The San Francisco 49ers have played multiple games this season with different combinations. In Weeks 8 and 9, they were without starting center Jake Brendel, who has been public enemy No. 1 among Niners
fans for three years running.
Without Brendel in the lineup, the 49ers had their lowest passing success rate in a game this season in Week 8. There is a lot on Brendel’s plate. He takes some of the workload off Brock Purdy. Kyle Shanaahn described why he believes Brendel is one of the better centers in the NFL:
“I think he’s one of the better centers in this league. I don’t think Jake nearly gets enough credit for just how good of a football player he is. Every year we study free agents, we study around the league, and that’s where you get to kind of study people, and I’ve always been very happy with the center that we have. When you look into just schematically some of the stuff we ask our center to do with protections, what we ask him to do with run plays, we don’t see our quarterback, any quarterback that I’ve had, we don’t ask them to point out a lot of stuff. We have the center do a lot of that. And Jake is as good as any center I’ve been around with doing that stuff.”
Brendel’s cap hit in 2025 was $5.3 million. On that salary, the 49ers are getting the intangibles you can’t quantify. According to Sports Info Solutions, Brendel is the 11th-best center. Brendel had as many blown blocks this season as players like Penei Sewell and Andrew Thomas. He had one fewer than Tyler Linderbaum.
Brendel wasn’t the only player Shanahan was complimentary of on Friday. It almost seemed like Shanahan was getting choked up when talking about the type of player Jauan Jennings is:
“A true competitor. Like, J.J. is one of the best competitors I’ve ever been around. And he is one of the best receivers I’ve ever been around, just in terms of how he plays down-in and down-out. J.J., I thought was as important as any receiver on our 2023 team. I believed if we won that game he would’ve been the MVP. And I think every time we’ve gone to him, no matter what the situation’s been, he’s always come through at a high level. And J.J. had guys ahead of him with [Washington Commanders WR] Deebo [Samuel Sr.] and [WR Brandon] Aiyuk for a number of years, but I thought he’s really who we went to on third down and the guy who was the most consistent for us in those ways. He’s gotten his opportunity with people not here as a number one receiver and like any guy who’s competitive, like J.J., he’s risen to that challenge and played like a number one receiver. So, ultimate respect for J.J.”
Jennings has had sideline outbursts this season. It’s as if Shanahan appreciates that from Jennings, understanding that’s the competitive spirit coming out of his fiery wideout.
Jennings left his mark last week against the Eagles with a touchdown pass and a 45-yard catch and run. From Weeks 12-17, he scored a touchdown in every game. He’s found ways to contribute every week, and the 49ers will need Jennings to come through once more on Saturday against the Seahawks.
