San Francisco 49ers Forever

What a twit. After all the bullshit around the hold out and trade demand, Robbie Gould is hurt. Gould  has been kicking a long time, and has pretty much been one of the better kickers in the NFL lo these 14+ seasons. Thing is, he was revered in Chicago, until he wasn’t. They dumped him in 2016 and he signed a one-year deal with the Giants. He does fine for them but they let him walk. The 49ers sign him in 2017, 2 years for $5 mill. He does great, yes, but then after his 2 stellar seasons here, and his contract is up, he gets all whiny for sweet home Chicago.

Chicago FANS of course want him in the worst way, but the Bears front office already owes a shit-ton of money to their other kickers, and the price of Gould went way up, so without any draft choices they couldn’t trade for him. So, the Niners slap the franchise tag on him. Now Gould formally demands a trade.  Waaaah!

After bickering for a couple months, the finally 49ers offer him $19 mill, with $10 mill guaranteed, and Gould takes the deal. With Gould happy and paid, Gould naturally starts off the season kicking like his leg is made of gold-plated tin and he proceeds to go 13-20 for the season so far.

The low-light of the season being the Cleveland game where Gould was 1-4, and he missed a 53 yard attempt at the end of the first half that didn’t even reach the end zone. It would have been short from 40 yards.

OK, I will give him the Redskins game. The conditions were horrible, and he managed to make 3 of 4 (missed the rist one, though).

Funny thing is, during this winning streak, we haven’t really had to depend on Gould so far. Good thing, because he’s scuffling badly.

Wow. I had us starting fast, but I didn’t see us at 8-0. Somewhere along the way I thought we could very well be at 6-2 in a best-case scenario. But the football Gods, and the refs,  have been benign to pleasant so far. We are even close to getting our tackles back, Ahkello, and Juice as well. Funny thing though, losing our tackles and a corner has done little slow us down as Justin Skule, Daniel Brunskill, and Emmanuel Moseley have come up aces as their replacements.

The biggest injury is the one that just happened. Kwon Alexander is likely gone for the rest of the year after tearing a pec on Thursday night. With the meat of our schedule coming up, his presence was important. The next man us for his spot is Dre Greenlaw, the surprising rookie who has gotten a lot of playing time as the starting Sam LB. He will move to the weak side (Will) LB in the base D. Which of course creates a need for the Sam LB. Azeez Al-Shaair had a great camp, and the team is very high on him, but either he or Mark Nzeocha will fill that role.

Whatever they decide, the next 8 games are all (well, maybe not Atl) huge challenges. The next game is perhaps the biggest of all, at least from a reality check point on this season. 8-0 49ers and 6-2 Seahawks on Monday night? The mind boggles at the ramifications of this game. I almost with this was in their house, as the Seahawks have been uncustomarily struggling at home. Still and all, this is a playoff-atmosphere game at week 10. Should we lose, we’d still have a game lead, and we’ve beaten the Rams and the Cards, but we would be on shakier ground than a win would give us, that’s for sure.

The Hawks aren’t exactly on easy street themselves with games against the Eagle, Vikes, Rams, Panthers, Cards, and us. And the Rams are still hanging around, and they have the Bears cakewalk among their remaining sched of Pittsburgh, Balt, Cards 2x, Haws, Cowboys, and us.

Whoever comes out of this division come January, they should have a leg up on the entire NFL. Either than or beaten to a pulp and too battle-scarred to carry on.

Gonna be fun either way. Bring it on!

Yes, this was a short week. Yes, this was a trap game. Yes, we always have problems (0-8 in recent history) in the Big Cactus. But in only his 18th start, Jimmy G had a game that he needed to shine in, and he did. The run game was sputtering, and the defense was getting torched by big plays, and gouged by strong runs, but Jimmy G put together his best game as a pro with 317 yards on 28-37 attempts and  4 TDs against no picks (and no iffy passes) with a 137 QB rating. And as happens every game, a couple huge drops that would have made his numbers better. Deebo dropped a perfect pass in the end zone, and Coleman dropped an important screen pass that would have garnered a 1st down late in the game. A likely 15-20 yard play.

Turns out we overcame both of those mistakes, as good teams do, and we very recently didn’t, but as Richard Sherman noted, this wasn’t a championship effort. Especially by the defense. After stuffing the AZ passing game in the 1st half to the tune of 15 yards gained, AZ blew the game open with an 88 yard TD to pull the Cards with in 3 (after the 2 pt conversion). Numerous defenders misplayed that one pass, and this is one thing our defense has been very good at, and that is not giving up these huge plays.

In fact the game started with a 39 yard run to 3-day old guy, Kenyan Drake. A guy hiding in plain sight in Miami. He torched the Niner defense with 110 yards on 15 carries. A whopping 7.33 yards a carry. And  Murray was able to buy time and get loose for an easy TD pass to KeeShaun (not Keyshon) Johnson. Murray ended up 17-24 for 241 and 2 TDs. Our first play saw George Kittle get his knee hyperextended, and he gutted through 2 more quarters, scoring on a 30 yard TC, and catching a couple key 3rd down passes for 1st downs. Dwelley did get the game-sealing catch with a 12 yard grab on 3rd and 9 very late in the game to allow us to run out the clock.

