The 49ers’ sub-.500 record and inconsistent execution point to the same thing: this is a mediocre team. With each game, the picture becomes clearer that this is a team that may struggle to make the playoffs. Good enough to beat bad teams, bad enough to give up a 10-point lead in the 4th and lose. Arizona dominated a second half marred by 49er turnovers and came away with a 24-23 victory.

Kyle Shanahan

He was outcoached in different ways with each loss. In this one, Shanahan was 1-6 in the red zone against an Arizona defense that has given up the most red zone touchdowns in the league. The Niners had a 17% success rate in the red zone against the Cardinals defense, which gave up a 68.8% success rate coming into the game.

Part of this is obviously the loss of Christian McCaffrey. However, Shanahan is not blameless. With the ball on the Arizona 18, Shanahan went to an empty backfield pass from Brock Purdy, which was tipped and picked off.

One of Shanahan’s main flaws is that he doesn’t view it as negative. He does this in the draft by taking players based on highlights while ignoring the negatives. He does this on the field by focusing on the play he thinks will best succeed at that moment, while ignoring the potential negatives, the boundary line and the game situation. He doesn’t shift to finishing, he doesn’t manage the game, he concentrates on the game.

He refuses to adapt. Kyle Shanahan’s football gravestone.

The supporting cast

Some of the veterans on the team are a fateful year too old. Deebo Samuel is not producing the speed or YAC of his past. Kyle Juszczyk’s contribution is declining, he has to make way for a proven more productive Jauan Jennings through an increased deployment of 11 personnel. Trent Williams is not who he once was last year, and is still working his way back to football form.

The good news is that Brandon Aiyuk is back and George Kittle is fighting through injury to contribute. The bad news is that a team without McCaffrey and Dre Greenlaw will struggle to score in the red zone and stop the run.

Game balls

Brandon Aiyuk – 8 catches for 147 yards with a long of 53.

Nick Bosa – A clever read of a screen to come back for a choice that could have won the game.

Jordan Elliott/Deommodore Lenoir – A blocked kick and run for the score that led to a 10-point turnaround.

Seattle Questions

Thursday night’s Seahawks game is now a must-win. Lose and the 49ers drop to 0-3 in the division and are looking at a wild card into the playoffs, if that.

Shanahan hasn’t beaten the top four defensive coordinators in the league in over a year, going 0-5. Now he faces two back-to-back in Mike Macdonald and Steve Spagnuolo. How does Shanahan make the adjustments he still needs to make as he faces these masters of simulated pressure and blitz to achieve victory?

The Niners faded in the second half as the Easy Bake Oven saw the temperature reach 102. How can an older team struggling to get into football shape not fade in a short week with minimal rest?

The Seahawks game is winnable, but will require the best from the Niners and Shanahan. They still have to prove they can do that consistently against a quality team.

What if the Niners lose?

A loss in Seattle would require the Niners to win the division at some point, and they haven’t shown the consistency needed to reach that level.

A loss would also add to the question of whether Shanahan has lost the ear and heart of his team. He contributed to the Super Bowl loss and may have lost confidence there that will carry over into this season. It has also been in business for eight years and the owner may decide that a new voice is needed. This would coincide with the fact that there are excellent coaching candidates available this season under the leadership of Detroit Offensive Coordinator Ben Johnson.

Whether the 49ers’ owners are considering any of this remains to be determined. However, it’s safe to say that if this season goes off the rails, giving away Shanahan becomes more of a possibility. The best way to calm it down is to start winning. Consistent.

So considering it’s not just the team, but Shanahan himself, who has a lot at stake Thursday night in Seattle.

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