2023 Season

[49er4life1979]

So Steve Wilks told Maiocco that the halftime adjustment was more press man coverage which allowed the DL more time to get pressure. It also allowed LBs to play more downhill. So why the hell did he not do this the whole game? Instead he allowed the team to get picked apart by sitting in a soft zone. I remember after the bye week and the 3 game losing streak he went back to press man and it worked wonders. This defense has too much talent to look weak like they did.

Because you can only trust the secondary to play man only so long.

In fact it may have been one of the 4th down plays where the Lions motioned and saw a man follow so they assumed man coverage and had a couple of mesh drag routes.

But in fact the 49ers disguised their zone pre snap and the WRs didn't get open on the "man beater" routes they had called.

Against KC they should definitely go press man to start. Mooney and Demo can definitely match up with their receivers. We need to be able to pressure Mahomes.

[CrimsonCrew]

KC's playoff performances have been a bit curious, as their offense started fast them petered out in both their most recent games, while their D struggled initially then buckled down.

They have allowed a decent bit of scoring early (not counting Miami as Miami simply couldn't function in the weather). They gave ups 24 points to the Bills in five drives, only forcing one punt. But they locked things up late, forcing a turnover on downs and a punt before the Bills got into position for - but missed - a 44-yard FG. The Ravens drove down for a TD on their second drive. They just didn't score much, though they moved the ball alright.

On offense, they scored all 17 points against Baltimore in the first half. In the second half, they punted five consecutive times, had three three-and-outs, and did not put together a drive longer than 32 yards until the deep ball (I think to Valdes-Scantling?) to put the game away. Against the Bills, they turned the first five drives into 27 points, but didn't score or even threaten to score in the final 14 minutes of game-time.

One of the things that stands out is that KC was not tested on the ground at all last week, oddly. Baltimore only had six runs by RBs. Gus Edwards averaged almost 7 YPC, though one of this three (THREE!!!) runs was for 15 yards. Buffalo ran is a lot more, with 25 RB carries and 12 by Allen. And they had success. 182 yards on the ground, though that's under 5 YPC given how many runs they called. Still, that part of their offense was effective, and they averaged almost exactly the same number of yards per play passing and running the ball.

Kyle cannot go away from the run game in this one. And we cannot let them jump out to a big early lead.

[Samurai]

So Steve Wilks told Maiocco that the halftime adjustment was more press man coverage which allowed the DL more time to get pressure. It also allowed LBs to play more downhill. So why the hell did he not do this the whole game? Instead he allowed the team to get picked apart by sitting in a soft zone. I remember after the bye week and the 3 game losing streak he went back to press man and it worked wonders. This defense has too much talent to look weak like they did.

Because you can only trust the secondary to play man only so long.

In fact it may have been one of the 4th down plays where the Lions motioned and saw a man follow so they assumed man coverage and had a couple of mesh drag routes.

But in fact the 49ers disguised their zone pre snap and the WRs didn't get open on the "man beater" routes they had called.

Against KC they should definitely go press man to start. Mooney and Demo can definitely match up with their receivers. We need to be able to pressure Mahomes.

Makes sense but there are significant challenges in this. Agree that Mooney and Demo should hold their own but we don't have an answer when they bring in a 3rd receiver (depending on Ambry Thomas is not a proper answer). And we have trouble generating a pass rush without blitzing, which is dangerous against Mahomes since he can run free once he clears the pocket. As always, the answer is to create significant pressure with just our DL. I was naive in thinking that Chase Young could do this for us but I was clearly mistaken. If Young finally decides this is the game for him to show up, it allows us to keep a spy on Mahomes to limit his damage in extending plays. Armstead has been wearing an invisible jersey in his two playoff games so far and he has clearly not been our answer to shoring up our run defense. I'm hoping the rust has worn off and he returns to his pre-injury form against KC. His grade against Detroit was a pathetically bad 42.9. No one is saying he has to be as good as Bosa (80.2) but he should be better than Kinlaw (60.4) or Gregory (57.6). Unacceptable to be making the money he is getting to be that much worse than those guys.

[CrimsonCrew]

Because you can only trust the secondary to play man only so long.

In fact it may have been one of the 4th down plays where the Lions motioned and saw a man follow so they assumed man coverage and had a couple of mesh drag routes.

