49ers-Colts film study: Taking a look at San Francisco’s sacks allowed

The San Francisco 49ers, once again, lost a very close game and remain winless on the season. Once again, we’re here to take a look at the sacks they allowed, this time against the Indianapolis Colts.

Brian Hoyer was sacked just twice on Sunday, but both plays were on third down and both plays involved poor play from left tackle Joe Staley, oestensibly the best player on the offensive side of the ball for the 49ers.

As has become custom, I’ve included coaches film from both of the sacks but I honestly don’t think they reveal much other than the fact that the 49ers are slow to run their routes and they far too often have multiple guys short of the first-down marker on a third-and-long play.

Let’s get into it.

13:38 of 3rd Quarter, 3rd and 10 from SF 27: Hoyer sacked at SF 19 for -8 yards (Jeremiah George, Jabaal Sheard)

The broadcast view of this play shows Joe Staley getting beaten pretty handily, but it also shows the 49ers blocking two men with four, including Carlos Hyde, who does absolutely nothing on this play. It’s a bad look for him, but let’s see what the coaches film shows us.

It doesn’t show us much, unfortunately. Three of the four receiving options are short of the first-down marker, and there’s absolutely no reason for that. It’s a problem, and has been for the 49ers through several coaches in a row now. I think both Hyde and Staley did poorly on this play, and it was a bad blocking scheme altogether.

6:37 of 3rd Quarter, 3rd and 16 from SF 16: Hoyer sacked at SF 7 for -9 yards (Sheard)

Some have suggested that Staley doesn’t actually get beat here because Hoyer’s drop is so deep but I disagree. Staley isn’t pulling his man around the outside like a man in charge, he’s consistently on the edge of falling down the entire play. Staley got beat and and once again, I have to question the offensive line’s ability to make even the smallest decisions on their own, because they have four people blocking a single rusher, and Laken Tomlinson is just sort of standing there doing nothing.

The coaches film also doesn’t give us a whole lot to work with. It’s 3rd and very long, and when Hoyer goes down only one of his receivers is at the first down marker, and he isn’t wide open. In fact, none of his underneath options are even close to being open either, with the first player to turn double-covered.