Stats don’t tell the story of Brandon Aiyuk’s ascension with 49ers

SANTA CLARA — Brandon Aiyuk caught 60 passes for 748 yards and five touchdowns while playing in 12 games as a rookie a year ago.

Heading into Sunday’s road game against the Seattle Seahawks, Aiyuk has 32 receptions for 432 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games.

A sophomore slump? Not according to coach Kyle Shanahan.

The Press Democrat’s Inside the 49ers blog

“I don’t think it’s close,” the 49ers head coach said Friday. “He’s a much better player right now. He’s better in the run game, better in the pass game. Much more consistent. I think he’s getting better each week, going on four or five weeks in a row. Stats can sometimes tell you the answers but by no means do they tell you all of the answers. There’s plenty of time stats will fool you, but we’ve got a lot more confidence in him now than we did last year.”

Or for that matter, earlier this season, when Aiyuk was running behind Trent Sherfield and was being chided on a weekly basis by Shanahan to improve his practice consistency. That’s all in the rearview mirror, and Aiyuk’s production will be important against Seattle with Deebo Samuel officially listed as out with a groin strain.

“I’m getting better. Definitely getting better,” Aiyuk said. “I’ve come a long way compared to where I was at this point last year. When I came in I played a lot off natural ability and talent without a full understanding of what was going on on offense or defense.”

A prime example came late in the first half of a 34-26 win over Minnesota last week with the 49ers trailing 14-7.

On third-and-11, a precise route by Aiyuk and a perfect pass from Jimmy Garoppolo resulted in a 24-yard gain to the 6-yard line. It set up a 3-yard scoring pass from Garoppolo to Jauan Jennings to the score with 22 seconds to play.

“I thought that was the best route that he’s had since he’s been here,” Shanahan said. “And he needed to do it, because of not he would have been squeezed inside where (linebacker Anthony) Barr was waiting and it would have been a tip or a pick. He ran the perfect route, Jimmy ripped it in there, and he looked so aggressive after the catch. He’s got the mindset where he’s taking his talent to another level.”

Aiuyk said it’s a route he’s run incorrectly in the past, and that “when stuff goes wrong, you learn from it. It was awesome to do that rep the right way.”

Against Minnesota, Aiyuk had three catches for 91 yards, and also had a 37-yard gain on a scoring drive that came on third-and-13.

Aiyuk could be the focus of more attention with Samuel out, along with tight end George Kittle and Jennings.

“I’m not sure what their plan is. But I look at it the same way, I’ll keep preparing the same way like I have been and just make the most of every opportunity that I do get,” Aiyuk said.

One thing Aiyuk won’t be doing is lobbying to get Samuel’s carries out of the backfield as a running back.

“Definitely not. Deebo is a special football player. Not a lot of people can go out there and play running back, take handoffs and do what he does,” Aiyuk said. “I’m cool not getting handoffs.”

Health update

Linebacker Fred Warner was listed as doubtful, meaning he will likely make the trip to Seattle but must show trainers and Shanahan he can play without fear of further injuring his strained hamstring. Players listed as doubtful seldom play on Sunday.

“Fred is trying as hard as he can to go,” Shanahan said. “I won’t put it past him. He won’t go out there without a helmet, he’s doing every rep on the side on his own. He’s showing the trainers he’s got a chance. He’s not going to give up, but it is doubtful.”

Listed as out along with Samuel are linebacker Dre Greenlaw (groin), defensive tackle Maurice Hurst (calf) and running back Trey Sermon (ankle). Linebacker Marcell Harris is questionable with a concussion but still could be cleared to play.

Hurst, who hasn’t played since Week 5 in Arizona, had a setback in practice Thursday.

“Calves are just so tricky, how long they can take,” Shanahan said. “It grabbed on him, scared him, scared us, so we shut him down.”

With Sermon out, JaMycal Hasty returns from an injured ankle and provides depth for starting running back Elijah Mitchell. Like Hurst, Hasty hasn’t played since Week 5 against the Cardinals.

Sleepless over Seattle

To hear Shanahan tell it to KNBR, the Seahawks aren’t your garden-variety 3-8 team.

Which is probably to be expected, considering Shanahan’s teams are 2-7 against the Seahawks since he was hired in 2017.

“I can’t remember playing Seattle when they’ve had a losing record,” Shanahan said. “That just shows how good they’ve been over the last decade. It doesn’t matter with Seattle. You watch their games this year, it’s coming down to the end.”

The Seahawks have struggled on offense, with Russell Wilson missing three games after fracturing the middle finger on his throwing hand and needing surgery. Wilson has returned, but has been rusty and off-target.

Shanahan doesn’t expect that to last. Some more of Shanahan’s healthy respect for Seattle:

— “You know Russell Wilson is going to play his best ball. You know the competitor that he is. You know the great things he’s done.”

— “They have the 32nd-ranked defense in yards, so people talk about their defense being bad. They have a top-10 defense in my opinion, seventh in points, second giving up explosives (big plays), seventh on third down, sixth in the red zone. All the things that really matter they’re in the top eight.”

— “The offense has been historically bad on third down. That’s why they’re struggling with that. But that’s not going to last forever.”