But in fact the 49ers disguised their zone pre snap and the WRs didn't get open on the "man beater" routes they had called.

Against KC they should definitely go press man to start. Mooney and Demo can definitely match up with their receivers. We need to be able to pressure Mahomes.

Makes sense but there are significant challenges in this. Agree that Mooney and Demo should hold their own but we don't have an answer when they bring in a 3rd receiver (depending on Ambry Thomas is not a proper answer). And we have trouble generating a pass rush without blitzing, which is dangerous against Mahomes since he can run free once he clears the pocket. As always, the answer is to create significant pressure with just our DL. I was naive in thinking that Chase Young could do this for us but I was clearly mistaken. If Young finally decides this is the game for him to show up, it allows us to keep a spy on Mahomes to limit his damage in extending plays. Armstead has been wearing an invisible jersey in his two playoff games so far and he has clearly not been our answer to shoring up our run defense. I'm hoping the rust has worn off and he returns to his pre-injury form against KC. His grade against Detroit was a pathetically bad 42.9. No one is saying he has to be as good as Bosa (80.2) but he should be better than Kinlaw (60.4) or Gregory (57.6). Unacceptable to be making the money he is getting to be that much worse than those guys.

KC's OTs are not good. If ever there was a game for Chase to show up... We need another big performance from Bosa, too.

Thuney is probably out, so our DTs could take advantage, but in fairly limited reps, their backup OG has been pretty good.

[thesack12]

Read on Twitter

While I would love it it Young woke up and had a big game, on the biggest stage, I'm not holding my breath.

I think we have reached the " he is what he is" territory with Chase Young.

Don't know if that knee injury just completely debilitated his game and/or his hunger and passion for the game or what, but there doesn't seem to be much upside left to mine out of him. He just does not pop in the live speed eye test, or on film. He's quite pedestrian.

He actually played better for Washington before the trade than he has for San Francisco. Maybe he's still having a difficult time adjusting to the new defense/scheme, I don't know. But whatever the case, the trade has not paid dividends.

[Harry Palmer]

Read on Twitter

While I would love it it Young woke up and had a big game, on the biggest stage, I'm not holding my breath.

I think we have reached the " he is what he is" territory with Chase Young.

Don't know if that knee injury just completely debilitated his game and/or his hunger and passion for the game or what, but there doesn't seem to be much upside left to mine out of him. He just does not pop in the live speed eye test, or on film. He's quite pedestrian.

He actually played better for Washington before the trade than he has for San Francisco. Maybe he's still having a difficult time adjusting to the new defense/scheme, I don't know. But whatever the case, the trade has not paid dividends.

Without knowing his role, exactly…I know DL roles tend towards the most obvious, but still…I am not ready to outright call it a bad move, it has not been anything like the ‘2 elite pass rushers, who will the other team leave hat on hat’ that it was advertised to be. The silver lining there is that there should be no danger of losing BA to sign Young. Otoh, we need to figure out our pass rush. What the **** happened to Drake Jackson? Impressed in flashes as a rookie but wore down, came in last year in such good shape everyone was drooling, then…nothing. Anyone got a hold on what happened there?

[thesack12]

Diving a little deeper into how maddeningly frustrating it is that the DL is woefully under performing and getting thoroughly outplayed by the opponents OL seemingly every game, here is a write up on how much has been invested into the DL:

2015: Arik Armstead drafted in the 1st round (#17)
2016: DeForest Buckner drafted in the 1st round (#7)
2017: Solomon Thomas drafted in the 1st round (#3)
2019: Nick Bosa drafted in the 1st round (#2)
2019: Dee Ford traded for via a 2nd round pick
2020: Javon Kinlaw drafted in the 1st round (#14)
2022: Drake Jackson drafted in the 2nd round (#61) *This is the 49ers first pick in that draft*
2023: Chase Young traded for via a 3rd round pick

2019: Dee Ford: Signed to a 5 year $85 mil extension (Has not played in the NFL since 2021)
2020: Arik Armstead: Signed to a 5 year $85 mil extension (Currently the 8th most expensive DE in the NFL, or 11th DT)
2023: Javon Hargrave: Signed to a 4 year $84 mil free agent contract (Currently the 6th most expensive DT in the NFL)
2023: Nick Bosa: Signed a 5 year $170 mil extension (Currently the highest paid defensive player in history by a WIDE margin)

Of course some of these guys are no longer around, and some were moved to create the assets later used on other Dlineman (Buckner/Kinlaw), still this outlines the insane amount of resources the 49ers have invested into the DL.

