Being 4-4 ​​entering Bye Week is not the way the San Francisco 49ers wrote it. This is a reality that they must accept during their time of rest and regrouping.

Bye Week couldn’t have come at a better time. It always helps to have him right in the middle of the season so they can prepare for their playoff assault. However, there are some questions the 49ers need to answer as they prepare to enter the second half of the season.

Here are five questions the 49ers need to answer coming out of the Bye.

There is a chance that Christian McCaffrey will make his debut in Week 10 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. If he does, it will be interesting to see what his workload will be. One might think that certain limits would be imposed on him. The last thing the 49ers want to do is overload him and he aggravates his Achilles.

But you never know with the 49ers. McCaffrey has been back for about a month now without any setbacks. He might feel amazing and ready to play that workaholic role again. Even if the 49ers limit McCaffrey in his debut, will it stay that way? This situation is so intriguing.

Moving the ball is not a problem at all for the 49ers offense. The problem is once they enter the red zone. They become allergic to marked touches. Too many field goals are settled there. This is why the 49ers have the sixth-worst red zone touchdown offense this year. They score a touchdown in less than half of their trips, which is a far cry from last season (68%).

This must be corrected immediately after their Bye. Not having McCaffrey is no excuse. This offense is even busier than half the offenses in the league. Great teams capitalize on their red zone travel. If the 49ers want to return to elite form, then this needs to improve.

The thing that has always made the 49ers offense that Kyle Shanahan has considered genius is its creativity. But this year, that was not the case. The 49ers seem to be relying a little more on passing the ball down the field with Brock Purdy. This is why Purdy leads the league in throws to the middle or in front of the sticks. The 49ers also forgot yards after catch plays. They were always the best team there, but now they are one of the worst.

Play action is also a foreign language for the 49ers, who practice it just 18.2 percent of the time (the seventh-lowest rate). The 49ers need to find that balance again. It’s great that Purdy is giving them that offensive mentality, but they need to get him to use his skills as a short and lower route player. Gaming action should also see an uptick. No more of this direct and direct passing game. Find a balance so that the offense becomes coherent again.

The 49ers pass rush hasn’t been bad at all. In every statistical category of success, they fall more or less right in the middle. But is that really what the 49ers want? Shanahan is surely not satisfied with that. The pass rush needs to be the destructive force it has been over the last five years. It starts with Nick Bosa. He was good, but not up to his first level. Getting more out of him will do wonders for the 49ers.

But he also needs support. Leonard Floyd also needs to start making his presence felt. He only totaled three sacks and 24 pressures. Again, that’s not bad, but it makes perfect sense that the 49ers, as a defense, are ranked in the middle in the pass rush. This needs to improve for offenses to struggle more and to give the 49ers offense more possession.

Similar to McCaffrey, Dr. Greenlaw’s workload will be interesting. The 49ers said they would deal Greenlaw week-to-week coming out of their Bye. He won’t make his debut against the Buccaneers but it could happen a few games later. Whenever he does, it will be fascinating to see what he looks like. Coming back from a torn Achilles is an uphill battle. If there’s one player who can return to his pre-Achilles tear form, it’s Greenlaw. His work rate is second to none, but sometimes that’s not enough.

All the 49ers need from Greenlaw is for him to get closer to what he was before he got hurt. That’s all they need given how putrid the linebacker position is outside of Fred Warner. If Greenlaw could do this, the defense would immediately improve. Not to mention the energy Greenlaw will bring to set the tone. Even if he is still far from being a top player, what will not be in doubt is his energy. The ripple effects of his presence alone will be extremely beneficial.