The least heralded position in the entire NFL is any position on the offensive line. They’ll never hear their number called, unless it’s for a penalty, but they take care of all the dirty work. They protect the quarterback and they pave the way for running backs. They are referred to as the big uglies, but that doesn’t take away from their importance to the team.
The 49ers feature one of the most prolific offensive lines in the NFL. They have an All-Pro left guard, a second team All-Pro left tackle, and a Pro-Bowl center. They’ve been rated and touted as the best offensive line of 2012.
Like every offensive line, they’ve got their strengths and weaknesses. They clearly have a strength when it comes to running the ball. The 49ers offensive line paved the way for 49er’s running backs to average 5.1 yards per game, the third best mark in the NFL during the regular season. During the postseason, they’ve paved the way for Colin Kaepernick and Frank Gore to rush for an astonishing 6.1 yards per attempt. They did, however, lack in the pass protecting department. During the regular season, they surrendered 41 sacks and 68 quarterback hits, good for 24th in the league. They allowed 16 sacks during the stretch that Colin Kaepernick took over, despite Kaepernick being one of the NFL’s most mobile quarterbacks. In the playoffs, they’ve been much better in pass protection. They’ve surrendered two sacks, both to the Atlanta Falcons, and only allowed three quarterback hits. Much of that is due to Kaepernick’s ability to use his legs, but that does still speak volumes to their ability to keep him clean. The San Francisco 49ers will have their hands full when they take on the Baltimore Ravens, as they have a more fearsome pass rush than the Packers and Falcons.
On the other side of the field, we have the much maligned Baltimore Ravens’ offensive line. Despite having arguably the best guard in the NFL, Marshall Yanda, the Ravens offensive line as a whole was downright awful most of the time. The unit ranked as one of the worst offensive lines in all of the NFL, surrendering 38 sacks and 69 quarterback hits during the regular season. Like the 49ers, their strength lies in run blocking. They paved the way for Vonta Leach, Bernard Pierce, and Ray Rice to run for 4.3 yards per carry. Not an overwhelming number by any means, but still a solid number.
When the postseason swung around, the Ravens offensive line turned into a whole different story. Bryant McKinnie was inserted back into left tackle, Kelechi Osemele swung over to left guard, and Michael Oher moved back to right tackle, a more natural position for him. This offensive line has paid massive dividends for the Ravens thus far. So far in the postseason, they’ve allowed four sacks and nine quarterback hits in three games. The Ravens have been stellar against some of the better rushing teams in the NFL, like the Denver Broncos. The Broncos were tied for the most sacks in the NFL and featured sack artist Von Miller, but the Ravens didn’t bat an eye. They allowed one sack the entire game, and it was a coverage sack in overtime. They’ve also been fairly consistent with the run game, paving the way for Rice, Pierce, and Leach to average 4.3 yards per carry. If the Ravens used this line and found similar success during the regular season, this would line would have ranked in the top 10 for the entire NFL. It may have been able to help win some of the games that were lost due to strip sacks here and there. It is truly a much improved line that is really showing true grit and playing at an extremely high level.
If the Ravens were going to use their old offensive line in the playoffs, this match-up would not even be close. The 49ers would blow the Ravens out of the water. Now that the Ravens are using a new-look offensive line, though, they have really stepped it up and closed the gap considerably.
This may be a close gap, but the 49ers are still the superior offensive line.
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