injuries didn’t help them at all. Aside from McCaffrey’s health problems, Aiyuk also suffered a season-ending injury after tearing the ACL and MCL in his right knee.
Griffin then proceeded to point out the 49ers’ problems in their play, emphasizing that they “aren’t protecting the ball AT ALL” as they are “27th in giveaways and 20th in turnover margin.”
San Francisco currently has the fourth-most turnovers per game (1.52) in the NFL, just behind the Tennessee Titans, Las Vegas Raiders and Dallas Cowboys, according to Stat Muse.
The 34-year-old added that the Niners defense isn’t “playing inspired football.”
“All over the tape you see lack of effort and bad body language. It’s why they are the 25th ranked defense and 19th against the run,” Griffin further stated.
Griffin concluded his post by saying that, unlike in previous seasons, “no one is scared to play the 49ers right now.”
He’s not giving up on the 49ers just yet, but he highlighted the challenge they are facing to get back that “aura” they have lost without several of their key players.
It remains to be seen if the 49ers can still stage a winning run in their last five games of the season, but it surely won’t be easy.