Despite DL being EASILY the most invested position group on the team, its routinely one of the weakest performing position groups on the team. They consistently get neutralized by other team's OL's and go through long stretches of invisibility both individually and as a whole. The almost complete absence of a pass rush is just unacceptable.

Its not like we are asking guys to play way above their heads. There is no reason why the DL should be struggling as much as it does.

This group should be routinely dominating games, yet we now go into each game just hoping they have a pulse.

The DL performed better relying on the likes of late round picks like DJ Jones, lesser heralded free agent signings like Samson Ebukam and Kerry Hider, and cheap reclamation project signings like Charles Omenihu and Arden Key.

At this point, I'm over the reputation this DL somehow carries. I'm not buying it. Its all a fugaze.

Show me I'm wrong DL. Go out and have a performance for the ages next Sunday and shut me the hell up.

[thesack12]

Read on Twitter

While I would love it it Young woke up and had a big game, on the biggest stage, I'm not holding my breath.

I think we have reached the " he is what he is" territory with Chase Young.

Don't know if that knee injury just completely debilitated his game and/or his hunger and passion for the game or what, but there doesn't seem to be much upside left to mine out of him. He just does not pop in the live speed eye test, or on film. He's quite pedestrian.

He actually played better for Washington before the trade than he has for San Francisco. Maybe he's still having a difficult time adjusting to the new defense/scheme, I don't know. But whatever the case, the trade has not paid dividends.

Without knowing his role, exactly…I know DL roles tend towards the most obvious, but still…I am not ready to outright call it a bad move, it has not been anything like the ‘2 elite pass rushers, who will the other team leave hat on hat’ that it was advertised to be. The silver lining there is that there should be no danger of losing BA to sign Young. Otoh, we need to figure out our pass rush. What the **** happened to Drake Jackson? Impressed in flashes as a rookie but wore down, came in last year in such good shape everyone was drooling, then…nothing. Anyone got a hold on what happened there?

With how underwhelming Young has been, In my opinion we are past the point of considering to be a role thing. I'm not saying that role is a non factor, but with the pedigree Young carries he should be consistently popping on instincts and talent alone. If anything I think we can say that losing Ferrell might be a bigger loss than we thought it would be. At the very least Ferrell seemed to set the edges and contain better than Young has done.

As for Drake Jackson, he was put on IR a few months ago. That was actually the move that opened the roster spot for Chase Young. That said, Jackson did not play the previous 3 or 4 games before that, so its not like he was out there making a + impact. I don't think its unfair to start throwing around the "bust" label on Jackson. That's not to say that he still can't become a solid player, but from what we've seen thus far its not the most promising outlook.

[CrimsonCrew]

Read on Twitter

While I would love it it Young woke up and had a big game, on the biggest stage, I'm not holding my breath.

I think we have reached the " he is what he is" territory with Chase Young.

Don't know if that knee injury just completely debilitated his game and/or his hunger and passion for the game or what, but there doesn't seem to be much upside left to mine out of him. He just does not pop in the live speed eye test, or on film. He's quite pedestrian.

He actually played better for Washington before the trade than he has for San Francisco. Maybe he's still having a difficult time adjusting to the new defense/scheme, I don't know. But whatever the case, the trade has not paid dividends.

He's been a somewhat better pass-rusher than our other options, to my eye - and according to at least some metrics. Is that worth a late-3rd round pick that we might partially recoup (given the position is coveted and he's got pedigree)? I don't have a problem with it.

Losing Ferrell sucks, because suddenly we're asking Young to play a bunch of base down snaps, and he's not great at those. He's also going to be worn down on the pass-rushing stats. I'd much rather have him lean toward the pass rush. But so it goes.

[Harry Palmer]

One thing I’ve wondered, against the Eagles the D-Line intentionally went super basic and were just trying to power the pocket closed. Bosa said that they would not try to beat their man to either side because Hurts would see it and take the other for an escape. And it worked. I wonder if that decided them that getting burned by mobile qbs was an Achilles heel they could solve and they have kind of on-again off-again prioritized pocket control more than pressure ever since. Obviously not too effectively against the Ravens, but it does feel like they go pure bull rush a lot more than they used to.

