Week 8 Post Game Review: 49ers @ Rams

By Scooter_McG

The 49ers ownership of the LA Rams continued Sunday with a resounding second half performance to take the game 31-14 and move back to .500 on the season heading into a week 9 bye. 

Midway through the second quarter it looked like the 49ers may be in for another disappointing afternoon. While the 49ers defense was successful in taking away the Rams running game, the Rams methodically and mercilessly used their screen game to march down the field on their second and third drives to take a 14-7 lead. The Rams, much like the Chiefs the week before, used the 49ers own aggressiveness on defense against them, getting defenders to commit and over-pursue upfield only to see the play quickly get behind them and into the vacated open spaces. 

But in front of a sea of red at the 49ers home away from home, SoFi Stadium, the 49ers defense made the right adjustments and rallied in the second half to put the clamps on the Rams while the offense rattled off 24 unanswered points (including a FG just before the half) to storm home for the victory. 

While the ability to rebound after a rocky start to the game by the defense helped secure the victory, the 49ers offense was the main story in this one. And the headline act was newly acquired RB/ WR (/QB?) Christian McCaffrey, who showed fans exactly why Shanahan and Lynch were willing to give up a bounty of draft picks to get him. All told, he accounted for 183 all-purpose yards (including a 34 yard pass) as well as a triple-crown of TDs - 1 running, 1 receiving and 1 passing on that 34 yarder to Brandon Aiyuk. McCaffrey's receiving TD also gave fans a glimpse of just how talented a pass catcher he can be as he expertly broke up field on the scramble drill and high pointed the ball on the right sideline of the end zone. 

While McCaffrey's day was the headliner, Jimmy Garoppolo also deserves praise for a highly efficient performance as he completed 84% of his passes for 235 yards and 2 beautiful TD throws that demonstrated both excellent precision with ball placement as well as awareness of the field. Yes, there were two passes that could easily have been intercepted, but we've become accustomed to that being part of the Jimmy G experience. Aside from those two plays though, and one deep ball he was late on to Ray Ray McCloud on the first drive, Garoppolo was excellent. 

Something that became evident early in this game is how McCaffrey really allows Shanahan to use the short passing game as an extension of the running game in a different way than we've become accustomed to with Deebo. While the run-pass mix reads as being almost 50%-50% for the day, McCaffrey and Wilson had a number of catches that were at or just past the line of scrimmage that they were able to turn into decent yardage gainers very easily to stay ahead of the sticks. And as the game wore on, the Rams started cheating players over to McCaffrey which opened up holes in the defense for Kittle and Aiyuk - which was evident in the TD to Kittle as Taylor Rapp didn't get proper depth due to the threat of McCaffrey underneath.

Moving forward, I can't wait to see how Shanahan incorporates the trio of McCaffrey, Deebo and Juice into the game plan.

The win puts the 49ers in second place in the NFC West, one game behind the surprise Seahawks, and the 7th seed in the NFC. In addition to the big and important victory, the 49ers also came out of the game with the good news of no new injuries heading into the bye. The 49ers now get the opportunity to rest up, get some of their troops back, and get McCaffrey more acclimated within the offense.      

Week 8 Matchup: San Francisco 49ers vs. LA Rams

 Good afternoon everyone and welcome to your live blog for 49ers football. If the 49ers want to enter their bye with good vibes, they'll need their offense to play a complete game. They averaged 2.7 yards on the ground in their last matchup. The Rams rank 2nd in stopping the run, but with CMC in the fold and having fully digested the playbook, the outside zone run could start to heat up. I think it'd be interesting to take a couple plays from the '84 Niners playbook with CMC playing the Roger Craig role and Wilson the Wendell Tyler role, and get them both some swing passes out in the flat. I think the time is now to also get Gray the ball, whether that's a jet sweep or quick slant. There's an old saying, the devils in the details, and in order for the 49ers to get right with a win today, they'll need to be detail oriented. 

Week 8 Game Preview: 49ers @ Rams

By Scooter_McG

49ers vs Rams. Shanahan vs McVay. Brunskill vs his son. 49ers fan takeover of SoFi Stadium. This is a matchup the 49ers have dominated since 2019, and in recent seasons the game at SoFi Stadium has effectively been the 49ers 9th regular season home game. 

This game also marks a potentially pivotal moment in the respective seasons of these two teams. The 49ers, now with a record of 3W-4L, currently owns the tie-breaker against the Rams courtesy of their victory earlier in the season. But lose this one and the 49ers lose that advantage with a split series, while also dropping to a perilous 3-5 record. The 3-3 Rams are currently sitting in the 7th seed in a highly congested NFC following their bye week and will be desperate to avoid falling below .500 and avoiding a series sweep by the 49ers.

