On Wednesday, Kyle Shanahan wasn't too concerned with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk's lack of production this season. The San Francisco 49ers head coach loves what his 24-year-old wideout has been doing on the football field, even if his reception total hasn't been what many expected.
"Everyone expects numbers based off of guys playing well, and it just doesn't always work that way," Shanahan said. "B.A. has been playing really good. I thought he had his best game versus Carolina; the second-best game the week before. But the ball doesn't always go that way. ... But his times will come. When we've come to B.A., he's done a hell of a job.
"He had some opportunities last week that we just didn't get it to him on, which would have helped his stats and helped perception. But that's all it is to me, is really perception. B.A.'s playing his ass off."
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Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo knows the 49ers have an unselfish team. Everyone is happy so long as the 49ers are winning, and the team looks to win its third straight on Sunday when it faces the Atlanta Falcons. Will Aiyuk be more involved in the game plan? It feels like the receiver is due for a breakout game.
"I know, like everyone says, he doesn't get the targets and everything like that," Garoppolo told reporters after Thursday's practice. "There's so much more to our offense than that. It's just exciting. We've got a good group that it's not all about, 'Hey, I need this catch, I need that catch,' or, 'It was supposed to go to me here.' It's cool to have guys like that all on the same page.
"B.A., he's been a team player, and he's made some big plays for us too. It's coming. It's coming."
The offense as a whole has been clicking since an embarrassing Week 3 showing against the Denver Broncos. Sicne then, the unit put up 327 total yards against the Los Angeles Rams and 308 total yards against the Carolina Panthers. But, more importantly, the 49ers offense has taken care of the football. Tight end George Kittle's fumble on Sunday was the offense's lone giveaway in the last two games.
"I think it's moving in the right direction," Garoppolo shared. "I think we've still got a ways to go, offensively. We left some points out there on Sunday that we'd like to have back, but the way our defense and special teams are playing right now, we've just got to keep up with them."
