Your daily San Francisco 49ers news for Friday, October 18th, 2024
The 49ers might have a long-awaited answer hiding on defense
“It’s a limited sample size. But the eye test backs up the data. It tells the story of a torqued-up edge rusher with the strength to set the edge on run downs, and the tweener size and flexibility to slot inside successfully. If the early returns stick, that is a monumental find.
He leads with power, and counters with a move you might have seen before: a two-hand swipe. It looks an awful lot like the move that Nick Bosa turned into a five-year, $170 million deal.
That’s because it is that move. Okuayinonu ripped it right off Bosa.
“Hell yeah, that’s Nick’s move,” Okuayinonu told me. “That was one of the things I stole from him. I’m always asking Nick questions in meetings and practice… Being in the same room as him is insane.”
Against the Seahawks, Okuayinonu pulled that move off from a 3-technique position against right guard Anthony Bradford to sack Geno Smith for the only sack of the game on either side.
“It’s funny, because we’ve been working on that all camp,” Bosa told me. “That was the best one he’s had, including practice. So it shows that he’s an in-game player.”
…. Much of that credit goes to defensive line coach Kris Kocurek.
“He’s been that big part of that confidence booster for me,” Okuayinonu said. “Even when I have bad plays, he’s very understanding. He’s like, ‘You’re a football player, stuff happens,’ and it’s the next play. It’s always about the next play. What you could do on that play to fix it, to make sure it don’t happen again. But other places I’ve been, it’s like you make a mistake, man, they scald you. And that kind of sticks in the back your head. It’s like, ‘I don’t want to mess up.’”
Why Chiefs expect ‘headache’ defending 49ers’ dynamic offense
“I think the quarterback is really good against zone and finding those pockets and spaces,” Spagnuolo said. “I think the receivers adjust routes to do that. That makes it really challenging in zone. One of the things you got to remember is we had, last year was a little different. [Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed] was here, Trent [McDuffie], we had him in a different spot. So, we’ll see if we can do the same things.
“I just think their system is built that they really can expose zone coverage, and yet I think they got enough skill that if you don’t have the right man people covering their men, that can be really challenging, too. It’s going to start up front, and stopping the run, and hopefully we can get the quarterback in timing like he is.
“I can’t find a weakness in this quarterback. Every time I put the film on, I’m more and more impressed.”
Purdy impressed by Pearsall, who could make NFL debut vs. Chiefs
“The 49ers will install their red-zone plan on Friday, and Purdy suggested that Pearsall could provide Shanahan with another good option.
“When you have a guy like Ricky that can win man-to-man matchups and also open up some other guys, too, it’s always a good thing,” Purdy said. “I’m excited to see what he does.”
49ers’ 4th-and-1 failure vs. Patrick Mahomes still stings: ‘That’s your opportunity’ (paywall)
“Even if Mahomes didn’t run, he could have thrown to Rice, who was uncovered in front of him, 5 yards downfield. As for linebacker Fred Warner, he wasn’t close to Mahomes because he was covering Valdes-Scantling, who ran a shallow slant.
Asked whether it’s a matter of tipping a hat to the Chiefs for a stellar call, Bosa dismissed that idea while also crediting Kansas City for adding a wrinkle to the zone read by motioning Kelce, who cleared Ryan out of the way.
“I don’t want to throw anyone under the bus, so I’m not going to say anything,” Bosa said. “When you get a play throughout a game you might want to be ready, especially when we got it in the first half. But that’s also very good coaching by them. Because they saw how we were playing it. And they do a really good job of adding some window dressing to make things tough. We have calls for all that. We didn’t get to them.”
What will it take for the 49ers to finally beat the Chiefs? 5 key questions
“This inter-conference game likely won’t be all that important for playoff positioning in January and won’t mean much once the playoffs start in January.
But by the look in the 49ers’ eyes Wednesday in the locker room and on the practice field, I can guarantee they will be crestfallen if they can’t find a way to end this losing streak to the Chiefs on Sunday. It won’t be the same as losing a Super Bowl, naturally, but it would increase doubts about their ability to ever get past Kansas City.”
Brock Purdy, Nick Sorensen, Chris Foerster preview 49ers-Chiefs Week 7 matchup
“San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen, offensive line/run game coordinator Chris Foerster, and quarterback Brock Purdy spoke to reporters after Thursday’s practice as the team prepares for its Week 7 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. Here’s everything they said.”
The 49ers’ most prominent improvement since the Super Bowl? Rookie guard Dominick Puni (paywall)
“Early on, he wanted to be Donald. A few years later, he yearned to block Donald. He wanted to experience what it was like to go against the best defensive lineman in the world.
During down moments, he’d turn to a buddy on the offensive line and ask: If you had 100 chances, do you think you could block Donald once?
“And my delusional friend thought he could!” Puni said, a smile spreading across his face.
Donald retired one month before the 49ers drafted Puni in the third round in April, denying him a chance to test himself against the man he spent so many hours watching on television. But on Sunday he’ll get the next best thing, a defensive tackle from the other side of the state, the Kansas City Chiefs’ Chris Jones.
And truth be told, Jones has been a bigger thorn in the 49ers’ side than Donald ever was…..Center Jake Brendel said the Chiefs have a better supporting cast for Jones than the Rams did for Donald, and they alternate their approach more often. That is, there’s more to worry about when facing Kansas City.
“Looking back at those Rams games, we weren’t as concerned about a ton of other people on that defensive roster,” he said. “I think a lot of them were good players, but they weren’t as high-level threats as the Chiefs have.”