NFL Week 7 in Review: What’s Wrong with Kyle Shanahan’s Offense?

Welcome to NFL Under Review, a weekly column where I talk about misguided narratives, inexplicable coaching decisions and other NFL-related topics. Every Tuesday throughout the season, you’ll get my take on what happened last weekend with an eye on what’s to come.

Kyle Shanahan’s offense looks nothing like Kyle Shanahan’s offense.

It’s possible that this is a terrible year for the San Francisco 49ers. They weren’t particularly competitive in the 28-18 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday afternoon. They are 3-4 this season. And they’re losing wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk to a knee injury this season. Pretty much every “Super Bowl hangover” cliché applies to this group, and they also deal with a lot of bad luck that’s beyond their control. But you know what they are may Control? How they structure, design and call the crime. And Shanahan’s decisions on those fronts were one of the bigger surprises of the 2024 season.

Brock Purdy was bad against the Chiefs. There is no sugarcoating it. But the way Purdy is supposed to play has flown under the radar this season. Remember how we have traditionally talked about Shanahan’s offenses. Efficient running game. Game action. Plan simple throws. Quarterback friendly. But let’s take a look at their numbers. We don’t see those typical things in this version of the 49ers offense. The 49ers rank 15th in rushing DVOA. Last year they were second. Purdy is throwing into a tight window on 21.8 percent of attempts, second only to Dak Prescott. Last year, this value was 12.8 percent, ranking 25th. He holds the football longer than last year, throws more downfield and uses fewer play actions.

There are some simple answers to the question Why Here. First, the running game just wasn’t as good without Christian McCaffrey, who is on injured reserve with Achilles tendonitis. The 49ers are still trying to run the ball. They are the fourth strongest team with the most runs on early downs. They just weren’t effective at it. And secondly, the injuries at wide receiver played a role – especially on Sunday, when the 49ers were without their three best players Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings.

To be clear: The 49ers’ offense is anything but a disaster. They rank 10th in DVOA (sixth in passing). But that’s not the case looked Right. And perhaps more importantly, it doesn’t have the simple buttons we’ve come to expect from a Shanahan Attack. We’ll learn a lot about this team as we move forward. Will Shanahan return to his roots? What will the passing game look like without Aiyuk? Will we see more ugly Purdy games similar to the ones we saw against the Chiefs? The 49ers aren’t dead yet, but their ability to solve problems will be one of the most interesting storylines in the entire league as we move forward.

The Raiders need to look to trade Maxx Crosby.

Look, I don’t like it either, but that’s exactly what needs to happen. The Raiders suffered a modest, unremarkable 20-15 loss to the Rams on Sunday. Starting quarterback Aidan O’Connell left the game with an injury and Gardner Minshew threw three interceptions after replacing him. As I watched this game, it was hard to think of anything other than, “What the hell is this team?” They have nothing: no quarterback, no talent, no plan. The way this season is going, it’s safe to assume that the Raiders will once again be looking for a new coach and a new general manager at the end of the season. If that happens, whoever is hired would have to find a way to make the Raiders relevant again. And there is no easy solution to this. First-round pick Brock Bowers is a productive, exciting tight end. Crosby is an elite defender. Over and beyond? The cupboard is empty.

Hence the Raiders have to make Crosby available before the November 5th trade deadline. Their only chance for lasting success is a patient rebuilding plan that includes taking a quarterback in the draft in the next year or two. They could wait and hope they’re bad enough to land a top pick, or they could be proactive and acquire capital drafts that give them the flexibility to make a plan that actually makes sense.

Crosby is a spectacular player. His 33.5 sacks since the start of the 2022 season surpass only Myles Garrett. He plays a premium position. He never comes off the field. He is 27 years old. And he has a below-market contract through the 2026 season. He is Exactly If you are a fan, you never want your team to lose it. But these qualities also set him apart Exactly the type of player who could return a monster return in a trade.

What might that return look like? A deal that includes two first-round picks. I’m not telling you the Raiders would do that definitely get that back in return, but they could. In 2022, the Rams reportedly offered two first-round picks for fullback Brian Burns. The Bears’ deal to acquire Khalil Mack from the Raiders in 2018 included two first-round picks. Crosby is better than Burns in 2022, but probably not quite as good as Mack in 2018. In other words, two first-round picks is a reasonable ask. Edge rushers in their prime are rarely available. All it takes is a team to be aggressive.

