2024 was a disappointing season for the San Francisco 49ers, spearheaded by these four 49ers.

Deebo Samuel

This pick was the most obvious one, right? Deebo Samuel was getting raved about how sweet he looked in training camp and how great in shape he was. As usual, training camp hype means nothing. Samuel went on to have arguably the worst season of his career. He averaged 3.1 yards in target separation, the lowest of his career.

He was a nonfactor as a wide receiver and wasn’t much better as a running back either. Samuel only had two carries of 10+ yards this season, the lowest of his career since 2020 when he only started four games. 2024 Samuel was more of a negative factor for the 49ers than a positive one. The bright side is he tends to bounce back after a poor season, so we’ll see in 2025.

Ji’Ayir Brown

The biggest liability by far on the 49ers’ defense was Ji’Ayir Brown. He could do nothing right this year. His only good game was against the Dallas Cowboys where he recorded an interception. That isn’t to say he needs an interception to have a good performance, but it was his only highlight game and play.

There were high expectations placed on Brown going into his second year. He showed some flashes as a rookie, so there was hope. Unfortunately, he failed to take any leap in 2024. His only leaps were regressing as a tackler and taking angles to stop big plays. His position on the team is questionable next season.

Brock Purdy

2024 was a big year for Brock Purdy. It was one where he needed to build off the impressive 2023 he had that saw him finish as an MVP finalist and perform well in the Super Bowl. However, he couldn’t do it. Purdy regressed this year. Sure, you can point to the injuries that took away some of his best weapons.

But his lack of weapons has zero to do with his horrible decision-making this year. It has zero to do with the inaccurate passes that came out of his hands. It has zero to do with him holding onto the ball longer than he needed on numerous occasions. Purdy isn’t a bad player by any means, but he disappointed heavily this past season and needs to rewrite it in 2025.

Kyle Shanahan

Last but not least is Kyle Shanahan. When a team has so many disappointing players that factor into a heavily disappointing season, it falls squarely on the head coach. He wasn’t good this year. His playcalling lacked any identity, the team was undisciplined, and there were so many blown leads that led to losses.

That all falls on the head coach. The team was unserious because Shanahan was. You’re either coaching it or allowing it, and this season Shanahan allowed things to spiral out of control. This is why he is excited about the offseason so he can correct the mistakes that plagued him in the last calendar year.