Preseason Week 3: 49ers Look To Recover Versus Chargers

While it is important to stress that preseason games do not mean all that much, they do provide a little peak into a team’s depth and how prepared they are for the season. The San Francisco 49ers preseason has not gone has hoped for a team that was among the favorites in the future odds of going to the Super Bowl.

The 49ers have not just lost two straight preseason games, they were decimated, being outscored 57-3 overall. the defense has looked vulnerable and the offense has barely moved on the field.

There really is not any excuse for this type of performance, even if you are resting the majority of your starters like San Francisco is doing, but I would not expect Jim Harbaugh to be willing to risk injury to his elite team by putting them in a game that doesn’t matter, so do not expect to see the starters get much playing time against the San Diego Chargers tonight.

The preseason for the 49ers has been more about trying to decide who to cut from the roster and who to keep before the Aug. 26 deadline.

That doesn’t mean that Harbaugh does not want his team to win tonight. He would love to get some positive energy in the club house to start the season, and he definitely wants his team to bounce back both offensively and defensively after being embarrassed in the first two preseason game.

I would not be surprised to see the 49ers first team offense and defense on the field for a bit longer today, as they want to build some positive momentum into their opening day contest with the Dallas Cowboys. While we may not see the likes of Frank Gore get many (if any) carries on offense or Justin Smith on defense, it is not hard to imagine a situation where San Francisco limit the time to its fringe players, who they have likely already made decisions on, and show off their depth.

Also, Harbaugh is likely done playing with different formations and ideas and is ready to hunker down and stick to a game plan. What that means is the Chargers could be looking at a loss.

The Chargers previously struggled against the Seattle Seahawks last week. The Seahawks employ a very similar style to the 49ers on both ends of the ball. The 49ers will likely use a similar strategy with similar results.

San Fransico are the favorites to win this one with a -6 point spread. The game starts at 4 p.m. ET on FOX.