Given the congested nature of the NFC, losing this game won't spell certain doom for either team. But it will make a trip to the playoffs much more difficult. 

Neither team is playing well at the moment, either. The 49ers are coming off back-to-back embarrassing losses - one against a Falcons team they should have beat, and one a blow-out against a Chiefs team that tore apart the previously heralded 49ers defense. The Rams won their last game before the bye (somewhat ironically against Christian McCaffrey, in his last game as a Panther), but it was far from a convincing performance and followed back-to-back losses against the 49ers and a Cowboys team led by Cooper Rush. 

The talk out of Rams camp coming into this game is that the Chiefs provided them the blueprint for how to beat the 49ers. Personally, I've always thought when teams start talking about following another teams blueprint to beat an opponent it means they are out of their own ideas. But now it is up to the 49ers to show that last week was the aberration, not the new norm.

With Christian McCaffrey now having a full week of practice with his new team, the expectation will be that he can take on a larger workload this week and should be the lead back for the 49ers. Deebo Samuel has been ruled out with a hamstring injury while Jennings also appears likely to miss the game, which will increase the importance of CMC's role as both a runner and pass catcher. It wouldn't surprise me at all if he leads the 49ers in both runs and catches this week. But with Kittle and Aiyuk also in the mix this doesn't need to be a one man show. 

The Rams on the other hand have shown some some glaring deficiencies through six games. The most notable is their OL, which has struggled in all phases of the game. The Rams running game has been almost non-existent, while Stafford is under duress far too often. The Rams best RB, Cam Akers, has also gotten himself on the outer with McVay and is unlikely to even suit up in this game. On defense, the Rams have struggled to find a pass rush to support Aaron Donald - stop Donald from ruining your day and you have probably gone a long way to buying 2.5+ seconds for your QB. 

So for this game I think it comes down to two key aspects for the 49ers to win the game:

• First, win the trenches. As outlined above, the Rams biggest weaknesses in 2022 can be found on both sides of the trenches. Sounds weird to say that given they have All-World Aaron Donald on defense. But if the 49ers OL can contain Aaron Donald, they 'should' be able to handle the rest of the Rams DL. On the other side of the coin, the 49ers DL has to stand up (figuratively - really they need to stay low) after being dominated two straight weeks. The Rams OL is in disarray and if they can't handily win this matchup the state of the 49ers defense is in far worse shape than we thought.
• Second, WIN THE TRENCHES! Ok, technically this is only one key aspect. But it honestly is such a big key to this game I think it bears repeating. If the 49ers can dominate the trenches, and really they should (though Donald will no doubt win his fair share), the game should be theirs for the taking. 

There are of course other areas the 49ers have to take care of, and areas of concern. First and foremost is getting back to being a run-oriented offense - though to me that comes back to winning the trenches. 

I am also concerned about the defense being down both Al-Shaair and Greenlaw, as well as still missing their two starting DTs. I wouldn't be surprised if we see a lot of nickel and dime defense this weekend, both because of the Rams personnel packages which favour 3 WRs and because the 49ers personnel suggests three safety looks will get the best players on the field. But that will put pressure on the DL to stuff the run. 

So, again... it comes back to winning the trenches in this one.  

Week 7 Post Game Review: 49ers vs Chiefs

By Scooter_McG

Week 7 of the 2022 season saw the 49ers soundly beaten by Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, 44-23, dropping the 49ers to a 3W-4L record. 

The game started out well for the 49ers as they scored 10 points on their opening two drives, which also saw newly acquired Christian McCaffrey make some nice contributions on the ground despite only joining the team two days prior to the game. In between the two scores the 49ers sandwiched an INT of Mahomes as Gipson jumped a pass and Hufanga snagged the deflection. 

However, after that hiccup Mahomes and the Chiefs found their groove on offense and went up and down the field with ease thereafter. The Chiefs had three more drives before the half, which ended with two TDs and a missed FG just before the half. The 49ers on the other hand would have to settle for just one field goal the rest of the half, despite being gifted a golden opportunity to score following a muffed punt which was recovered at the Chiefs 12 yard line, as Jimmy G inexplicably threw a floater up while back pedalling under pressure that was easily intercepted at the goal line. That wasn't the only opportunity to regain the lead before the half the 49ers botched either - the only reason the 49ers were punting on the muffed punt is because they were knocked out of FG range courtesy of a Jaylon Moore false start on the FG try. 

