It’s not surprising that former San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman was unafraid to offer his blunt analysis of his former team’s problems.
In an episode of the Richard Sherman Podcast following the 49ers’ 29-17 defeat to the Miami Dolphins, Sherman dished out a scathing analysis of an offensive line that allowed three sacks and left quarterback Brock Purdy under pressure most of Sunday’s game.
“That offensive line needs to be the number one, number two and number three priority this offseason,” Sherman said. “If you’re gonna pay this quarterback all the money you’re gonna have to pay him, you want to keep him upright so he can be the playmaker that he has been. This year he’s been under a lot more duress, he’s been using his legs more, he’s had to leave the pocket more often than not – it hasn’t been great, and without Trent (Williams) it’s looked even worse.
“You need a right tackle. No ifs, ands or buts, no discussion, no nothing – a right tackle. You need to figure out a center maybe in the second round. There’s plenty of them in the Big 10 somewhere to find him. Maybe one in the SEC. Then maybe find a guard in free agency. It looks like you have one in Puni. Put a competition out there at left guard. And I know you can’t just draft them one, two, three, four, five, six – but that’s what I would do. We’re gonna hit on one of ’em.”
Typically the 49ers haven’t prioritized their offensive line, opting instead to invest in playmakers while piecing together an offensive front. It wouldn’t be a surprise if we saw a shift in that philosophy given some of the struggles from that group in 2024.
They likely won’t follow Sherman’s advice and draft six OL, but they should snag a few to try and find a starter while also improving some of their overall depth. If they continue trying to shortcut an offensive line, they may continue having the same issues with their offense getting shut down by even mediocre defensive lines.
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