The 49ers are once again hitting the reset button. San Francisco will have a new coach for the third time in the past three years since Jim Harbaugh left the Bay Area.
Maybe this one will work out.
After the failures of Jim Tomsula in 2015 and Chip Kelly in 2016, where both coaches combined to go 7-25, the 49ers started over with a new general manager in John Lynch and a new head coach in Kyle Shanahan. And Shanahan is the one Fantasy owners are focused on.
He's had plenty of success as an offensive coordinator, including stops in Houston, Washington, Cleveland and Atlanta, and he just helped the Falcons reach Super Bowl 51, with Matt Ryan winning the NFL MVP award in 2016. But this is a total rebuild job in San Francisco, which isn't great for Fantasy owners.
The starting quarterback is expected to be Brian Hoyer, which isn't exciting. And the weapons are limited to Carlos Hyde and Pierre Garcon and maybe rookie running backs in Joe Williams and Matt Breida.
We hope some other options will emerge during the year, but Hyde and Garcon could both be starters in the majority of leagues, with Williams and Breida as sleepers in deeper formats. And you never know if Hoyer turns into a streaming option as a bye-week or injury replacement -- as long as he holds off third-round rookie C.J. Beathard from Iowa, which is expected.
Hoyer's had some good moments as a Fantasy quarterback during his career. He was with the Bears in 2016 and started four games before breaking his forearm in Week 7 and being placed on injured reserve. In three of those starts, however, Hoyer had at least 300 passing yards and two touchdowns in each outing.
He also started nine games for the Texans in 2015, and he scored at least 20 Fantasy points in six outings during that year. And in 2014 with the Browns, with Shanahan as the offensive coordinator, Hoyer started 13 games and passed for 3,326 yards, 12 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
He only had two games with more than 20 Fantasy points that season, which is the fear of what could happen this year, but we hope Hoyer and Shanahan are more successful this time around. We'd rather have more good Fantasy options than bad, and if Hoyer works out then his teammates could have positive production as well.
The 49ers have been a Fantasy wasteland for the past two seasons, which is frustrating given their history. We long for the days of Joe Montana and Steve Young, Roger Craig and Ricky Watters and Jerry Rice and Terrell Owens. But we're hopeful things turn around this year.
It's another new era for the 49ers. And maybe this time, Shanahan will succeed where Tomsula and Kelly failed.
Sleeper: Pierre Garcon
The last time Shanahan coached Garcon was in 2013 with the Redskins when Shanahan was the offensive coordinator, and Garcon had 113 catches for 1,346 yards and five touchdowns. Fantasy owners are hoping for similar success this year, especially after Garcon just had 79 catches for 1,041 yards and three touchdowns on 116 targets in a contract year. "He's playing at a high level," Shanahan said to CBS Sports. "I didn't go into free agency saying we need Pierre because I've coached him before. You go into free agency and you study all the free agents who are available and then you stack them and see who can help you team the most. Pierre was at the top of that list. Also knowing him made me feel better about that because you know exactly what you're getting. But it all starts with the tape. It was very encouraging to turn on the tape and watch the level Pierre is still playing at. When you see that on tape and you also know the type of guy (he is). ... I was very excited to get him." Shanahan has a great history of featuring his No. 1 receiver as an offensive coordinator with Andre Johnson in Houston, Garcon in Washington and Julio Jones in Atlanta. Garcon is a sleeper to target in all leagues with a mid-round pick, and he could easily emerge as a No. 2 Fantasy receiver this season.
Bust: Carlos Hyde
It's hard to know where Hyde stands coming into training camp. Last year, he was the No. 14 Fantasy running back in standard leagues with 217 carries for 988 yards (4.55 yards per carry) and six touchdowns and 27 catches for 163 yards and three touchdowns in 13 games. It seemed like Shanahan was excited about Hyde when he told CBS Sports this offseason that, "We're inheriting a tough, talented back. I'm looking forward to getting with him because I know he's a solid back." But then reports prior to the NFL Draft started coming out that the 49ers wanted to move on from Hyde because of injury concerns (he's coming off a torn MCL in his knee from Week 16 last year) and a potential poor fit for Shanahan's scheme. Lynch even said of Hyde, "Do these skills translate to what we do?" And it's not just words since the 49ers signed Tim Hightower as a free agent, traded with Denver to acquire Kapri Bibbs and then drafted Williams in the fourth round from Utah after Shanahan practically begged Lynch to take him, along with the addition of Breida. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk will also get touches, and Hyde could struggle with his workload. One report at OTA's from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat suggested that Hyde was "the slowest and most indecisive running back on the team." I still consider Hyde the best running back in San Francisco, but it's clear he has to prove himself. He's a mid-range No. 2 option at best, and he should be drafted after Round 5.
Deep Sleeper: Matt Breida
In terms of sleepers for the 49ers, Garcon and Williams are the two best options in most formats, and I plan to target both in the majority of leagues. And when looking at San Francisco's running backs, it's crowded, with Hyde still the starter, but there could be a chance for someone like Breida to make plays if he ever gets a chance. He's an undrafted rookie free agent from Georgia Southern, and he finished his three-year college career with 542 carries for 3,470 yards (6.9 yards per carry) and 37 touchdowns and 22 catches for 156 yards and three touchdowns. The Sacramento Bee reported that following spring practices, Breida made more highlights than Williams, but his biggest problem could be playing time. Even if Breida was better than Williams in training camp, both rookies still might have to overcome Hyde and Hightower, which could be problematic. But in rookie-only drafts, Williams is worth a second-round pick, and Brieda is worth a mid-round selection since both could be competing for the starting job in San Francisco in 2018.