At 14-13 down at the half, the 49ers still had an opportunity to come away with the win if they were able to finish more drives on offense, play sound defense and avoid backbreaking plays on STs in the second half. None of those things happened. Instead the Chiefs began proceedings with a long kickoff return before their offense steamrolled the 49ers on four straight TD drives, converting long plays at will (even 3rd and 20s). Meanwhile the 49ers offense started the second half ok getting 10 points on the first two drives, but then fell apart down the stretch as the pressure to keep up with the Chiefs high powered offense became too much. 

It's hard to really pinpoint too much of what went right for the 49ers in this one, as not much did. The offense was probably the "bright spot" in this game for the 49ers, but even then was sabotaged by numerous mistakes such as penalties, dropped passes, blown blocking assignments and guys just flat out getting beaten (McGlinchey and Williams, looking at you). 

The defense on the other hand was just straight dismal. The 49ers often say the defense starts with the defensive line, and it definitely did in this one. They were completely manhandled for 60 minutes and the back seven were exposed all too easily without the safety blanket of the guys up front creating pressure and forcing RBs into defender's arms. This performance made discussions in previous weeks about the 49ers 2022 defense being one of the best ever seem completely farcical, and unlike last week against the Falcons, the 49ers can't point to guys missing as an excuse as a lot of players returned for this one. 

Special teams also did their part blowing this game, clearly not wanting to be outdone by their offensive and defensive counterparts. 

In some respects this loss is a good thing for the 49ers. A close loss would have glossed over some of the issues the team has consistently displayed this season. But getting blown away should be the wake up call the players and coaches need. If it isn't, this is going to be a long, disappointing season. 

I said after last week's game Shanahan might have some soul searching to do. The entire team does this week.      

Week 7 Matchup: Kansas City Chiefs vs. San Francisco 49ers

 Good afternoon everyone and welcome to your live blog. Today's matchup is an opportunity for the 49ers to get some new shoes after shooting themselves in the feet last week against an inferior Atlanta Falcons team. I have a sneaking suspicion Andy Reid's game plan could involve running the football more with Pacheco. He's a tough running back and Givens/Ridgeway will need to perform much better if they want to shut him down. This game should go down to the wire if the 49ers play mistake free ball. Go Niners!

*According to Jay Glazer, McCaffrey will get 20 carries, and maybe more depending on game situation.

49ers Inactives: 

DL Arik Armstead (foot, ankle)

CB Dontae Johnson

TE Tyler Kroft

RB Jordan Mason

DL Kemoko Turay

OL Nick Zakelj

Week 7 Game Preview: 49ers vs Chiefs

By Scooter_McG

The 49ers remain in first place in the NFC West despite their loss last week dropping them to 3-3, courtesy of a healthy for and against and wins over division rivals. However, if they have plans of securing another playoff appearance this season they will desperately need to fix the Jekyll and Hyde performances that have dogged them so far. 

Coming up against a potent Chiefs team that is smarting after a loss last week is not the ideal matchup for such a fix.   

The 49ers enter week 7 buoyed by the recent trade for star RB Christian McCaffrey from the Panthers. But realistically, his acquisition is unlikely to play a big factor in the 49ers week 7 encounter with the Kansas City Chiefs, if he even suits up at all. The bigger news for the 49ers, at least as it pertains to this game, is the return of a trio of high profile players from injury - Trent Williams, Nick Bosa and Jimmie Ward. Williams and Bosa are probably the two best players on the 49ers roster and with their return the 49ers will be boasting five of their six elite players on the field in this game (and potentially all six of McCaffrey suits up). Having those playmakers on the field is vital if the 49ers are to provide the upset this week. 

Unfortunately it appears unlikely CB Charvarius Ward will be right to go against his former team, while Jason Verrett will not be activated from IR for this game. Following the loss of Moseley the week before, this leaves the CB position thin and inexperienced which is far from ideal against the Chiefs passing attack. The onus will thereby fall on the front 7 and the safeties to force Mahomes and the Chiefs to get rid of the ball quickly and not allow time for easy throws. Given the injuries at CB, we may also see Jimmie Ward dropping down to play CB - either outside of slot - for stretches in this game.

Warner, Greenlaw and Hufanga will also have their hands full in limiting Travis Kelce, who has been Mahomes main target this season. If the 49ers can force Mahomes to look to Smith-Schuster, Hardman and Vandes-Scantlng more so than Kelce they should be in a good position to minimise the damage from the Chiefs offense, even with the two starting CBs out injured.  

