Monday night will be an important night for the offense with three key players returning from injury. Offensive tackles Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey are both expected to play, and fullback Kyle Juszczyk will also return. That good news comes with some bad news though. Tight end George Kittle is listed as doubtful and unlikely play against Seattle with a knee injury.
With their best player possibly sidelined, here are the six players to watch on offense for the 49ers on Monday night:
QB Jimmy Garoppolo
Garoppolo is coming off one the best games of his career. He threw for 317 yards and a career-high four touchdowns in the Week 9 win against Arizona. Monday night will be the biggest game of his career though against a Seattle pass defense that isn’t much better than Arizona’s. Seattle’s defense has allowed 278 passing yards per game, just two fewer than the Cardinals, but they’ve only allowed 11 passing touchdowns. Garoppolo can carry the offense if he puts up another showing like he did in the desert.
LT Joe Staley
Garoppolo will be getting some help on his blind side with Staley set to return from a broken fibula he sustained in Week 2. Seattle’s pass rush has struggled to get to the quarterback with just 15 sacks this season, good for the seventh-lowest total in the league. Rookie sixth-round pick Justin Skule filled in nicely for Staley, but the veteran left tackle is one of the best in the league when he’s playing well. He’ll need to make a quick return to form to make life as difficult as possible for Seattle’s already struggling pass rush.
RT Mike McGlinchey
Both sides of the line will see a boost with McGlinchey returning Monday night as well, following arthroscopic knee surgery after Week 5. There’s a chance McGlinchey will have the toughest test on the line against Jadaveon Clowney, but Clowney hasn’t practiced this week with a knee injury. He isn’t on the final injury report. The 49ers have only allowed Garoppolo to be sacked 12 times this season so with Staley and McGlinchey returning, Garoppolo could be seeing plenty of clean pockets Monday night.
FB Kyle Jusczcyk
If having two offensive linemen returning to the offense wasn’t enough, the 49ers also have Jusczcyk returning Monday night. Jusczcyk is a not-so-secret weapon in Kyle Shanahan’s offense who can block, run, come out of the backfield as a receiver, and line up anywhere on the field. The 49ers’ run game has seen a slight decline since Jusczcyk’s injury, averaging 200 yards per game in his four games, but averaging 142.3 since his injury. He gives head coach Kyle Shanahan a ton of options for the deception that drives his offense.
WR Emmanuel Sanders
Sanders has quickly become the 49ers’ No. 1 receiver in his two games with the team. He leads all receivers with 14 targets, 11 receptions, 137 yards, and two touchdowns since joining the team three weeks ago. With Kittle doubtful Monday, Sanders will likely be Garoppolo’s favorite target again against Seattle, which could lead to another big game from the veteran receiver.
TE Ross Dwelley
Dwelley will see an expanded role if Kittle is out or limited Monday night. With Kittle missing the end of last week’s game, Dwelley saw a career-high four targets with four receptions for 27 yards. Dwelley will have to be used in similar ways to Kittle even if he can’t mimic his productivity as a blocker or receiver. If he can come through with a couple clutch catches like he did against Arizona, San Francisco should be able to survive without their star tight end.