[thesack12]

One thing I’ve wondered, against the Eagles the D-Line intentionally went super basic and were just trying to power the pocket closed. Bosa said that they would not try to beat their man to either side because Hurts would see it and take the other for an escape. And it worked. I wonder if that decided them that getting burned by mobile qbs was an Achilles heel they could solve and they have kind of on-again off-again prioritized pocket control more than pressure ever since. Obviously not too effectively against the Ravens, but it does feel like they go pure bull rush a lot more than they used to.

Yeah, that strategy made sense going against the Eagles. And it obviously worked out well. That being said, its a very risky approach as it requires the coverage to hold for a very long time. I remember in that Eagles game there were many plays where Hurts had 6, 7, 8 seconds of pocket time and there really wasn't any defender even close to him. So while yes that approach can work against mobile QB's, it puts a LOT of strain on the coverage and DB's in particular.

Goff is an immobile of a QB as there is in the NFL today, so there was no concern of Goff breaking the pocket and losing contain on him. So I don't really know what Wilk's plan was going into that game was, but it damn sure didn't work in the 1st half.

Mahomes is a mobile QB, but he's more of a scrambler to extend plays than an actual runner. So it will be interesting to see what type of approach Wilks brings, but whatever it is it absolutely must be successful for 60 minutes. Spotting a team a half, sure as hell isn't going to cut it in the Super Bowl.

[CrimsonCrew]

One thing I’ve wondered, against the Eagles the D-Line intentionally went super basic and were just trying to power the pocket closed. Bosa said that they would not try to beat their man to either side because Hurts would see it and take the other for an escape. And it worked. I wonder if that decided them that getting burned by mobile qbs was an Achilles heel they could solve and they have kind of on-again off-again prioritized pocket control more than pressure ever since. Obviously not too effectively against the Ravens, but it does feel like they go pure bull rush a lot more than they used to.

Yeah, that strategy made sense going against the Eagles. And it obviously worked out well. That being said, its a very risky approach as it requires the coverage to hold for a very long time. I remember in that Eagles game there were many plays where Hurts had 6, 7, 8 seconds of pocket time and there really wasn't any defender even close to him. So while yes that approach can work against mobile QB's, it puts a LOT of strain on the coverage and DB's in particular.

Goff is an immobile of a QB as there is in the NFL today, so there was no concern of Goff breaking the pocket and losing contain on him. So I don't really know what Wilk's plan was going into that game was, but it damn sure didn't work in the 1st half.

Mahomes is a mobile QB, but he's more of a scrambler to extend plays than an actual runner. So it will be interesting to see what type of approach Wilks brings, but whatever it is it absolutely must be successful for 60 minutes. Spotting a team a half, sure as hell isn't going to cut it in the Super Bowl.

The key difference between the Eagles and the Chiefs is that Hurts isn't stellar from the pocket. He likes to get out on the move. Mahomes will be perfectly happy to sit back and pick up apart from the pocket. I think we need to try to get to him more. We need all our guys working on generating pressure.

Re: the Lions, two things. First, they have maybe the best OL in the league, which explains some of their success against our pass rush. They almost certainly have the best starting tackles. Second, they didn't need to throw early in the game. Goff barely threw the ball in the first two drives, and when he did, they were short, quick passes. Really, they had 21 points before he had thrown more than a couple five yards past the LOS. And they were freezing our DL with play action when they did throw.

Once they started throwing more, I thought our DL was having more success than in most of our recent games, particularly when you account for the opposing OL. Bosa in particular had a strong game. We also had success with stunts once or twice. I hope we don't abandon those, even though there's a chance of Mahomes hurting us with his legs.

[CrimsonCrew]

And as I've said elsewhere, their OTs are the weak links on their OL. Both guys get PFF scores in the 50s. Bosa needs to feast, and it would be really great if we could get some production from whoever is opposite him.

[CharityStripe34]

And as I've said elsewhere, their OTs are the weak links on their OL. Both guys get PFF scores in the 50s. Bosa needs to feast, and it would be really great if we could get some production from whoever is opposite him.