On offense, the 49ers must find a way to sustain drives and put points on the board. The goal should be a minimum of 27 points in this game - asking the defense to hold the Chiefs to less than that is a tough ask. With the trade for McCaffrey it is clear that Shanahan hasn't been thrilled with the running game this season in the absence of Elijah Mitchell. Getting the run game going will go a long way to getting the offense in rhythm and should be the point of emphasis this week. But, equally, the team needs to find ways to get the ball in the hands of its playmakers in space, and must make sure they take the opportunities down the field when they present themselves (unlike last week). 

George Kittle called the team out after the defeat last week for its effort. If they want to stand any hope of winning this game the team needs to lift its intensity, focus and urgency to avoid dropping below .500 and losing the lead in the division. 

Breaking News

 

Adam Schefter

@AdamSchefter

·

4m

Stunner: Panthers are trading Pro-Bowl RB Christian McCaffrey to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for draft picks, sources tell ESPN. McCaffrey returns to the Bay Area, where he attended Stanford.

Ian Rapoport

@RapSheet

·

2m

Full terms: -- The #49ers get star RB Christian McCaffrey. -- The #Panthers get a 2nd round pick in 2023, a third-rounder in 2023, and a fourth-round pick in 2023. Plus, a fifth-rounder in 2024.

General/Open Discussion Thursday

 Who’s Kittle referring to when he questioned the effort level of certain individuals? — Gregg C.

Barrows: I was wondering that, too. The 49ers defensive line wasn’t great on Sunday, but that seemed to be because of a lack of talent, not a lack of effort. Samuel Womack gave up a pair of touchdowns, one in coverage and one because he couldn’t hold the edge on Marcus Mariota’s touchdown run. Again, that’s more lack of experience than lack of effort.

I think Kittle was talking about a teamwide lack of ferocity. He didn’t like that they went three-and-out on both their first possession of the game and the first of the second half. The 49ers’ practices on Thursday and Friday in West Virginia were lively and full of energy. In hindsight, maybe they were feeling a little too good about themselves after an easy win in Carolina.

Week 6 Post Game Review: 49ers @ Falcons

By Scooter_McG

The 49ers finish their two game east coast road trip with a disappointing loss to the Atlanta Falcons, falling 28-14. The loss drops the 49ers to 3-3 on the season and a shared lead of the NFC West with the Rams and Seahawks.

Looking at the two teams at the start of the season this would have been considered one of the 49ers easiest games on the schedule, but a slew of injuries - primarily to the previously top rated defensive unit - and a Falcons team that plays a tough-minded, run-first brand of football made this a much more difficult encounter than initially thought. 

In the end the Falcons wore down the 49ers mostly second string defense through their rushing attack, accumulating 168 rushing yards on 40 carries. This took all the pressure off Marcus Mariota who was able to play an efficient game under little duress completing 13 of his 14 passes for 129 yards and two scores (to go with one rushing touchdown). 

On offense, the 49ers running game was all but non-existent. They only rushed 16 times all game (including a QB sneak and two scrambles by Jimmy G) and when the did run they did so with little success. This led to a quick three and out on the 49ers opening drive and on the second drive Jeff Wilson committed the ultimate sin of coughing up the football which was returned for another score and an early 14-0 deficit. 

After the fumble Kyle Shanahan switched gears and went to a pass heavy offense. It worked on the next two drives which, with the help of a long punt return by Ray Ray McCloud, allowed the 49ers to quickly get back on level terms through two touchdowns to Brandon Aiyuk.  

The second Aiyuk touchdown was, unfortunately, the last bright spot for the 49ers in this contest as they became their own worst enemies thereafter. The success on those two drives, combined with the lack of success running the football earlier, seemed to convince Shanahan he needed to stick to an aerial attack for the remainder of the game. And if it wasn't for some egregious drops, blocking issues that led to flags, and a miscommunication between Kittle and JG, the plan may have worked. Unfortunately those types of issues happen all too often whenever the 49ers try and win a game through the air. 

The Falcons were deserved winners of this game and the better team. But even so, and despite the raft of injuries, it still felt like a game there for the taking if not for the errors.

If I was to summarise what happened in this one succinctly it would be this - the Falcons out-49er'ed the 49ers. Their game plan on offense was exactly what Shanahan wants to do to an opponent - run it down the opponents throat and play efficiently in the passing game. And on defense, the Falcons achieved exactly what the 49ers aim to achieve - take away the run early and get the opposition believing they need to pass their way to victory. Shanahan will no doubt have some soul searching to do after this one.

