The 49ers’ team-building route has pushed them off the beaten path of a typical Super Bowl contender in a variety of ways.
While we typically talk about what that means for them on the field and the pros and cons of how they’ve constructed a roster, a conversation on the radio offered an interesting angle on how San Francisco differs from other top NFL teams.
Buy 49ers TicketsSteiny and Guru on 95.7 the Game in San Francisco wondered whether head coach Kyle Shanahan was the face of the 49ers, and whether it’s good if he is.
This is an interesting question because it circles back around to how the 49ers are built and, frankly, underscores how good their roster is.
Generally the face of an NFL team, if they have an elite quarterback, is the quarterback. Patrick Mahomes, Jalen Hurts, Joe Burrow – the list of elite QBs is exactly the same as the list of QBs who are the face of their respective franchise.
Then there are teams like the Steelers, where TJ Watt would likely be considered the franchise’s face. Pittsburgh is very good, but Watt is the undeniable star of that group. The Titans and Derrick Henry probably fit that mold as well.
Then there are teams that don’t really have a face because they’re in the midst of a rebuild – word to the Cardinals and Texans.
The 49ers fall in a unique bucket among the NFL’s Super Bowl contenders in that they don’t have a superstar QB. Brock Purdy got plenty of shine last year as the final pick in the draft who led the 49ers to the NFC championship game as a rookie, but he’s far from proven as an elite QB.
Finding a “face” in the 49ers’ locker room is hard because there are arguments to be made for so many players. Trent Williams, Nick Bosa, Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Fred Warner and George Kittle all have legitimate arguments. Even a players like Talanoa Hufanga and Brandon Aiyuk might be able to make a case if they have huge years in 2023.
Williams plays on the offensive line and having an offensive lineman as the face of the franchise is tough given their lack of profile among casual fans.
Bosa might get there if he signs his long-term extension, but even then a defensive star in terms of “face of the franchise” is always going to take a back seat to an offensive star.
Warner is the team’s emotional leader, but the typical uphill climb for defenders is even steeper since he’s not the club’s best defensive player (which is wild, FYI. He’d be the best defensive player on perhaps 28 other teams).
Then there’s the offensive group of Kittle, McCaffrey and Samuel. Kittle is undeniably the most outspoken and among players on the 49ers probably has the best case to be the “face” of the franchise. And if we had to name one, it would likely be him.
However, his productivity over the last couple years has started to dip in terms of volume as he gives way to the other offensive weapons. A face of the franchise who is the third (or perhaps fourth) option on offense is tough to justify.
Ultimately this discussion is probably one the 49ers would prefer to see given the big-picture meaning. If their roster wasn’t very good, any one of that group would be the unquestioned face of the team. Just ask Christian McCaffrey after his last couple years in Carolina.
Instead, there’s a debate because the bucket of players to choose from is so expansive and any argument for one eats into the argument against another.
If the 49ers had their druthers, their group of potential franchise faces would stay deep with Purdy playing well enough to elevate himself above the rest to become the undeniable face of the franchise with other stars settling in behind him in the pecking order.
For now though it remains a question mark, and that’s certainly not a bad thing.
