Forty Niners Forever

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.

Looks like LA GM Les Snead is in panic mode already this season. After an underwhelming 3-0 start, they hit the skids with 3 straight losses. So, naturally they are trading like mad to shore up their O line and fix their defensive backfield. In a series of stunning moves, the Rams traded a 5th round pick to the Brownies for center, and wasted first pick of the 2nd round, Austin Corbitt; traded starting CB Marcus Peters to the Ravens for linebacker Kenny Young; and the kicker, trading away TWO 1st round picks, and a 4th round pick in the 2021 draft.

Yeah, I get that the Rams have suffered some injuries, notably, Clay Matthews and Aqib Talib, but they just mortgaged their future for a band-aid fix. A VERY expensive band-aid fix. Ramsey is on the last year of his rookie deal, so, what happens after the season ends?  Are they going to pony up? Because they already have Goff and Gurley on mega-deals. More than likely, they will be forced to let him go, so Ramsey comes as a 10-game rental for 2 #1s!!

And Corbitt, who was a huge disappointment (worst draft pick in last year’s draft according to a Cleveland front office guy) couldn’t beat out Eric Kush. The same Eric Kush that Snead cut 2 years earlier. And the revolving door at CB for them has been dizzying.

Still and all, I like it. The Rams appear to be scared of the draft and have given up on it for the next couple seasons. And their contract situation will be disastrous very soon.

• Aaron Donald: 6 yr(s) / $135,000,000
• Andrew Whitworth: 3 yr(s) / $33,750,000
• Todd Gurley: 4 yr(s) / $57,500,000
• Jared Goff: 4 yr(s) / $134,000,000
• Brandin Cooks: 5 yr(s) / $81,000,000
• Aqib Talib: 6 yr(s) / $57,000,000

Hah! they are paying 6 guys about $100 million. They are fucked. I don’t see how they afford Ramsey after this season, and since they already blew their shot in last year’s Super Bowl, I don’t see them returning this year. They may not even make the playoffs at this rate. And they gave away TOW #1 and a 4th round pick for a 10-game rental!

Hey, I love a rivalry as much as the next fan, but to see these guys implode in a hurry is always a good time.

No one is coming back this week, but Witherspoon and Staley are the closest to return to action. Here’s how we stand. Notably, Richard Sherman is not on the list with his stinger.

CB Ahkello Witherspoon

Foot sprain, Sept. 22
Out: 4 weeks
Possible return: Oct. 27 vs. Carolina

OT Joe Staley

Fractured left fibula, Sept. 15
Out: 6 to 8 weeks
Possible return: Oct. 31 at Arizona

OT Mike McGlinchey

Knee cartilage, Oct. 7
Out: 4 to 6 weeks
Possible return: Nov. 11 vs. Seattle – Dec. 1 at Baltimore

FB Kyle Juszczyk

MCL sprain, Oct. 7
Out: 4 to 6 weeks
Possible return: Nov. 11 vs. Seattle – Dec. 1 at Baltimore

WR Trent Taylor

Foot surgery
Injured reserve: Before Week 3
Possible return: Any point after Nov. 17 vs. Arizona

WR Jalen Hurd

Stress reaction in back
Injured reserve: Before Week 5
Possible return: Any point after Nov. 24 vs. Green Bay

CB Jason Verrett

Knee
Injured reserve: Before Week 5
Possible return: Any point after Nov. 24 vs. Green Bay

DL Kentavius Street

Knee
Injured reserve: Before Week 1
Possible return: Any point after Oct. 31 vs. Arizona

TE Garrett Celek

Back
Physically unable to perform
Possible return: After Week 6, the player must be allowed to return to practice, placed on injured reserve or released within five weeks. Once the player returns to practice, the team has three weeks to decide to place him on the active roster or on the injured reserve list.