Unfortunately it doesn't get easier for the 49ers from here. More injuries came out of this game, including Mooney Ward, and next up they have a pissed off Chiefs team coming to town. Let's hope they are able to get some players returning from injury and reset their minds to the task to be above .500 before the bye.      

Week 6 Matchup: San Francisco 49ers vs. Atlanta Falcons

 Good afternoon everyone and welcome to the live blog. Reports out of Atlanta suggest a large contingent of 49ers fans are in attendance which could create a situation where the Falcons might need to use their silent count on offense. That would be quite the advantage for the visiting team. Go Niners!

Week 6 Game Preview: 49ers @ Falcons

By Scooter_McG

The second of the 49ers two game east coast road trip takes the now 3-2 49ers to visit the 2-3 Atlanta Falcons. The 49ers are now on a two game winning streak with back-to-back comprehensive victories over the Rams and Panthers, and will be looking to maintain that momentum this week before the schedule starts getting a lot tougher. 

But the 49ers also can't afford to be looking past this Falcons team. While they only have the two wins, they have played all five of their contests close and are yet to lose against the spread. 

This game actually has the potential to be a tricky contest for the 49ers. Through the first five weeks it has been the 49ers number 1 ranked defense that has carried the team, but the injuries are now starting to pile up. And the success of the 49ers defense is predicated on their number one ranked run defense stopping the run to set up 3rd and long situations and get the opponent feeling like they need to go away from the run. 

But under Arthur Smith, the Falcons have shown they are willing to commit to the run throughout the game even if it isn't providing big chunk plays, evidenced by the Falcons boasting the fifth most rushing attempts against the second fewest passing attempts this season. This keeps them in manageable third downs and over time wears down the defense - a philosophy 49ers fans should be well versed in given it is exactly how Kyle Shanahan likes to play the game. By committing to the run they have been successful on the ground as the game goes on, averaging 5.1 yards per carry overall, with a split of 4.5 ypc in the first half and 5.5 ypc in the second half as opponents get tired.

There is a chance the entire starting DL of the 49ers could be sitting this one out, and even if Bosa and Ebukam play, they are certainly not going to be 100%. If the 49ers can't stop the Falcons running game early on in this one, or if the 49ers offense isn't able to push the team out to a big lead by half time, there is a real risk the Falcons have the formula to come over the top late. 

Making matters a little easier for the 49ers will be the absence of the Falcons leading rusher Cordarelle Patterson. But his replacements Allgeier and Huntley have also been performing very well this season, so the 49ers can't assume there will be a drop off. 

So this takes me to what I see as being the keys to victory:

• Get the Falcons into third and long. The most likely way to come away with the victory in this one is to force the Falcons to put the game in Mariota's hands. We know the Falcons will commit to the run, but if the 49ers are able to consistently put the Falcons in 3rd and 5 or longer it will allow the 49ers pass rush to come into the game. The Falcons pass protection has been a weakness through five weeks and Marcus Mariota has been awful. It's a big ask for the 49ers banged up DL, but if they are up to the challenge it will go a long way to winning this game. 
• The People's Tight End! George Kittle was a focal point of the 49ers passing game early on last week, but aside from that has been fairly invisible since returning from injury. But this week he should be targeted early and often throughout the game. The Falcons defense is not good, in particular their pass defense. And if there is one area in particular you can exploit it is over the middle. Time for Kittle to have a breakout game in 2022.
• Stick with the run. While the Falcons pass defense has been their biggest issue defensively, Kyle Shanahan has to remain committed to the running game. Usually this isn't an issue as Shanahan's preference is to be a run-first offense, but occasionally he can get cute when he thinks he sees a matchup in the passing game he can exploit. He needs to avoid getting cute here.    

In addition to the above, as always the 49ers need to avoid beating themselves. When it comes right down to it this is a game the 49ers should win and should win fairly comfortably, so long as they play a clean game. But we all know this team has a propensity to beat itself early in the season. Avoid the big mistakes and keep the ball moving on offense and they should be able to come away with the comfortable victory here. 

Week 5 Post Game Review: 49ers @ Panthers

By Scooter_McG

The 49ers started their two week road trip to the east coast with a comprehensive victory over the Panthers, with a final score of 37-15. The win puts the 49ers alone at the top of the NFC West at 3-2, after all other teams in the division lost this week, and also sees the 49ers now have an equal best points differential in the NFC despite sitting two games behind the conference leading Eagles. 

