San Francisco 49ers

Offensive line a sieve as 49ers' Gabbert absorbs nine sacks

Published Dec. 14, 2015 1:49 a.m. ET

foxsports

Among the myriad issues for the San Francisco 49ers in Sunday's ugly 24-10 loss at the Cleveland Browns was a wretched performance by the offensive line.

Quarterback Blaine Gabbert was sacked nine times by the Browns, tying a franchise record for most sacks allowed by the 49ers since it became an official statistic in 1982.

“I’m still standing here and breathing, so that’s a good thing,” Gabbert told reporters after dropping to 2-3 as a starter. “It starts with me in the front. I have to do a better job, plain and simple.”

Gabbert had been sacked eight times in his first four starts before surpassing that total in Sunday's beating. Left guard Alex Boone was lost to a knee injury early in the third quarter that will require an MRI exam.

Coach Jim Tomsula was not about to use an injury as an excuse for the line's performance. “We did not perform. We did not execute,” Tomsula said.

Veteran wide receiver Anquan Boldin attempted to steer clear of any controversy regarding the play of the line. Asked about the number of sacks, Boldin said: "No comment about that. I don't want to seem like I'm throwing anybody under the bus."

Center Daniel Kilgore made his season debut and split time with Marcus Martin in his first game in 14 months before Martin slid over to guard once Boone was injured.

“We’re going to have to look at the tape and look at some stuff," Kilgore said. "We’ll take a look at the tape and see how things happened and see if we can fix the problem.”

Nine sacks matches most #49ers have allowed since sacks became an official statistic in 1982.
— Eric Branch (@Eric_Branch) December 13, 2015

#49ers Anquan Boldin on 9 sacks: 'No comment about that. I don't want to seem like I'm throwing anybody under the bus."
— Cam Inman (@CamInman) December 13, 2015