Milli Vanilli once told us to blame it on the rain.
But how much of the 49ers’ 19-10 loss to the Bears Sunday is a byproduct of the deplorable conditions in Chicago?
Can you judge the Niners’ wide receivers for being unable to separate or the offensive line struggling in pass protection when the field was so oversaturated that the paint had dissolved both the numbers and lines?
And is it fair to hold Trey Lance to account for completing only 5-of-14 fourth-quarter passes (quarterback rating of 14.9) when the fourth quarter was played amid a flash-flood warning?
Probably not. But no one knows the right coefficient to apply.
We know the penalties and defensive breakdowns we saw Sunday can’t be blamed on the rain. No weather demands you grab a facemask, Dre Greenlaw.
And Lance’s fourth-quarter interception — the game-loser — doesn’t seem to be something that can be attributed to the rain, either. Yes, it was wet, but there wasn’t an issue with visibility that led Lance to miss Bears safety Eddie Jackson.
The Niners deserved their loss Sunday, even though they were the better team, having gained 47 percent more yards than the Bears.
It was the situational football that did in the Niners. A third of the Bears’ first downs came via penalty.
The good news is that situational football is the easiest thing to improve week-over-week.
We should have a better indication of what kind of team the 49ers are after Sunday.
Then again, there’s a chance of rain in the forecast for Santa Clara on Sunday, so perhaps we’ll have to wait a while longer.
Here are my other thoughts on Sunday’s loss to the Bears and the upcoming Week 2 game against the Seahawks:
— It’s an indictment on Charlie Woerner and Ross Dwelley that Tyler Kroft, a fringe pick to make this team, was the George Kittle replacement on Sunday.
Kroft did fine in the role, but he’s, obviously, no Kittle. The question moving forward is if Kittle will ever again be the version of himself that set NFL records and was inarguably the best two-way tight end in the league.
Rushing Kittle back from what sounds like a brutal groin injury so he can play in a get-right Week 2 game over Seattle would logically cap his ability to get back to full form this season. Throw whatever percentage you want to call his level of health, it’s not going to be 100 percent on Sunday, and no one gets healthier as an NFL season progresses.
We know Kittle is going to want to play. He’s the ultimate gamer. The Niners will want him to play, too, but is that the right decision for the player and team amid a 17-game season? That’s a tough call for the Niners. This situation would be much easier had they developed or acquired a true No. 2 tight end for this season.
— How did the offensive line do on Sunday? I thought the front five was up-and-down.
And the two major game graders agree: One had the Niners up, the other had them down.
The Niners’ pass protection was ranked No. 1 in the NFL this past week by Pro Football Focus. ESPN had them 17th.
We’ll need a few more games to get a better read on things there.
— Here’s a development I liked in Sunday’s game: When Jeff Wilson was elevated to the top running back job after Elijah Mitchell’s injury, fullback Kyle Juszczyk took over Wilson’s role as the team’s third-down back.
With Mitchell expected to be out until after the Niners’ Week 9 bye, there will be some shuffling at the running back position. Don’t be shocked if Jordan Mason sees some serious action on Sunday against the Seahawks. Mason could also be a third-down back option.
But I’d like to see Juszczyk stick in that role.
The Niners have changed up their offense with Lance at quarterback. How much so remains to be seen, but against the Bears, Juszczyk only had 25 offensive snaps — 37 percent of the Niners’ total. And that’s with the third-down back usage. He only had one game with a lower snap percentage last season, averaging 35 snaps a game (56 percent).
Using Juszczyk as a third-down back is not only the right move schematically, but it gets a valuable player on the field more often.
You won’t have to worry about pass protection on third-down passes with Juszczyk on third down, and he’s an outstanding route runner and receiver — something that has never consistently been taken advantage of in his time in the Bay.
Juszczyk is a solid power runner, too, if the Niners want to go that way.
This is a winning role for a winning player. While the circumstances that brought it about were less than ideal, this third-down role could be ideal for Juszczyk and the Niners.
— The Seahawks played well in their season opener Monday night against the Broncos. After all, they won.
But don’t buy into the idea that Seattle — who came into the campaign expected to be one of the NFL’s worst teams — was overlooked this preseason.
This nation’s bookies aren’t. After the Niners’ loss Sunday, San Francisco opened as an 8.5-point favorite in Week 2 against Seattle.
After the Seahawks won on Monday night, that line moved — to a 10-point Niners advantage.
The difference can be found in the details — the Niners were a superior team to the Bears Sunday, save for those terrible penalties and turnovers. The Broncos were the superior team to the Seahawks Monday night, save for their penalties, turnovers, and abysmal clock management.
No one is overlooking those problems San Francisco showed in Chicago, but it’s also fair to expect them to be cleaned up. This is a team that has competed for championships in recent years, after all. Its coach is anything but incompetent.
— That said, I was told a great joke by a listener when I was on KNBR Monday:
How do you beat Kyle Shanahan?
Give him a 10-point lead.