Given the short week and emotion charged victory over the Rams in week 4, there was potential for something of a let down game this week. And just before half time, leading just 10-3 despite clearly dominating the game courtesy of some silly mistakes, those fears seemed well placed. But the defense, which had been gradually stepping up their pressure on Mayfield throughout the second quarter put the 49ers two scores in front at the half as Moseley took an overthrow by Mayfield to the house. It was smooth sailing from there as the 49ers piled on 20 points in the second half to walk away with the comfortable win. 

This contest was a stark contrast to Jimmy G's first two starts this season, as the offense matched the level of play from the defense to put up nearly 400 yards. Jimmy G in particular played well, consistently converting on third downs throughout the game to keep the offense moving, making some impressive throws and throwing for two TDs. And he did this without relying heavily on any one target as the 49ers had four receivers over 40 yards in this one.

Jeff Wilson also had a big game as he rushed for 120 yards and a TD on 17 carries.

The defense played well as we have come to expect, though this game did represent the most yards given up by the team this season (albeit some of those yards were at the end during mop up duty for the Panthers backup QB as the 49ers had eased off). The best player on the field was Mooney Ward who, aside from one 32 yard catch allowed to Robbie Anderson, locked the Panthers receivers down and finished the game with 4 PBUs. Fred Warner was also excellent. 

Aside from some first half sloppiness, there were really only two negatives for the 49ers in this game. First, the special teams had some issues with a blocked FG and two long kick-off returns the second of which resulted in a knee contusion for kicker Robbie Gould. Unfortunately, the injury bug didn't stop there. The 49ers also lost Jimmie Ward early on to a broken hand, Nick Bosa injured his groin and sat out the second half, while Emmanuel Moseley looks to be lost for the season suffering an apparent ACL injury on a pass breakup late in the game.

Hopefully the injuries to Ward, Bosa and Gould won't be long term, but the loss of Moseley hurts. He and Mooney Ward were forming one of the best CB tandems in the NFL. However, I will say that I feel far more confident in the 49ers ability to cover for an injury at CB this year with Verrett now returning from IR and Womack showing some nice coverage skills, while Lenoir also looks much improved from last season.      

Week 5 Matchup: San Francisco 49ers vs. Carolina Panthers

 

Good afternoon and welcome to the live blog for the first of a two week east coast gambit of games for the 49ers. Jimmie Ward is back and Akeem Spence has been added to the roster. Looks as though Tevin Coleman will be Wilson's primary backup. Avoiding turnovers, penalties and the 49ers should be 3-2 heading to Atlanta next week. Go Niners!

49ers Inactives:

Tyler Kroft Trent Williams Ty Davis-Price Tarvarius Moore Arik Armstead Javon Kinlaw Marlon Mack

Week 5 Game Preview: 49ers @ Panthers

By Scooter_McG

Coming off the back of a dominant win at home against the division rival Rams, the now 2-2 49ers begin a two game road trip against east coast teams this week. 

First up the 49ers face the 1-3 Panthers who "boast" an NFL worst offense in terms of yards per game, largely due to the struggles of new QB Baker Mayfield who is only completing around 55% of his passes and has only surpassed 200 yards passing once this season (in week 1, and then only just). The 49ers meanwhile boast the top ranked defense in the NFL in terms of both yards and points allowed, including an average of a tick over 160 passing yards allowed per game.

The 49ers offense has had its own struggles and while it should be expected that the 49ers defense can contain the Panthers attack, the 49ers will still want to see their offense control the game and take advantage of their opportunities, to build on some of the solid foundation they laid against the Rams. 

Here are some of the key areas I see deciding this one:   

• Stop CMC. Given the Panthers struggles passing the ball this should be a great opportunity for the 49ers defense to maintain their strong defensive start to the season. However, to do so they will need to make sure they corral the the Panthers do-everything offensive weapon Christian McCaffrey, who not only leads the Panthers rushing attack but is also their leading receiver (in terms of catches). Injuries to DTs Arik Armstead and Javon Kinlaw will test the depth of the 49ers defensive interior and the ability of their replacement to fill the gap could be the biggest key to the 49ers success this week. 
• Bake-Off! Baker Mayfield has struggled with his decision making as well as a lot of batted passes, which should provide plenty of opportunities for the 49ers DL to pressure him and for the 49ers back seven to get their hands on the football. Mayfield's play has seen the Panthers boo-boys come out early this season with Sam Darnold waiting in the wings once he is fit enough to return to action. The 49ers need to make sure the pressure to replace Mayfield only intensifies after this weekend. 
• Ground and Pound. On offense, the 49ers appear to have a favourable matchup against the Panthers run defense which is ranked 25th in the NFL in terms of yards allowed. The 49ers running game has been in a bit of a funk since Trey Lance got injured and this could be an opportune game to get everyone in sync and spark the run game. 
• No Jimmy Gimme's. The Panthers defense has done a good job turning turnovers into points this year, with two defensive TDs in four games. With the 49ers offense yet to hit its stride they can ill afford to make things harder on themselves by being loose with the ball when in possession and giving the Panthers unnecessary opportunities to cause the upset. I expect the 49ers to employ a similar game plan to last week, with JG focusing on short passes to the playmakers supplementing the run game. 

