Lions We’re going to be checking in on DeForest Buckner frequently for his
Defensive Player of the Year campaign
49ers Brock Coyle Jersey , and Sunday’s stop wasn’t the most desirable. Buckner only managed a single sack against what on paper should be an awful
Detroit Lions defensive line. However, it’s not how you start this campaign
trail, it’s how you finish. Show me the sack:This thing of beauty puts Buckner
at 3.5 sacks for the season. In 2017 alone, all of 2017, Buckner only got three
of those. So this is progress. He’s going to need a lot more than one sack a
game if he’s going to get that DPOY he desires, but maybe he won’t get left off
lists as one of the best in the league. And with moves like this, the sacks will
come.Oh, but there’s more.Now, on this campaign, sacks do matter, but there’s
other little things to get Buckner the respect he rightly deserves. It’s not
going to just be getting to an opposing team’s signal caller, but how he pulls a
runner back. Roll it: If only the rest of his line could do this. To round out
this post of DeForest Buckner gloss, we of course need to bring up his car
jacking of LeGarrette Blount. Fooch already went into detail about this
yesterday, but it’s worth showing again. Ok, that last one isn’ t going to get
Buckner much of anything, but it’s never going to get old watching. Especially
when Blount got himself ejected out of frustration a while later. Lions
quarterback Matthew Stafford took off down the sideline and Elijah Lee was happy
to knock him out of bounds. Blount didn’t exactly like that and knocked Lee off
his feet, getting tossed in the process. The one concern is the Detroit Lions
offensive line isn’t very good. At all. That said, Buckner has already gone
above his sack total in 2017 and is making a strong case for All Pro.Maybe he
doesn’t get the DPOY nod, but we’re not stopping this campaign until he gets the
respect he deserves.6 takeaways from the 49ers’ Week 4 loss to the Chargers
Before the game began, if I told you that the San Francisco 49ers would lose
left tackle Joe Staley, wide receiver Dante Pettis and play with a hobbled right
tackle Mike McGlinchey, most would have predicted a blowout in favor of the Los
Angeles Chargers. Yet, late into the fourth quarter, the 49ers had multiple
chances to steal a win on the road with their backup quarterback C.J. Beathard
leading the team. Coming into Sunday’s contest, the keys for a 49ers’ victory
included a strong rushing attack and a “bend, don’t break” defensive effort, but
Kyle Shanahan’s squad could not execute in either of those departments.Running
back Matt Breida only rushed for 39 yards on nine carries, while backup Alfred
Morris only gained 14 yards on four attempts. It’s usually not a good sign when
a team’s non-mobile quarterback is the second-leading rusher for the team. The
49ers only ran 21 running plays, in comparison to Beathard’s 37 passing attempts
on Sunday. As currently constructed, Shanahan’s team isn’t constructed to win
playing this style of football. Robert Saleh’s group wasn’t productive on Sunday
either, missing more tackles (2018 season’s unfortunate theme) and letting
Chargers’ quarterback Phillip Rivers carve them up. It didn’t help that corner
Richard Sherman and safety Jaquiski Tartt were not playing with various
injuries, but it seemed like the 49ers were thoroughly outplayed on defense. A
lack of a threatening pass rush
http://www.49erscheapshops.com/cheap-authentic-k_waun-williams-jersey , combined with poor tackling ability is a nightmare for a defensive coordinator.