Lions and Packers were chipping and doubling Bosa quite a bit. I expect more of the same with KC saying "OK, Chase Young & others, let's see what you got."

[CrimsonCrew]

Just realized Gardner Minshew made the pro bowl. I mean, Minshew was fine, but he went 7-6 as a starter. 62% completion percentage, 15 TDs and 9 INTs in 13 games, took 34 sacks. He was 2-3 down the stretch when his team needed one more win to lock up a playoff berth. His only wins against playoff teams came when he took over for Richardson up 14-0 against the Texans and when his D held the Ravens to 19 and his kicker hit four FGs from 53+ yards.

It just seems like "pro bowl QB" is pretty meaningless at this point.

[wco81]

Just realized Gardner Minshew made the pro bowl. I mean, Minshew was fine, but he went 7-6 as a starter. 62% completion percentage, 15 TDs and 9 INTs in 13 games, took 34 sacks. He was 2-3 down the stretch when his team needed one more win to lock up a playoff berth. His only wins against playoff teams came when he took over for Richardson up 14-0 against the Texans and when his D held the Ravens to 19 and his kicker hit four FGs from 53+ yards.

It just seems like "pro bowl QB" is pretty meaningless at this point.

Pro Bowl is meaningless. Has been for a long time, though I suppose some players have contracts with
Incentives.

But players who play several playoffs games are looking for excuses not to play in Pro Bowl.

[CrimsonCrew]

Just realized Gardner Minshew made the pro bowl. I mean, Minshew was fine, but he went 7-6 as a starter. 62% completion percentage, 15 TDs and 9 INTs in 13 games, took 34 sacks. He was 2-3 down the stretch when his team needed one more win to lock up a playoff berth. His only wins against playoff teams came when he took over for Richardson up 14-0 against the Texans and when his D held the Ravens to 19 and his kicker hit four FGs from 53+ yards.

It just seems like "pro bowl QB" is pretty meaningless at this point.

Pro Bowl is meaningless. Has been for a long time, though I suppose some players have contracts with
Incentives.

But players who play several playoffs games are looking for excuses not to play in Pro Bowl.

Yeah, that only thing it's even a little relevant is for HOF and career consideration. Obviously Gardner Minshew is not going into the HOF. But all these alternates should have a designation other than pro bowl.

[CrimsonCrew]

Saints are stealing Niners' passing game coordinator Klint Kubiak to be their OC. Too bad. Though Kyle is the OC, and frankly, I didn't love some of the dropback passing stuff they did this year...

[Samurai]

Saints are stealing Niners' passing game coordinator Klint Kubiak to be their OC. Too bad. Though Kyle is the OC, and frankly, I didn't love some of the dropback passing stuff they did this year...

Do we know if Kubiak has any minority DNA in him that would qualify for a compensatory pick for us (I never would have guessed that McDaniel was a person of color)? Or is Kubiak just a case of losing talent and no compensatory pick?

Speaking of front office shuffling, it sounds like Lynch is looking in-house to replace Adam Peters, with Tariq Amad (Director of college scouting) and RJ Gillen (Director of Pro Personnel) among the names being mentioned.

[thesack12]

Saints are stealing Niners' passing game coordinator Klint Kubiak to be their OC. Too bad. Though Kyle is the OC, and frankly, I didn't love some of the dropback passing stuff they did this year...

Do we know if Kubiak has any minority DNA in him that would qualify for a compensatory pick for us (I never would have guessed that McDaniel was a person of color)? Or is Kubiak just a case of losing talent and no compensatory pick?

Speaking of front office shuffling, it sounds like Lynch is looking in-house to replace Adam Peters, with Tariq Amad (Director of college scouting) and RJ Gillen (Director of Pro Personnel) among the names being mentioned.

I'm pretty sure compensatory picks are only in play for HC and GM hires....

As for Peters' replacement, here are a couple brief writeups on them. If anybody else is like me and don't really know anything about the candidates this describes what their roles have been.

https://www.49ers.com/team/front-office-roster/tariq-ahmad

https://www.49ers.com/team/front-office-roster/r-j-gillen

Not that it at all matters and nobody else cares but me, but the RJ Gillen name is ironic. RJ are my initials and my high school football coach was Coach Gillen.