A year ago, the 49ers were staring at a kicking problem that felt like it could swallow the whole operation. Jake Moody had hit a game-winner in the preseason finale against the Las Vegas Raiders, but the confidence around him never really followed. That doubt proved justified almost immediately, and San Francisco moved on after just one week of the regular season, cutting him after a rough opener against the Seattle Seahawks.
Now the picture looks completely different. Eddy Piñeiro stepped in, gave the 49ers the steady production they were missing, and earned an extension in the offseason. On Thursday against the Raiders, he was once again central to the scoring, putting up all 18 of San Francisco’s points and drilling a 58-yarder along the way.
For a team that leans hard on special teams stability, Piñeiro has been exactly what it needed. But there’s still one area where he can sharpen things up, and it has nothing to do with his field goals.
The issue shows up on kickoffs. Too many of Piñeiro’s preseason boots have sailed into the end zone for touchbacks, and that’s not the free pass it once was. Under the current setup, that can hand the opponent excellent starting field position at the 35-yard line if the ball goes past the hash marks.
Kyle Shanahan made it clear Thursday that he was not thrilled with how the start of the game unfolded. Piñeiro chose to defer, even though Shanahan prefers to receive in the preseason, and then kicked the ball into the end zone anyway. That sequence only added to the head coach’s frustration.
Piñeiro’s 2024 numbers on kickoffs were solid, if not spotless. He sent the ball off 79 times last season, and 16 of those ended up as touchbacks. That’s not a disastrous rate by league standards, but there’s room for it to come down.
The 49ers are in a much better place on special teams now than they were in earlier seasons, when they didn’t have the unit to get fancy with angled kickoffs or field-position games. With Brant Boyer in place last year, that group took a noticeable step forward, and the team believes it can keep that edge in 2026.
Piñeiro’s main job remains the same: keep being the dependable kicker the 49ers finally found. But if he can tighten up the kickoff part of the operation, that only helps San Francisco squeeze out every little advantage it can in games decided by the smallest of margins.
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49ers Face A George Kittle Decision They Can't Rush
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Kyle Shanahan has made it clear the team is not about to force the issue, even with a season opener in Australia against the Rams looming. Kittle still has not joined full team drills, and Shanahan has framed the situation alongside other injured 49ers such as Mykel Williams and Nick Bosa, a reminder that San Francisco is trying to protect more than one important piece as it sorts out who is truly ready for Week 1 and who still needs more time. [Read more 🡒]