Week 3 – Hu Ah We?

Well, offensively, we are a well-oiled machine. 8 trips into the red zone. 7 TDs and a field goal. Purdy has ~500 yards, an 80% completion percentage, 5 TDs, 1 pick, and a 125.6 QB rating. He’s completed passes to 10 different guys (including Jake Brendel). A little startling to me is the zero sacks given up. Mainly because the Rams came into the season with the ‘scariest defense in the history of the NFL!!! GASP! Aaron Donald is back!!!!! Give them their rings already!!!

Of course we smoked them like a tri-tip on the barbie. And just ran away from the Dolphins.

But even the run game, at least vs LA, was rolling with the two-headed attack of CMC and Black. Miami not so much. But the really cool thing about those games was the fact that Shanny noticed early in that Ram game was that the Rams were using a 4-2-5 defense to take away big plays. So we ran very well against that. When McVay switched to a 5 man front, Shanny ran outside and passed on them. In the Miami game, they came out with a 5 man front to take away the run game, and we threw at will on them.

So good to see mid-game adjustments by Shanny as sometimes he gets pig-headed about what he thinks should be working as opposed to what actually is.

Defensively is a different story. And I’ll preface this by saying the difference in the pressures so far this season is night and day. No sacks against Stafford, but he did his Stafford thing and threw a terrible pick under pressure. As they say now, he was uncomfortable all game. And we got 4 sacks on Malik Willis and the Flounders.

But the run defense is a big concern. Both games saw the halftime scores still close. CJ West and Thompson (before he got hurt) have spent these first 2 games getting pancaked and pushed around like shopping carts on black friday at Walmart. I really think McVay panicked WAY too early and stopped running. Miami as well. The Rams especially averaged 4.6 yards a carry. I guess McVay’s jet-lagged brain wasn’t functioning very well. Word is, Halton is gonna replace CJ West.

And based on what I’ve seen so far, we aren’t gonna sign anyone anytime soon. Mykel Williams is on track to be ready for the Denver game in 10 days, but we have to wait on that.

All that being said, both AZ and Denver are winnable games. About the only good thing the NFL did for the 49ers was to give them 3 home games in a row after all that travel. Then again, we only have 2 home games in the last 6 weeks.

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About unca_chuck

Lifelong SF 49ers, SF Giants, and Golden State Warriors fan
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2 Responses to Week 3 – Hu Ah We?

  1. Berger's avatar Berger says:

    I posted after a pre-season game that Halton was shedding double team blocks and to keep an eye on him. He looks like he could be a good one.

  2. unca_chuck's avatar unca_chuck says:

    Yeah, he’s looking good so far. Need more depth in the interior. Even if it is a pass rush guy like Floyd. Anyone they can rotate in and out in certain (passing) situations.

Super Bowl Win, Purdy Please