After the 49ers had a franchise-record 621 yards in a 45-3 drubbing of the Bills on Oct. 7, 2012, offensive coordinator Greg Roman was showered with praise.

Right guard Alex Boone termed him an “evil genius,” left tackle Joe Staley dubbed him a “mad scientist” and running back Frank Gore said “you’ve got to give it to the coordinator — give it to Coach G-Ro, he did a great job.”

Whoa, what a difference 26 months makes.

On Thursday, Roman addressed the media with his offense light years removed the record-setting unit that collected six touchdowns against Buffalo. Six touchdowns? The 49ers’ 22nd-ranked offense has scored six touchdowns in its past four games, including zero in last week’s 19-3 loss to Seattle.

After that defeat, no one was calling Roman a genius, evil or otherwise. But general manager Trent Baalke’s college-age daughter, Cassie, did call for his firing on Twitter, a social-media slipup that led both Baalkes to apologize to Roman the following day.

That bizarre story line led to this lead-off question Thursday: How was the apology from the general manager and his daughter?

“It was very concise, very clear,” Roman said. “I have children. I understand. And we talked about it briefly and it’s over. It’s really a non-issue.”

However, an abundance of offensive issues remain 12 games into the season, which has inspired questions about Roman’s job status. Jim Harbaugh has strongly backed Roman, who offered some reasons for the season-long struggles Thursday.

In the offseason, Roman said the offensive staff streamlined its voluminous playbook, a process he termed “cleaning out the garage.” And injuries have since caused the 49ers to simplify their attack.

The 49ers have played just one game with their projected season-opening starting offensive line, a quintet that’s missed 14 starts. In addition, tight ends Vernon Davis and Vance McDonald have combined to miss six games.

“I think we’ve evolved a little bit in what we’re doing this year with all of the guys in and out of the lineup,” Roman said. “I do think we’ve simplified things quite a bit. That can be an advantage, but it can also be a disadvantage as well.”

Sound totally unfamiliar? It should. Since Roman and Jim Harbaugh arrived in 2011, the 49ers’ complex, high-volume offense has been marked by a creative running attack that effectively set up play-action passes.

Travel back to that 2012 win over the Bills, for example. At the time, Staley said Buffalo and other opponents couldn’t keep up with the 49ers’ throw-everything-at-them attack.

“They have to prepare for so much,” Staley said. “I think the volume that they have to prepare for week-in, week-out is going to make this team dangerous.”

Quarterback Colin Kaepernick has drawn plenty of criticism, but CBS Sports Network analyst Chris Simms believes he’s been hurt what he terms unimaginative passing schemes. Simms, 34, is a former quarterback who played parts of five seasons in the NFL, including three with Jon Gruden in Tampa Bay.

“I would say (the 49ers have) one of the least creative passing schemes that I watch on film in a week-in, week-out basis,” Simms said. “The concepts are very simple. I don’t see a lot of new stuff from week to week.”

That said, Simms is also baffled by the fact the 49ers’ passing attack doesn’t include some old staples, most notably short passes he thinks would help Kaepernick establish a rhythm.

“I don’t see wide receiver screens,” Simms said. “I don’t see running back screens. Very rarely are there easy slam-dunk completions, which are a part of any really good offense. It’s always ‘Hey, it’s 3rd-and-9, Colin, can you throw a 100-mile-per-hour strike for us 30 yards downfield?’ That’s what I feel they often ask of him.”

It sounds as if Simms could qualify as one of Roman’s ever-expanding collection of critics. In early November, Roman said he was unaware he had detractors. He’s since learned of at least one dissatisfied 49ers fan — the one who apologized to him last week — but insists he remains oblivious to others.

“Any time you listen to all that noise out there, you are really setting yourself up for problems,” he said. “We’ve been through rough stretches before, rough patches. It just comes with the territory. It’s just a fact. Sixteen teams deal with it every week.”

Twitter: @Eric_Branch