Madden 19: San Francisco 49ers Player Ratings, Roster, Depth Chart & Playbooks

The San Francisco 49ers were one of the most impressive teams in the league under Jim Harbaugh at the start of the decade. They went 13-3 in 2011 and lost in the NFC Championship game, then in 2012 they went one better, only to lose to the Baltimore Ravens in the Super Bowl, they made a third straight NFC title game in 2013 but lost to Seattle. Since then though the team has regressed. They haven’t registered a winning season and fell to the foot of the NFC West. In 2017, with the 49ers coming off a 2-14 season, they hired offensive guru Kyle Shanahan as head coach. Later that season they traded for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, and they enter Madden 19 with a lot of promise and potential on both sides of the ball.

*All stats correct at time of writing

Team Rating

The San Francisco 49ers get a poor 78 overall rating on Madden 19. This is in part because the roster has seen a lot of turn over since the Jim Harbaugh era and they are trying to find young talent. However, there are some bright spots to this roster. The offense gets a very nice 85 rating, putting it on par with Green Bay and ahead of teams like the Chargers. Defensively, this roster falls down completely. While there are one or two bright spots like Richard Sherman and DeForest Buckner, as a whole they are poor and get a very bad 75 rating, marking them as one of the worst defenses in Madden 19.

Richard Sherman, Cornerback (OVR 93)

Age: 29

Development Trait: Star

Contract: 3 years/$16 million

2018 Cap Hit: $5.22 million

Best Stats: Play Recognition (99), Jumping (98), Press (96), Agility (96), Zone Coverage (94), Man Coverage (89), Acceleration (89), Speed (88)

Richard Sherman was one of the best cornerbacks in modern football. He was a key part of Seattle’s success, and the 49ers lack of it, but injuries added up to reduce his impact and his contract became to much. He played just nine games for the Seahawks in 2017 before injury claimed his season and he was released. In the offseason Sherman signed with the 49ers for the sole reason to play Seattle twice a year. Sherman comes to San Francisco with 32 interceptions to his name, five forced fumbles, two touchdowns, and a Super Bowl ring.

George Kittle, Tight End (OVR 89)

Age: 24

Development Trait: Quick

Contract: 3 years/$2.01 million

2018 Cap Hit: $630k

Best Stats: Catching (91), Awareness (89), Acceleration (88), Speed (87), Short Route (81), Catch In Traffic (81)

George Kittle was a fifth-round pick in 2017 out of Iowa. Not much was expected, but Kittle showed some promise in college making 42 catches in his final two years, racking up 604 yards and 10 touchdowns. In his rookie year Kittle showed more than promise, especially once Jimmy Garoppolo arrived. He finished the year with 515 yards and comes into Madden 19 as an impressive receiving option and arguably the 49ers best weapon.

DeForest Buckner, Defensive End (OVR 87)

Age: 24

Development Trait: Quick

Contract: 2 years/$9.4 million

2018 Cap Hit: $4.4 million

Best Stats: Finesse Moves (90), Play Recognition (89), Awareness (89), Strength (89), Tackle (89), Block Shedding (83), Acceleration (83)

DeForest Buckner was the seventh-overall pick in 2016 out of Oregon. The 6 foot 7 monster brought quickness, strength, and an impressive mind for the game to the 49ers defensive line. At Oregon Buckner racked up 18 sacks and 36 tackles for loss and in his rookie year he immediately flashed the kind of offense-destroying talents San Francisco had hoped for. His second year was even more impressive, even if the statistical results were not as good. He comes into his third year in the NFL with nine sacks, 12 tackles for loss, and 40 QB hits to his name.

Jimmy Garoppolo, Quarterback (OVR 81)

Age: 26

Development Trait: Star

Contract: 5 years/$95 million

2018 Cap Hit: $17.7 million

Best Stats: Throw Power (94), Short Accuracy (89), Play Action (87), Throw On Run (85), Throw Under Pressure (84), Medium Accuracy (82)

Jimmy Garoppolo was a second-round pick in 2014 for the New England Patriots. He sat behind Tom Brady for a long time, but always impressed in his pre-season outings. When Brady was suspended to start the 2016 season Garoppolo finally got a chance to see live action, and in his first game against Arizona he completed 72 percent of his passes for 264 yards and a touchdown. He threw three scores the week after before landing on his shoulder and getting injured. Still, it was enough to entice QB-needy teams, and at the 2017 trade deadline the 49ers sent a second-round pick to New England for him. He started 5 games that year fore the 49ers, completing 67 percent of his passes for 1,542 yards, throwing 6 touchdowns and registering a 94 QB rating. He comes into 2018 with a lot of potential and the ability to carry the 49ers back up the NFC West standings.