This our the first game without forcing a turnover, but we also didn’t give the ball away. The closest was a sure pick 6 dropped by Fred Warner. But for Kliff Kingsbury’s Kliff Klavin moment, allowing a TD with 0:02 seconds left in the 1st half after stuffing us on 4th and 1/2 a yard, this game could have ended differently.

As it is, we geet 11 days off go get healthy, and get Seattle here on Monday night. Trap game avoided, but the injuries could be significant with Kwon Alexander undergoing an MRI today to check his pec. Kittle should be OK, but no word on him.

Sue me, I’m early with this.  Got a busy day at work (yes I have a real job), and I’m watching the World Series, and I’ll probably be on BART when the game starts, so here we go. Taking a look at the handy dandy results on the side of this place, and I see that we haven’t beat the Cards since 2014. The dregs of the the Harbaugh era. The garbage game at the end of that woebegone season.  IOW, a long fucking time.

But that was then, this is now.  Since no one was too keen on my idea of resting some of the starters, I guess we play and hope we come out of this game healthy.  As healthy as one can be after playing 2 games in 5 days. Richard Sherman was very outspoken about these Thursday night games, he blew out his Achilles on a Thursday night, and all the players certainly feel it, but here we are. Playing our 2nd division game. One of 3 in a row. AZ, Sea, AZ GOt to love the schedulers for this anomaly. At least we get Seattle at home.

Thing is, the Cards have the same schedule as the Niners. In other words, fodder.  Yet they are 3-4-1. They beat the Giants, the Falcons, and the Bengals. Seattle, the Ravens, the Saints, and the Panthers have beaten them. They are always tough at their house, and we seem to be cursed against them, but shit, we got this.

33-17 Niners.

Mainly because I still forget that there ARE games on Thursday night. Thursday Night Football has not grabbed the imaginations of football fans nearly like Monday Night Football did so many years ago.

It is nothing more than a necessary evil instituted by Jolly Roger Goodell foisted onto the backs of the players strictly in the name of greed. Players don’t get enough time to recover from the Sunday games, and the quick turnaround also puts them at risk of reinjury. Just ask Richard Sherman.

You know what I would love to see? I would love to see a team (starting with us tonight) trot out their entire 2nd string line up. Pull an NBA move and rest the starters. Come on down, Nick Mullens.  Our long snapper can take all the reps at center. Sit as many people as possible. This move would send shockwaves around the NFL. Teams than can afford to burn a game (say, us and New England) can give Goodie Goodell the big kiss off and tank a game.

I’d sit Bosa, Ford, Alexander, and Sherman. I’d sit Garoppolo, Goodwin, Sanders, and Coleman.  I’m always afraid of these games because of the risk of injury and the wear and tear on the vet players. I think this would be a great idea. Sure it would be a possible division loss, but who cares if we don’t get banged up even more?

This game? Funny, I don’t really have a sense of how this one goes.  Vegas has us at 5.5, which is a tick over the 3 points you get for home field. My son things we take them, as do you guys, but I think this one is gonna be a struggle. Everyone keeps saying we haven’t played anyone, but aren’t the Rams someone? Sure, they are on;y 4-3 but they were the NFC Champs last year. But does that make us contenders?

I really don’t know. The defense is for real. That much is obvious. We get constant pressure, and we get turnovers. Even with a backup corner. It’s the offense that I really want to see break out. Jimmy G has been good for stretches, but he still makes ill-advised throws. He reads defenses until he doesn’t. Yeah, we are on a patchwork line ourselves, and that is what worries me about Sunday’s game.

Carolina has 2 solid DEs that have 11 sacks between them. I suspect we run a lot tomorrow as their run D is suspect. What I’d like to see is delayed draws and misdirection. Let these guys overpursue and take advantage of their aggressiveness.

Shooting in the dark, I’ll say 30-27 Niners.

. . . of the schedule that is. Before the season, I had been hoping for a fast start. Yes, this is faster than I thought, but we are getting to the crux of the biscuit here. Carolina, Seattle, Green Bay, Baltimore, and N’Awlins are coming up. Plus those pesky Cardinals. Always tough at home.

As we sit, perched above the NFC with our 6-0 record, how many of these next 7 games can we win? I’d be very happy to set the baseline with 2 wins over AZ and go from there. Carolina is an interesting matchup because undrafted QB Kyle Allen is playing so well, there are whispers out of North Carolina that they should trade Cam Newton as soon as he’s healthy, and ride the lightning that is Kyle. They are 4-0 (after Cam’s 0-2 start) under Kyle, and the offense is clicking al all cylinders.  RB phenom Christian MCCaffrey is tearing up the league with 900+ all-purpose yards (618 rushing), and Allen leading the way with 7 TDs and no picks.

Defensively they are tearing up the league. They lead the league with 27 sacks. Their DEs Mario Addison and Brian Burns have 11 between them, and 5 other guys with 2 or more sacks. They are 2nd in interceptions with 9. However, their run defense is a bit shakey as they give up 120 yards per game on the ground.  So I guess if there is a weakness, we can exploit that.