Aside from the keys to victory, some things I will be keeping an eye on/ interested in are:   

• Last week Spencer Burford and Daniel Brunskill rotated at RG, as Brunskill saw his first action coming back from injury. We also saw LT Colton McKivitz go down with an injury, with Jaylon Moore coming in. I will be interested in seeing what the starting line-up along the OL is this week and whether there is any rotation again. The injuries and shuffling along the OL is also a good reason why I expect the 49ers to keep things pretty conservative in the passing game again this week.
• Jimmie Ward and Jason Verrett's practice windows were opened this week as they return from IR. It is unclear at this stage whether either player will officially be activated for the game this week. It will be interesting to see if either player is and, if so, what role they play. To be honest though I expect both players will not be activated for a couple of weeks yet.   

Week 4 Post Game Review: 49ers vs Rams

By Scooter_McG

The 49ers maintained their impressive regular season winning streak over the Rams with a commanding 24-9 win at home on Monday Night Football. 

While I find it hard to call any week 4 game a "must win", there is no doubt that getting this win over the Rams was important to keep pace with the NFC West, where all four teams now find themselves with a 2-2 record, and avoid putting the team in an early hole like they did in 2021. 

Getting the win is one thing, but the manner in which they did it was another. This wasn't a close fought battle in the NFCCG rematch - this was a game where the 49ers always looked on top, even if they weren't blowing the Rams away. And a large part of the comfortable victory lays at the feet of a dominant defensive performance that harried QB Matt Stafford all game and didn't allow the Rams running game to give Stafford a crutch to lean on. According to PFF the 49ers registered 30 pressures on Stafford at a rate of 53.6% of passing snaps, with seven sacks. 

Equally impressive was the coverage behind the pass rush. While Kupp continues to be a thorn in the 49ers side, the 49ers were able to limit his damage as he averaged just 8.7 yards per catch. Stafford's reliance on Kupp also led to Hufanga's game sealing pick-6 in the fourth quarter as well as other potential picks that were missed. The only other Rams offensive player that provided anything of note was TE Higbee, who averaged an even more pedestrian 7.3 yards per catch. Combined those two players accounted for 24 of Stafford's 32 completed passes. 

On offense, while the 49ers were far from excellent, they were considerably improved from last week. The run-pass balance we a lot better in this game, and the 49ers also used the short passing game a lot to supplement the run. Importantly, the team was able to get just enough big plays to get out in front of the Rams and put them under pressure to play catch up against the 49ers swarming defense. The two touchdown plays in particular stand out, with Wilson's 32 yard TD run blocked up perfectly, while Deebo's 57-yard catch and run was a prime example of how devastating Deebo can be with ball in hand. The 49ers also went 5 of 12 on third downs in this one, a stark improvement from last week where they only converted once.

In short, the 49ers did enough on offense and took advantage of their opportunities when they presented themselves to allow their defense to win them the game. It's the formula that took the 49ers to a Super Bowl in 2019. 

Some other notables from the game include:

• Daniel Brunskill's return from injury saw the 49ers rotating the RG spot between Burford and Brunskill throughout the game. It didn't look like an in-game performance-based decision but rather a plan going into the game. And what we saw was a good reflection of what you get from the two players - Brunskill was solid and generally reliable with no big whiffs, but equally nothing spectacular. Burford on the other hand was very up and down, with some notable missteps, but also some nice blocks including on Wilson's TD run. You like Burford for the highs, but you like Brunskill for avoiding the lows.
• Jaylon Moore was far more comfortable this week stepping in following an injury to the starting LT. However, the 49ers also did not ask him to do a lot in terms of pass protection. It is unclear how severe the injury to McKivitz is at this stage and it will be interesting to see if he needs to miss time as to what the 49ers plan will be for LT now that Brunskill is back in the mix. 
• Hufanga made another highlight play and has been a star for the 49ers defense through four weeks. Trevon Diggs parlayed a season of highlight plays into an All-Pro spot despite also having a number of defensive lapses. So far Hufanga is providing big time plays every week but they come without any real glaring missteps. If he keeps it up... could the 49ers have another All-Pro?
• The 49ers have allowed just 46 points through four games, of which the defense has been responsible for only 37. As a result the 49ers find themselves in the top two of most defensive categories (and first in many). It is worth noting though that the offenses of the four teams they have played have not been very good this year most weeks.
• Nick Bosa now leads the NFL in sacks with six through four games. PFF also had Bosa with 14 pressures against the Rams... 14! Monster.   

