\n<\/p>\n
The 49ers\u2019 offense had gone so off the rails last year that general manager John Lynch had to shoot down any notion that he\u2019d trade his own head coach.<\/p>\n
Two days before they hosted the Bears<\/a> for Thomas Brown\u2019s first game as interim head coach, Lynch went on San Francisco radio and said he found it \u201ccomical\u201d that fans were talking about Kyle Shanahan being dealt \u2014 perhaps to the Bears<\/a>.<\/p>\n Then, for 60 minutes, the 49ers looked like themselves again. In the first half alone, the 49ers hung a ridiculous 319 yards against the Bears on 37 plays. They led 24-0 at halftime and won 38-13. It was the only game they\u2019d win the last seven weeks of the season.<\/p>\n The past month-and-a-half, every 49ers game has looked like the Bears beatdown. Monday night in Indianapolis, Brock Purdy became the first 49ers quarterback since Joe Montana in 1990 to throw for five or more touchdowns. The 49ers scored 48 points against the Colts, their most in six years. Their 440 yards were the most they\u2019ve posted this season.<\/p>\n Purdy, who was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week on Wednesday, has thrown eight touchdowns the past two weeks. The 49ers haven\u2019t punted during that stretch \u2014 a scary proposition for a Bears defense that didn\u2019t force a Packers punt Saturday<\/p>\n The 49ers haven\u2019t lost since Nov. 9. During their five-game win streak, they\u2019ve averaged 34.4 points per game. They\u2019ve scored the fourth-most points in the NFL and allowed the second-fewest during that span.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is gonna be a huge challenge for us \u2026\u201d safety Kevin Byard said. \u201cThe more you win games, the bigger the next game is.\u201d<\/p>\n What makes the 49ers so unusual, though, is where they get their production. Their leading receiver is running back Christian McCaffrey, who has 92 catches \u2014 20 more than the next-closest NFL running back \u2014 for 849 yards. Their second-best pass catcher is tight end George Kittle, who has caught 52 passes for 499 yards. Their next three are wide receivers \u2014 and they have fewer yards this year than either the Bears\u2019 Rome Odunze or DJ Moore.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just kinda unorthodox, a little bit, that you\u2019ve got the tight end and the running back as the guys that concern you the most,\u201d Bears coach Ben Johnson said.<\/p>\n Combine McCaffrey and Kittle with fullback Kyle Juszczyk and it\u2019s clear the 49ers want to dominate the middle of the field.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you have an outstanding [wide] receiver, there\u2019s kind of some things that you can really do to try to take those guys away,\u201d Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said. \u201cIt becomes more challenging inside at the tight end, running back position.\u201d<\/p>\n Without a go-to wideout, Purdy has to distribute the ball. That\u2019s what makes him so hard to plan for, Allen said.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think they do anything where they say, \u2018We\u2019re going to throw it to this guy on this particular play,\u2019\u201d Allen said. \u201cHe does a great job of getting through his progressions, and he throws it to the open guy. And they\u2019ve got a lot of guys.\u201d<\/p>\n Shanahan was the first offensive coordinator to marry run and pass concepts so well, said Johnson, whose goal is to do the same. He watches 49ers tape every week to see what Shanahan is up to.<\/p>\n From 2017-23, the 49ers were the fifth-best rushing team in the NFL. Their run game was the basis of Shanahan\u2019s offense. The last two years, though, they rank 15th<\/sup>. The 49ers still use motion before every snap, trying to force defenders to communicate with each other or risk being out of position. The end goal, though, has been to throw the ball.<\/p>\n \u201cThey might be a more dangerous passing team right now,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n And maybe the most dangerous team, period.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n