San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan. Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

This 49ers player is getting picked on and opponents know it

Originally posted on San Francisco 49ers on SI
By Parker Hurley | Last updated Oct 1, 2025 9:00 AM ET

It is becoming clear through two games that the San Francisco 49ers' rookie guard Connor Colby has defined strengths and weaknesses. The question is whether the 49ers can live with the highs and lows,

Do the San Francisco 49ers have a problem at guard?

On one side, he is looking competent as a run blocker. He does a great job of getting out into space as a mover and has helped in the screen game as well. On the other hand, he is becoming a problem at guard.

It is only two games, but according to Pro Football Focus, he has allowed ten pressures, with five coming in each game. There are even arguments for one or two more pressures to be called in his favor.

He has an 8.3% pressure allowed right now. Only six guards with more than 60 pass protection snaps have a worse rate. Four of those players, like Colby, did not start in Week 1, and another is a rookie.

Trent Williams is the next highest 49er with 7.3%, which is closer to average for a tackle. Dominick Puni is at 4.2%, Colton McKivitiz has a solid 3.6% rate, and Jake Brendel is at 3%, which is normal for a center.

There are some areas where Colby can clean up on the fly. The team as a whole can get better at passing off stunts, and the Jacksonville Jaguars attacked that in their win over the team. Still, Colby was a victim of communication and passing off of rushers.

Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

In some other instances, he is just losing one-on-one. Calais Campbell, Davon Hamilton, and Dalvin Tomlinson have beaten him with power. Then, Josh Sweat and Arik Armstead beat him with speed. With the variety of rushers, it is clear that teams are looking to highlight this matchup when they face the 49ers as well.

On high-leverage passing downs, it is easy for coordinators to throw one of their best rushers at Colby, which is what resulted in Sweat recording a sack in Week 3.

Ben Bartch has a high ankle sprain, and while he will miss at least two more weeks, there will certainly be a question about how soon he can come back if Colby continues to struggle. The early hope was that some of the youth on the 49ers could step up and make veterans like Bartch expendable, but that has not been the case with Colby through two weeks.

It will be interesting to see how he progresses in the next two weeks.

This article first appeared on San Francisco 49ers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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