The beginning of the Brian Hoyer era in Santa Clara hasn’t gone according to plan.
After the 49ers scored just three points in their season opener against the Panthers, San Francisco followed up with another lackluster offensive performance in Week 2, sputtering out against the Seahawks in a 12-9 loss.
That marked two straight games and 21 consecutive possessions without a 49ers’ touchdown, making San Francisco the only team besides the Cincinnati Bengals yet to reach the end zone.
In the 49ers’ frustrating loss to Seattle, Hoyer completed just 15-of-27 pass attempts for 99 yards and was intercepted once. However 49ers’ general manager John Lynch isn’t too worried about Hoyer’s back-to-back rough performances. At least not yet. Lynch joined the Tolbert and Lund Show on KNBR Wednesday, where he expressed little concern about Hoyer’s lackadaisical start to the year.
“One of the reasons we brought Brian in is, you saw him take ownership this week and say ‘I have to be better.’” Lynch said. “What I would say is that everyone needs to be better. While it hasn’t been perfect, when I talk about those missed opportunities, there’s been opportunities where we could’ve really helped Brian. Brian has owned it, but what he needs to know is that his teammates have his back. That’s when you start to become good as a team, when you pick up somebody who’s struggling a little bit. That’s what we intend to do.”
Though Hoyer has struggled, Lynch is encouraged by the signs of life shown by the 49ers’ rushing attack, and he believes that’s a positive omen for the unit moving forward.
“I think Kyle (Shanahan) is doing a tremendous job and the entire offensive staff of putting him in a position to be successful. Usually half the battle, the hard thing, is running the football in this league. When you can’t do that, it usually leads to success in throwing the football because they dedicate resources to stop it. We’ve got that going for us, now we just need to start executing the pass game. We’ve watched Brian do it throughout the offseason, we’ve watched him do it throughout his career, now he’s just got to put it out there. We’re confident that he will, and that some of these things are going to start going our way.”
Listen to the full podcast below. To hear Lynch on Hoyer, skip to 12:42.