It’s not easy to evaluate the offensive line. For years, Trent Williams propped up what was an average, at best, line to his right. Things began to shift last season. While left guard remained a question for the San Francisco 49ers due to injury, center, right guard, and right tackle were viewed closer to strengths than weaknesses.
The more data we get, the more we can label sacks as a quarterback stat. Even pressure rate can be a bit murky, which is why “quick pressures” fall under the offensive
line. On the ground, yards before contact is a metric that helps distinguish what the offensive line does from what the running back does.
That is not a number the 49ers will want to look at in 2025. Their offensive line had the fourth-lowest yards before contact in the NFL. But that’s where you have to dig a little deeper. No team faced a defense with six or fewer defenders in it less than the Niners offense last season. Teams loaded up to take away Christian McCaffrey because they did not fear the 49ers’ perimeter weapons.
So, how does this year’s unit project for this upcoming season? According to ESPN’s Mike Clay, the 49ers’ offensive line will be among the best in the league:
For those that cannot read the fine print at the bottom: “Player rating is determined by analyzing a variety of stats, including pass and run block win rates, PFF grade, utilization, pedigree, etc. It’s a spectrum, with dark green indicating an elite player and dark red indicating a poor starting option. The 32 teams are then ranked based on those ratings, with tackles weighted heavier than interior linemen.”
Tren Williams is tied for the third-highest rated left tackle.
I’m not sure Brett Toth wins that job. We’ll see how that shakes out. Regardless, left guard is what’s dragging the overall team grade down. No team is projected to have a worse starter at left guard than the Niners.
Public enemy No. 1, Jake Brendel, checks in as the 9th-best center. This is likely the final season for Brendel. Next offseason, the 49ers should make a run at Dolphins center Aaron Brewer.
Dominick Puni is tied for 10th among right guards. He got off to a slow start, but once Puni overcame his injury, he looked like the player who rarely made mistakes as a rookie.
Finally, right tackle Colton McKivitz. He’s tied for 12th among right tackles. There were some players listed who I’d take over McKivitz. But we’re also talking about a former fifth-rounder who went from looking like he’s unplayable to being as close to a dominant run blocker as it gets.
The 49ers’ depth should help them this year. Last year, they relied on a seventh-round rookie to start for them. It’s why they went out and signed Toth, Vederian Lowe, and Robert Jones in free agency. Those moves told us the team won’t be undone by inexperience this season.
What do you think? Is seventh too high, or just about right?