Think about what such a move would mean for the Raiders. First, it would make them worse for the rest of the season. I’m not recommending a full tank team, but right now they’re 2-5 and would be the eighth pick in next year’s draft if the season ended today. It wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to finish in the top five or even top three. A Crosby trade would give them two firsts in 2025 and two firsts in the following year’s draft. Now we’re talking about a team that has the resources to potentially add a quarterback while adding talent at other premium positions. It is not guaranteed to work. But it’s at least a plan that would give the Raiders a chance. And when was the last time the Raiders had something like this?

Let’s (maybe) cut Jerod Mayo some slack.

This is a classic “two things can be true” situation:

1. Mayo doesn’t inspire much confidence in his first year as the Patriots’ head coach.
2. There is a lot of revisionist history about the last year in New England.

In case you missed it, the Patriots were defeated by the Jaguars on Sunday in London. Jacksonville ran the ball over and over again, and New England couldn’t stop them. They had penalties and special teams errors. It was ugly. After the game, Mayo said the Patriots were a “soft” football team. Bill Belichick disagreed with that characterization. And now Mayo is feeling the heat. The Patriots have lost six straight and their margin of minus-76 points is only greater than the Panthers’. I’m not here to tell you that Mayo does a great job. It’s not him. And it’s possible that it will be a complete disaster.

So what is my problem? We have to be realistic about the situation Mayo found himself in. I know everyone forgets this now, but this was a poorly coached team with Belichick last season. They ranked 28th in special teams DVOA. They gave stupid punishments. They were 4-13 and ranked 29th in point differential. During the offseason, the Patriots decided to bring back most of the same players who had achieved these results. Belichick still had his fastball when it came to defensive schemes (he also had top defensive tackle Christian Barmore, who didn’t play this season). But almost everywhere else he was a negative. So why would any reasonable person have expected this to be a competitive team in 2024?

Again, it’s entirely possible that Mayo is a disaster. He challenged his players through the media. You could answer. Or they could take offense and turn against him. But the guy has coached seven games and has one of the worst rosters in the NFL. Let’s be realistic about expectations and not pretend that the 2023 version of Belichick will bring significantly better performance to this group.

Joe Schoen should throw his cell phone into the Hackensack River.

OK, that might be extreme. Getting a new phone is a hassle. But Joe, my man, do not – I repeat, DO NOT – answer the phone when owner John Mara calls this week. Yes, I know it’s generally bad practice to ignore your boss when he tries to contact you, but this is the exception. Give it a few days to cool down. Tell him you had bad service. Let’s say you dropped your phone in the toilet. Suppose you feel nostalgic for the good old landline and are trying to adopt a simpler lifestyle. Whatever it takes. Because if he finds you, you will be crushed.

The Giants delivered one of the most entertaining seasons Hard hits in recent memory last offseason. The most prevalent storyline centered around running back Saquon Barkley. It was clear in almost every scene that Mara wanted Barkley back and Schoen didn’t. Schoen’s thought process was sound in many ways. Barkley was entering his seventh NFL season and had to be paid like a top-five running back. The Giants had other needs. It was reasonable to assume that providing money elsewhere was the logical step. The only problem? Schoen’s nightmare scenario plays out for seven weeks.

The Eagles are 4-2 and Barkley has been their best player. His 761 rushing yards are second best in the NFL. He has an average YPC of 6.1. And his success rate is the highest of his career. On Sunday, Barkley let the Eagles’ offense run wild in his return to MetLife Stadium, rushing 17 times for 176 yards. He ran both through and away from Giants defenders and was an explosive playmaking machine. All season long, when the Eagles’ offense has stalled, Barkley has provided a spark. This is the best version of him we’ve ever seen.

The Giants, meanwhile, are 2-5. They totaled 104 yards in the first three quarters of Sunday’s stunning loss before head coach Brian Daboll replaced quarterback Daniel Jones with Drew Lock in search of an offensive spark. He didn’t find one. This season, the Giants rank 27th in the NFL with a margin of minus-50 points. Their quarterback situation is a disaster and their roster needs an overhaul.

At some point, Schoen will have to convince Mara that he deserves more time, and Barkley’s decision will come. The old principle of “process over results” may not be enough to save it.