So, starting with this one, since it is at home, and we have a new weapon, I think we win a close one, 30-28.

The powers-that-be in the NFC West have had a busy little week. Stating with the Rams, who traded Marcus Peters to the Ravens (who promptly pick-sixed Russell Wilson, and helped beat Seattle, tyvm), and traded for Jalen Ramsey. Two 1sts and a 2nd is a pretty steep price, but that is something they felt they needed to do. As opposed to helping their leaky O line. Which is their biggest problem. The Rams are smacking of desperation here as they try to deal with the fact their offense isn’t high-flying anymore, and their run game is iffy as well as their pass pro. Goff is not having the success he had the last couple years, and the Rams are struggling to score.

The Niners of course just overpaid a bit (2nd and 3rd) for Bronco WR Emmanuel Sanders. He’s had a nice career surrounded by a bunch of injuries, but he’s playing well so far this year.  Desperate? No, not really. But Sanu was too expensive, and Sanders seems like a good enough guy to take over the #1 spot held by no one. Goodwin is injury-prone, Taylor is likely out for at least 4 more weeks, and the guy who I think will be our #1, Jalen Hurd, is also on the shelf for a few more weeks with a back injury.

Not to be outdone, Seattle looked for and got secondary help by trading for safety Quandre Diggs. While this is a great move for Seattle, many in Detroit are scratching their heads why they traded their defensive captain this early in the season. Yeah, they are 2-3-1, but they are playing well enough. But I digress. That looks to be a good move for the Seachickens.

So, at least the NFC West isn’t standing pat. These 3 (and a semi-resurgent Cards team) stand to fight to the end for the West crown. A very mean feat these days. Wish I had made my Super Bowl bet this year. The Niners started the season as 33-1 to make it.

That is down to 9-1.

Color me blown away. One year ago to this very day, the 49ers were 1-6. Yes, they had lost their quarterback, and were struggling offensively,  but to say the defense was holding its end up was light years away from reality. By game 7 last year, the 49ers had given up 214 points on defense. An average of 31 points a game.

This year? 64 points. An average of 9 points a game! Unreal.

I was at the end of my rope with Robert Saleh as the team went through stretches where wide receivers were left wide open without a defender within 15 yards of them. 3rd down screen plays that gained 25 yards, and gashing runs that left the linemen chasing air.  As the drudgery of the wasted season dragged on, the defense did show signs of improvement. Some of that improvement came on the back of replacing the Beater with Nick Mullens and an offense that did more than in previous games, but guys weren’t left wide wide open, and the run defense incrementally improved.

We had a decent D line, but little else. The GLARING needs were pass rush, and turnovers. The braintrust went out and got Dee Ford, Kwon Alexander, and drafted Nick Bosa, and Dre Greenlaw. They, for all intents and purposes, ignored the defensive backfield (unless you count Jason (burnt toast) Verritt as a worthy addition. I don’t.

Hmmm. How has that worked out? Well, we are the #1 defense in yards/game, #1 in pass defense, #2 in points allowed/game, #8 in run defense yards/game, #5 in takeaways, #4 in interceptions, and #5 in sacks. We have given up the fewest 1st downs.

Sea change? Well, last to first defensively? Sure. What I think is interesting is the fact that they believed in the defensive backfield as it currently existed in 2018. Ahkello Witherspoon went from mediocre to spectacular. Emmanuel Moseley came out of nowhere (undrafted) to be a more-than- competent backup in Witherspoon’s absence. Oft-hurt Jimmie Ward played fantastic last week against the Rams, and has been a steadying force. Ad Richard Sherman? Well, he’s completely over his achilles problem and his pickless 2018 has been forgotten with his 2 picks so far, including the pick 6 vs Tampa.

You have to hand it to Daniel Snyder.  He ran Mike Shanahan, Kyle Shanahan, Sean, McVay,  and Matt LaFleur out of town over the past 10 years. Granted, Shanny Sr. was 24-40, but he did reach the playoffs with Kurt Cousins. So, Danny boy ran them all out of town and hired Jay Gruden. Who he just fired. At 35-50. Like Mike, he had a one-and-done playoff year with Cousins but the rest was a mess of firing quarterbacks, .and meddling in football decisions.

When Kyle Shanahan was asked what he liked about his time in DC, he said he liked working with his dad, and enjoyed working with the other coaches on the staff. When he was asked what he didn’t like, he said “everything else”.

Shanny’s not the flashy type but that quote opened up a lot of ears around the NFL. Mainly because Snyder has the uncanny ability to piss off everyone who works for he and Bruce Allen, the architects of disaster in Washington, to the tune of 140-185. So, while Snyder looks for his 10th coach in his 21st season as owner, he gets to revel in the fact he hired and fired 3 of the hottest young coaches in the NFL. And dragged Kyle’s dad through the mud among the  backstabbing and meddling, I think we don;t have to worry about this game being overlooked by Kyle.

38-10 Niners.