In a game reminiscent of the dominating defensive line of the mid 70s with Tommy Hart, Cedrick Hardman, Skip Vanderbundt, Jimmy Webb, Cleveland Elam, and Fudge Hammer Frank Nunley, the 49ers defense laid a huge ass-whipping of the LA Rams. Yes, the high-flying LA Rams who scored 69 points, and rolled up 995 yards in their previous two games, were held to 7 points and a grand total of 157 yards. Goff was under pressure all game, and except for the opening drive, did little to nothing offensively.

The Rams were 0-13 on 3rd and 4th downs. Goff had a net 48 yards passing. Early on it appeared the Rams would run right down our throat, but we had started the game in a nickel package, and the Rams exploited that by running straight down the field for a quick 7 points. After that, though, the D line took over. Solly Thomas even got into the act with a crushing sack in the 3rd quarter. Dee Ford had a strip sack and a half, Armstead got the other half, and Ronald Blair had a sack as well, but that one should really go to Nick Bosa as he walked the guard straight backwards into Goff, and Goff fell over the left tackle.

Then there was the goal line stand.

The DBs were up to the challenge all game and Moseley had great coverage on one of the only deep shots of the game, and made a great open-field tackle on Cooper Kupp to prevent a 1st down.

Offensively? Well, we did enough to win, but it was a very uneven performance for Jimmy G. the run game was stifled pretty well, and Jimmy made most of the throws he needed to to keep the chains moving. The pick in the end zone was terrible, even if Kittle was held/bumped off the play. The dropped pick was even worse as it would have changed the game entirely had Littleton caught the gift for ther pick 6 it would have been. 14 to 7 and getting the 3rd quarter KO would have been a different ball of wax, but woulda coulda shoulda don’t get you any sauce in this league.

As far as the dropped pass to Coleman on the goal line goes, the play was made correctly by both, but Coleman was bumped off his route coming out of the backfield and he was in a different spot than designed. Still and all, he should have caught that one.

Gould? Don’t know. He followed his terrible week last week with another underwhelming performance. Granted, a 55 yarder is no gimme, but he left it about 30′ short. Guess he might still be hurt. Our punter is doing fine, but a near fatal gaffe by Reed letting a punt hit him in the leg was negated by an illegal shift call. Again, woulda coulda shoulda, but you fuck those plays up, you pay the piper.

Should be an interesting game. Both sides are a bit banged up. We are banged up on offense with Staley and McGlinchey out, and Kittle hurting. The Rams are banged up on the defensive side with Talib and Matthews out. Plus Gurley.

Advantage us. I think we can still run effectively enough to move the chains and score while the Rams will be even more one-dimensional and we can get after Goff, who has 7 TDs and 7 picks.

28-17 Niners.

Rams vs Niners. Roman Gabriel vs John Brodie. Vince Ferragamo vs Joe Montana. Marc Bulger vs Tim Rattay (thud). And now it’s Jared Goff vs Jimmy G. It has been a long long time since these teams were relevant together and living in their respective spots as rivals. In fact there has only been one playoff meeting, our trouncing of the Rams in the 1989 NFC Championship game 30-3. The very infamous phantom sack game that haunted Chris Evert, uh, Jim Everett, for the rest of his career.

The pendulum seems to swing hard one way and hard the other as these guys have gone back and forth winning and losing. The tally now is 69-67-3 49ers. Nowadays? Well, the Rams and Niners have been trading off sucking and succeeding, but here we are. The 3-2 Rams, fresh off their Super Bowl gagging, and us, the upstart 4-0 Niners, trying to gain some cred as we make our way through this exciting season. The Rams certainly are reeling a bit after losing at home to the Buccos (55 points? Seriously?), and on the road in Seattle. The missed FG being the kicker in the last game.

That’s 85 points given up by the Rams in  2 games. Sure, they scored 79, but there’s the rub. The well-oiled offense is a bit wobbly. Cleveland held the Rams to 20 points. A team we put a soft 31 on.  Gurley isn’t being used a lot, and he’s still a threat, but the Rams seem to be playing things close to the vest as they search for an identity.

