How nice was it to watch that game last night? In that 27-17 win over the Kansas City Chiefs, the San Francisco 49ers looked so bad at times, but I felt so optimistic with what I saw. The overall effort from that team seemed so different compared to the Chip Kelly and Jim Tomsula squads. Maybe it’s because I’m so happy about the moves the 49ers made that I’m easier to find those things, but despite how bad the 49ers looked at times, a lot of the dumb things I think I saw last year just weren’t happening.
Well, except for the penalites. Good God there were penalties. Almost 150 yards worth of penalties. Kyle Shanahan was none too happy with the penalties either. He’s taking it well, the Oakland Raiders would think that’s too many penalties.
As great of coaching staff we have and as optimistic as I am, I can’t backtrack on something I said during the Tomsula era: That many penalties is just bad coaching, period. I doubt it’s really a concern for the coaches at the moment, but I sure hope that kind of real estate doesn’t get given up in a game that matters. Penalties that encompass that many yards are unacceptable.
Once again, I think there are far more important things to work on right now than twitching before the snap, so I’m not too hard on our shiny new coaches (who I think was the best hire out of the pool this offseason) but dang that’s a lot.
Two things make me feel better about that: 1: It’s week one of the preseason and EVERYONE is getting penalized. 2: Kansas City got their fair share of laundry as well.
Let’s get to your links.
News and Highlights:
Hungry raccoon invades Arrowhead Stadium in 49ers' win over Chiefs (Maiocco)
Big Play Highlights (NFL.com)
Texans sign receiver Bruce Ellington (NBC Sports)
Former 49ers GM offers fascinating answers to key questions on Twitter (Biderman)
Former 49ers CB Tramaine Brock: 'I never put my hands on mother of my children' (Biderman)
49ers linebacker Foster plays plenty in preseason debut (Branch)
Slight tweak on new 49ers jerseys brings big upgrade (Biderman)
49ers rookie review: Strong starts for Solomon Thomas, C.J. Beathard (Barrows)
Game Recap:
49ers 27, Chiefs 17: Grades (Cohn)
Instant Analysis: 49ers reserves carry water in preseason opener (Biderman)
49ers flashbacks cloud coach Kyle Shanahan’s debut (Inman)
Preseason opener highlights 49ers’ vulnerabilities, including at cornerback (Barrows)
49ers start poorly in sloppy preseason win over Chiefs (Branch)