SANTA CLARA — The offense has been hit and miss and the defense could use a lot more in the way of interceptions and quarterback pressures.
Yet where the 49ers have made an upgrade that has contributed to a 6-3 record is on special teams, and it’s more than just the string of can’t-miss bullseyes from place kicker Eddy Piñeiro.
It’s better kick coverage and a better return game with lots of new faces, including special teams coordinator Brant Boyer.
There has been only one big bust that’s helped cost the 49ers a game, an 87-yard punt return for a touchdown by Parker Washington in a 26-21 loss to Jacksonville on Sept. 28.
Otherwise, the 49ers have not only met coach Kyle Shanahan’s wish of not costing the 49ers’ games, but have contributed to winning them.
“I’ve been really proud of our special teams this year,” Shanahan said in advance of a 34-24 win over the New York Giants.
It’s something nobody would envision the 49ers coach saying the past few years, with the 49ers making key mistakes on special teams, including erratic field goal accuracy by the departed Jake Moody.
Most of the attention has gone to Piñeiro, who replaced Moody after Week 1. After missing his first extra point again with the fan base thinking “Oh, here we go again,” Piñeiro has been perfect. He’s made his last 14 conversions and is 19-for-19 on field goal attempts. And although Piñeiro was considered a safe option who would hit makeable field goals but not necessarily deliver from long-distance, but he’s 6-for-6 from 50 yards and beyond.
But it goes further than that. Jordan Elliott had a key blocked extra point attempt against the Rams at SoFi Stadium in a 26-23 overtime win by the 49ers. The Rams, who visit Levi’s Stadium Sunday (Fox, 1:25 p.m.), have opened up their kicking competition with incumbent Joshua Karty of Stanford hitting 10 of 15 attempts. Either Karty or Harrison Mevis, signed to the practice squad, will handle field goal attempts and kickoffs against the 49ers.
Once Moody was waived, the 49ers had three new specialists to go along with long-snapper Jon Weeks (for Taybor Pepper) and punter Thomas Morstead (for Mitch Wishnowsky). In free agency, the 49ers signed Siran Neal, a veteran special teamer for Buffalo and Miami, and Luke Gifford, who played for Dallas and Tennessee.
Gifford is among the NFL leaders with 13 special teams tackles, as is Neal, with 11.
Linebacker Curtis Robinson is a holdover on special teams and believes Boyer has made a difference.
“Boyer’s on it,” Robinson said Thursday. “He came in and let us know from Day 1 his main things were to play our asses off and execute with precision, know your job. I think at the base level, that’s what we hang our hat on and then we go out and make plays on game day, the ones that come to us. We’ve gotten better every single week.”
While the 49ers’ special teams play has been a sore spot with the fan base, Gifford said he was unaware of their struggles.
“I hadn’t heard about it until I got here,” Gifford said. “I hadn’t played the Niners the last couple of years so I didn’t know much about it. It was kind of a surprise because I knew some of the guys were good special teams players.”
Eddy Piñeiro (18) hasn’t missed a field goal in 19 attempts for the 49ers this season. Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group
A college cornerback at Jacksonville State, Neal, in his eighth season, has played just 625 snaps on defense (none this year) and 2,267 on special teams. He’s assumed the role of George Odum, one of the 49ers’ few bright spots on special teams, and understands his worth.
“I was a fifth-round pick in Buffalo, I got my chance on special teams and I was pretty good at it, and I just knew I was going to be one of the best in the league,” Neal said. “I loved it immediately and I knew once I got that chance, I was going to run with it.”
While both Gifford and Weeks said they hadn’t been aware of the 49ers’ previous struggles on special teams, it was outlined to Neal during his free agent visit.
“I was called in the offseason about it, I was very aware of it and just knew the situation of coming in and knowing what we had to do to make special teams better,” Neal said. “They brought Boyer and (special teams assistant) Colt Anderson in and it was a little shaky at first but we’ve gotten better as a unit each week. We’ve come together and have been doing pretty well the last two or three weeks.”
Running back Brian Robinson Jr., limited to 41 carries this season with Christian McCaffrey rarely leaving the field, jumped at the chance to return kickoffs when the 49ers soured on Isaac Guerendo (after a would-be fumble was ruled down-by-contact against the Rams) even though he’d never done it through four seasons in Washington.
“I wanted to do whatever I could to help the team,” Robinson said. “That’s why I’m here.”
He turned in a big play against the Giants, who had closed within 27-17 after a 6-yard run by Jaxson Dart in the third quarter with 7:52 left in the third quarter. Robinson proceeded to field a kickoff in the end zone and break it for 41 yards even as Shanahan was pleading with him from the sideline to take a knee.
“I went from being extremely angry with him for not taking a touchback to eating my own words and saying, ‘Hell of a job,’” Shanahan said.
The 49ers went on a 60-yard drive to reassert themselves after the return, with McCaffrey scoring on a 3-yard run for a 34-14 lead.
Curtis Robinson is proud of making a positive contribution on special teams as opposed to simply being error-free.
“We take pride in being one of the reasons we can win,” Curtis Robinson said.
As for Piñeiro, his prowess as a field goal kicker can even be helpful to coverage teams.
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“Momentum is one of the biggest advantages in football and I’d be lying if I said Eddy nailing 50-plus-yard field goals doesn’t give us a little extra juice on kickoff coverage,” Curtis Robinson said.
Shanahan said the 49ers have gradually become more well-rounded in all areas of special teams and noted that injuries often cause special teamers to be pulled into the lineup, which can reduce their availability.
“I think they’re playing really well as a unit in all the phases, not just one in particular,” Shanahan said. “I think our returners have gotten better. We’ve gotten better at blocking for them. I think our punter, our long snapper and our kicker are playing at a high level. I think it’s a huge credit to them.”