Goff’s numbers are fairly pedestrian with a 63% completion percentage, 7 TDs, and 7 picks among the 8 sacks given up. His 330 yards per game is fine, and the run game is fairly solid at 120 yards per, but there’s nothing outstanding. Certainly nothing Super Bowl caliber but they can pass and run effectively.

Defensively the Rams are 13th in yards/game, and 26th in points allowed.

We should be able to take advantage of their defensive shortcomings while exploiting Goff’s skittishness. This one looks like a bit of a track meet, so I’m thinking 35-27 Niners.

I was hoping for a fast start, and it appears we officially have it. 4-0 hasn’t been seen in these parts since Joe Montana, Jerry, Rice, Roger Craig and company roamed Candlestick Park.  Heady stuff. Yesterday’s game was about as big a crushing as one would expect playing the Browns. Except these were supposed to be the newly manufactured Browns.

Baker Mayfield, Nick Chubb, Jarvis Landry, Ol’ Dirty Beckham, Myles Garrett, this was supposed to be a high-powered offense and a strong defense. And the Browns were coming off a pretty good pounding of a pretty good Ravens team. Then they played the game.

After a quick 3 and out by the Browns, Matt Breida took his first handoff 83 yards to the house, and the 49ers never looked back. Next series saw Richard Thomas read Baker’s eyes and grab an easy pick. After another Breida touchdown on a 5 yards pass, the defense took over and gave the Browns little to nothing the rest of the game. 180 yards to  446.

Bosa and Co had a monster game keeping Mayfield scrambling around and bumbling, stumbling and fumbling in the backfield. FOUR turnovers to none by the Niners. Even the penalties were down as we had 4 for 34 yards.

The only dark cloud is the injury to Kyle Juszczyk, who suffered an MCL injury late in the 3rd quarter. He’s a huge part of our offense, and his absence will be a tough hole to fill.  The extent is not known at this point and he’s gettting an MRI today. Well, that and the inability of our third long snapper, Garrison Sandborn, to get in synch with Wishnowski and Robbie Gould. 2 misses and a block were not very good, but like Bill Walsh said, if you are worried about your kicker, you have bigger problems on offense.

Tell ya one thing, can’t imagine how horrible the traffic will be getting to the stadium tonight seeing that the team plays in the heart of the Sillycon Valley. Last Sunday was a breeze, but a work day? Yeeeesh. Expect to see a lot of empty seats early on.

This game is, for all intents and purposes, a game of the new guard in the NFL. A couple of upstart teams trying to make their way up the chain of the NFL to respectability, or even higher. In the case of the 49ers, they are trying to crack the glass ceiling to the top of the NFC West. a spot inhabited by the Rams and Seahawks for nigh on 6 seasons. A spot that is still a tough nut to crack.

The Browns? Well, they have a lot of flash and a lot of names, but they are a bit of a mess. Their coaching is suspect, and while they spent a lot of coin and draft picks on flashy players, they have a leaky O line, and their defense is scattershot, and defensive backfield is hurt. Their quarterback likes to talk, and he’s fairly reminiscent of a young Brett Favre in that he can do anything out there, good or bad, but they are inconsistent at best, shitty at worst. But they have Myles Garrett, a force to be reckoned with.

I liken them to us last year. A team that is a bit overwhelmed by expectations, and not quite ready for prime time.  One that can play well, but can also look like an inexperienced team looking to find their way.

I think we will take this one going away. Provided we stop giving the ball away. MNF has a way of making teams a little hyperactive and a little overzealous, so the trick here is to keep the adrenaline levels at a manageable level, and take it to the Browns early. Dee Ford was limited in practice, so that means he’s gonna play. That is good news. When he’s in he’s disruptive, and we have DeFo and Bosa to bring the heat from anywhere on the line.

The Browns LBs and defensive backs are shakey at best so the middle of the field, our bread and butter with, Jimmy G and Kittle, should be a matchup nightmare for the Browns.

34-17 Niners.