Week Four Matchup: L. A. Rams vs. San Francisco 49ers

 Good evening and welcome to the live blog for a prime time Monday Night Football showdown. Win and the 49ers are in first place, and the noise quiets down. Lose and you're in a hole, and the noise gets louder. Some moving parts with the return of Bobby Turner, and Al Shaair designated to IR. Snead takes his spot on the active roster, while Turner and Coleman are activated from the practice squad. 

The Rams offense ranks 29th in EPA on early downs per drop back, just ahead of the Patriots and Bears.The 49ers defense ranks 2nd in EPA per play on early downs, right behind the Buffalo Bills. 

Rams activated OL Chandler Brewer and RB Malcolm Brown from the practice squad. 

Inactives:

• RB Tyrion Davis-Price (ankle)
• WR Danny Gray (hip)
• DT Javon Kinlaw (knee)
• TE Tyler Kroft (knee)
• DB Tarvarius Moore (hamstring)
• T Trent Williams (ankle)
• OL Nick Zakelj

Week 4 Game Preview: 49ers vs Rams

By Scooter_McG

Week 4 sees an NFCCG rematch, as the NFC West leading LA Rams visit the 1-2 49ers. While the Rams enter the game with the superior record on the 2022 season, neither team has found their groove on offense as yet. And if history is any indicator, you can throw at form in these matchups anyway as these two teams have regularly provided highly entertaining and close games in the Shanahan-McVay era (with Shanahan holding a 7-4 advantage in these matchups). These games have been hallmarked by extremely physical play from both sides and I expect nothing different in this one.

For the 49ers, the talk for most of the week has been around what JG did or didn't say to Kyle Shanahan during the game against the Broncos. Regardless of what was said it wasn't a great look for the 49ers QB in a game where his play was one of the biggest factors in their disappointing loss, which saw one of the most insipid offensive performances by the 49ers since Shanahan took the reins. But at least JG took responsibility for his performance... oh, wait... 😅  

Anyway, what is very clear is the royal we need to get on the same page in a hurry to avoid another embarrassing performance.

Here's what I see as being the keys to winning this one for the 49ers:

• Dominant running game. A key in any victory for the 49ers this week will be re-establishing the run, which all starts with the guys up front coming into the game with the right mindset and seeking to physically dominate their opponent. And by "up front" I don't just mean the five linemen - all nine guys leading the way for the RB must do their part and "snatch some souls". I want to see the 49ers come out be bullies right from the jump in this one, and if they do, I like their chances of coming away with the win.
• Slow Down Aaron Donald. The 49ers need to find a way to not let Aaron Donald ruin their day. In recent matchups Daniel Brunskill has done a good job of keeping Donald at bay enough to allow the offense to get rolling, and it will now be up to the other three B's (Banks, Brendel and Burford) to do the same. A big task for those men this week. 
• Hit the big plays in the passing game. Getting the running game going, or at least committing to it, will be important for a win. But equally important will be to not waste the opportunities it brings in the passing game as the Rams defense defends the run aggressively. The 49ers can't afford to see another three or four TD opportunities missed like they did last week.
• Stop Kupp. Ok, maybe stop is the wrong word. But much like Donald they can't afford to let Kupp run havoc on the defense. Last years triple crown winner is by far and away the Rams biggest weapon on offense and the 49ers have to force Stafford to look elsewhere or be throwing into tight windows if he wants to find Kupp.
• Keep Stafford uncomfortable. A key to the 49ers two wins against the Rams last season was Stafford - he had some of his worst games against the 49ers. Even in their win in the NFCCG, Stafford tried his best to lose the game and should have had a second INT late in the game on what is a now infamous drop by Tartt in 49ers fans minds. The Rams OL is vulnerable and the 49ers DL has to be right up for this game to get after Stafford, who while not a statue does not bring the same level of escapability as Wilson last week. Combined with good coverage on the backend (including against Kupp as noted above), the 49ers DL should feast in this one.