The 49ers ran 50 (fifty!) plays in the first half against the Houston Texans, and they gained 302 yards. Those are unheard of numbers in these parts, preseason or not.
So, Chip Kelly, how would you grade the way your new team executed the pace of your offense ?
“I thought we were okay,” Kelly told Murph and Mac on Monday morning, the day after a 24-13 preseason loss. “We weren’t really trying to do a lot of things. We were very simple in our game plan.”
Kelly is a tough grader. Without trying to control the game, the 49ers’ fast-paced offense still kept Houston’s defense guessing.
All the caveats apply. Blaine Gabbert was shaky in three possessions, the 49ers turned the football over twice and they only scored one touchdown. While this is the preseason, and backup players like quarterback Thad Lewis and running back Mike Davis were mostly responsible for the yardage, it’s more encouraging than not that the 49ers were able to move the football up and down the field.
Kelly has made it clear he’s a fan of slow-playing competition within his offense. Two of the team’s most talented offense linemen — first round pick Joshua Garnett and un-retired Anthony Davis — continue to run with the team’s second unit.
And we’ve written extensively about the quarterback competition. Had Gabbert gone out and looked close to flawless (granted, a lot to ask in a new offense) he could have won the starting quarterback job. But questions persist about his consistency, and there were some alarming accuracy issues early in the game on Sunday.
Further, Kelly can’t seem to quit Colin Kaepernick. Up until his arm fatigue shoulder injury, this competition has been split exactly down the middle and nobody seemingly has the upper hand. The problem is that Kaepernick’s shoulder could need a ton more rest in the upcoming weeks, putting him at a serious disadvantage.
Still, Kelly won’t rule out Kaepernick winning this quarterback job, and compared No. 7 to a stallion in a horse race.
“All of a sudden a horse comes from behind and wins the whole thing,” Kelly said. “It is a race. When it’s determined when we get to the finish line, we’ll see where we are.
“We don’t have to pick a starting lineup until we play the Rams on that Monday night game to open the season. We’re going to take our time to make sure we make the right decision, not the fast decision.”