Full Roster & Depth Chart

The 49ers roster is far from the most talented in Madden 19, but there are plenty of bright spots and youthful potential all over the team. Jimmy Garoppolo (94 throw power, 89 short accuracy) leads the offense at quarterback, though he comes into Madden 19 with a torn ACL. Around him is an army of receivers led by the speedster Marquise Goodwin (96 speed, 95 jumping) and tight end George Kittle (91 catching, 87 speed). Along with them is reliable veteran Pierre Garcon (90 catching, 83 short route) and rookie Dante Pettis (90 speed, 85 medium route). At running back there is the solid Matt Breida (93 speed, 89 juke move) and the speedy Raheem Mostert (94 acceleration, 93 speed). There is also Jerick McKinnon (93 speed, 85 break tackle) but like Garoppolo he is on the shelf until the 2019 season, unless you remove pre-existing injuries when you set up your franchise.

This offense also has a very solid offensive line with veteran left tackle Joe Staley (87 pass block, 89 run block) and rookie right tackle Mike McGlinchey (79 pass block, 87 run block). In the middle Weston Richburg (76 pass block, 77 run block) is a good center but the guard spots could use an upgrade.

Defensively the 49ers are far less impressive. Up front they have young starts in DeForest Buckner (90 finesse moves, 86 strength), Arik Armstead (85 tackle, 84 power moves), and Solomon Thomas (87 strength, 78 block shedding), but behind them there is very little at either linebacker or safety. Jaquiski Tartt (90 speed, 81 play recognition) is a solid strong safety, and Richard Sherman (96 press, 94 zone coverage) is still a very good cornerback, but the secondary needs total overhaul as quickly as possible if the 49ers are to compete.

San Francisco 49ers Playbook - Offense

I Form Close

I Form Close Flex

I Form Pro

I Form Slot

I Form Tight

I Form Twin TE

I Form Y Off

Strong I Close

Strong I Y Off

Weak I Close

Weak I Pro

Weak I Slot Open Flex

Singleback Ace

Singleback Ace Pair

Singleback Bunch

Singleback Deuce Close

Singleback Dice Slot

Singleback Wing Slot

Singleback Wing Tight

Singleback Wing Tight Z

Singleback Y Off Trio

Pistol Full Panther

Pistol Y Trips

Shotgun Bunch Wide

Shotgun Doubles Y Off Wk

Shotgun Doubles Y-Flex

Shotgun Empty Base Flex

Shotgun Split Close

Shotgun Stack Y-Flex

Shotgun Tight

Shotgun Trey

Shotgun Trey Open

Shotgun Trey Y-Flex

Shotgun Trips Open

Shotgun Wing Tight

Shotgun Y Off Trio Wk

The San Francisco 49ers offensive playbook is a delight. There is a lot of I Form plays that get Kyle Juszczyk on the field and make use of his talents. There are also a lot of formations that allow for misdirection and the creation of advantageous angles both on the ground and for receivers. Singleback Deuce Close and Shotgun Split Close are especially good for that, but both Pistol formations are nice, along with personal favorites Shotgun Trey Y-Flex. Stack Y-Flex is very good for getting a receiver a free release off the line, and Bunch Wide can force defenses to declare their coverage very early.

San Francisco 49ers Playbook - Defense

4-3 Normal

4-3 Over

4-3 Over Plus

4-3 Under

4-3 Wide 9

4-4 Split

Nickel Normal

Nickel Double A Gap

Nickel Wide 9

Big Nickel Over G

Dime Normal

Quarter Normal

Quarter 3 Deep

Dollar 3-2-6

Goal Line Defense 5-3-3

Goal Line Defense 5-4-2

The 49ers defensive playbook is a pretty standard 4-3 defense. You get the usual 5 4-3 fronts, but you also get a 4-4 Split look that loads the line of scrimmage and can bring a lot of pressure. There are not as many sub-packages as some other playbooks, but there are still enough Nickel and Dime formations to generate a lot of coverage.

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