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San Francisco 49ers (3-1) have finished the first quarter of their season with a winning record. In their victories, the 49ers have had good balance on offense, and a physical presence on defense. Supplemented by consistent special teams performance, it's not surprise the Niners have a good winning percentage at this juncture.
Entering Week 5, the 49ers will enter the second quarter of the season with a favorable home match-up against the Buffalo Bills.
While the Bills have had their ups and downs this season, they have been known to put up points in bunches when they get hot on offense. If San Francisco expects to continue winning, they could benefit from some more offensive production. The team occasionally has a very conservative approach on that side of the football, and sometimes it gets the better of them.
When the Niners add wrinkles, open the playbook and really showcase their creativity, San Francisco looks like a fully functional scoring threat. With depth, balance and innovativeness, the 49ers offense has established a unique identity. Though, consistency remains an issue.
The 49ers will need to perform like they did in Week 1, 2 and 4 on a week-to-week basis. They also need to branch out from what they've been doing on offensive because it's getting repetitive, and thus, predictable.
11 TD scores
1. Randy Moss - Rec. TD (@ GB)
2. Vernon Davis - Rec. TD (@ GB)
3. Frank Gore - Rush TD (@ GB)
4. Vernon Davis - Rec. TD (vs. DET)
5. Frank Gore - Rush TD (vs. DET)
6. Vernon Davis - Rec. TD (vs. DET)
7. Vernon Davis - Rec. TD (@ MIN)
8. Colin Kaepernick - Rush TD (@ NYJ)
9. Frank Gore - Rush TD (@ NYJ)
10. Carlos Rogers - Def. TD (@ NYJ)
11. Kendall Hunter - Rush TD (@ NYJ)
The 49ers have placed heavy emphasis on the ground attack and working the field with tight end Vernon Davis. As you can see, it's Davis and Gore all day, yet the team has added a number of other weapons. The concerning thing is, in four games, only 1 of 11 possible touchdowns went to a wide receiver.
The issue in 2011 was that Alex Smith was not finding his wide outs with consistency or proficiency. It killed the 49ers late in the post-season when their receivers were limited against the New York Giants in the NFC Championship.
San Francisco needs to work their wide receivers into the game plan more. On the bright side, they've improved nearly ten spots in total offense, currently sitting at 18th in the league. The team is also 11th in total points this year through the first four weeks. So, the improvement is there, but this unit could benefit further by generating more plays through the wide outs.