The San Francisco 49ers suffered another ugly defeat, losing 27-6 to the St. Louis Rams. The loss dropped the 49ers to 2-6, and there is no sign they will actually show signs of life before this season ends. And that has led to Jim Tomsula repeatedly falling on the sword. The 49ers head coach met with the media following the game, and we'll have a transcript of that on Monday. But long story short, it was more of Tomsula taking the blame for the team's numerous problems. After giving a rundown of all the injuries, Tomsula said, "What we did today was not good enough. That is me. 100 percent."
This is not the first time Tomsula has said this, and given how this team has looked, I'm pretty sure it won't be the last time. He talked about needing to review the film, and we were basically back in the Mike Singletary era. It's just a few random cliches, but everything about this situation seems familiar. It's been a while since that was the case, but once again, the 49ers are among the worst teams in the league.
I appreciate that Tomsula is taking the noble approach and not throwing players under the bus. Given the last couple weeks, I am intrigued by what the attitude is like. There are the fiery types like Anquan Boldin that will be pissed off, and I am sure there are some who don't give much of a crap about this season falling apart. The real question is when the wheels will really fall off in the locker room. When will this thing come completely unglued in all aspects of the game?
I am wondering if we saw the start of that against the Rams. The 49ers finished the game with 13 accepted penalties, for 93 yards. The 49ers entered the game tied for second fewest accepted penalties against them. They had been averaging just over five penalties per game. It is possible this game is a blip, particularly given that Jerome Boger's crew was second in the NFL in penalties per game. And the Rams did finish with 12 accepted penalties of their own.
This game was a mess, but it is a lot harder to excuse it when a team is struggling like the 49ers. They are back next week to face the Atlanta Falcons, and maybe they improve in the penalty front. But even if they do, it is hard to think they find a way to win. The team has not made excuses through their six losses, but there is only so much of the same nonsense we can be expected to take week-in and week-out. How much longer can we listen to Jim Tomsula taking the blame, but not finding the answers to correct the problems?