As San Francisco prepares to host the win-less Arizona Cardinals next weekend,
here are some key takeaways from the 49ers’ close loss in Los Angeles. 1. QB
C.J. Beathard is playing an unsustainable brand of football.Just scanning over
the box score, it looks like Beathard had an above average performance,
completing 23 of 37 passing attempts for 298 yards, including two touchdowns and
two interceptions. The weirdest statistic on the box score is that Beathard only
took one sack for a loss of 10 yards.Huh? It seemed like the 49ers’ quarterback
was constantly getting up from the ground and that his jersey was covered in
green after the game ended, yet there was only one sack recorded.While most
49ers’ fans will applaud Beathard for his toughness and resilience for getting
up after every Chargers’ hit, he can’t continue to take those hits. As the NFL
continues to make the game safer for their most prized assets, Beathard
continues to put himself in harm’s way, opening himself for vicious hits. In the
second half, there was one hit that took the 49ers’ signal caller out of the
game, allowing backup Nick Mullens to make a cameo appearance. A large
contributor to poor protection can be attributed to injuries, as backup tackle
Garry Gilliam had to step in for Staley and McGlinchey continued to play while
he was clearly hobbled. The second side to this is that Beathard is holding onto
the ball for a split second longer than he should. Waiting for his receivers to
get open, the 49ers’ quarterback is allowing the pass rush to get a hit on him
after releasing the throw.I’m sure the 49ers’ brain trust would like to see the
remaining 12 games include Beathard in the starting lineup to evaluate his
future potential, but if this keeps up, he won’t make it to Week 17. 2. Kyle
Shanahan continues to work coaching wonders with an under-manned roster.As I
said earlier, there was absolutely no reason for the 49ers to have only lost by
two points to a significantly better roster and veteran quarterback on the road.
The difference in this game? One sideline had Kyle Shanahan and the other had
Anthony Lynn. When push comes to shove, I know which head coach I’d rather have
running my team. With San Francisco’s franchise quarterback and star running
back out for the season, Shanahan hasn’t flinched, preaching the “Next Man Up”
motto and coaching the team like there’s supposed to win games on Sunday.This
week’s game is a prime example of why Shanahan’s elevating the offensive roster
beyond its capabilities. With multiple injuries along the offensive line, backup
skill players in the starting lineup and a second-year backup quarterback, the
49ers managed to put up 20 points, 298 yards through the air and 76 yards on the
ground. While the media continues to praise counterpart Sean McVay for the job
he’s done with the Rams – rightfully so — what Shanahan’s doing with a Swiss
cheese-like roster can’t be ignored either.3. TE George Kittle, not FB Kyle
Juszczyk, is the real offensive weaponKyle Shanahan’s offense seems pretty
straight forward from an outside perspective. Use the zone-running game to set
up the play-action passing game. Who benefits the most in that style of offense?
It’s the tight ends who get wide open in the flat and the middle of the field
because of the run-play fake. Former fifth-round pick George Kittle has exploded
onto the scene as one of the best tight ends in the league. A dazzling
performance that featured six catches for 125 yards, including an 82-yard
touchdown catch and run. When quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was in the lineup, it
seemed like his most comfortable target was Kittle and now with Beathard, that
connection hasn’t skipped a beat. Wideouts Marquise Goodwin and Pierre Gar?on
are inconsistent in their play, having a lot of boom or bust potential in their
weekly output, but Kittle seems to be productive every Sunday. The Iowa tandem
carried their college connection into today’s game, as Beathard targeted Kittle
eight times – the most of any 49ers’ receiver. As the season goes on, the trust
and chemistry is only going to grow between the two. If I was asked who the best
skill player on the 49ers’ offensive roster was, I wouldn’t hesitate to respond:
George Kittle.4. LBs Reuben Foster and Fred Warner are the most athletic
line-backing duo in the NFL — already. Alright
http://www.the49ersfootballauthentic.com/kyle-juszczyk-jersey-authentic , before you claim that I’m making a bold statement after watching Foster and
Warner through my homer-colored glasses, there’s some factual validity. During
Sunday’s contest, Foster and Warner combined to make 17 total tackles, one
tackle for loss and also one quarterback hit. While Foster had a poor showing
last week in Kansas City, missing six tackles, he had a bounce-back game in Los
Angeles, flying all over the field and making his impact known. There were
numerous plays where the former first-round pick blew up the Chargers’ running
back and it seemed like the Alabama version of Foster was on full display. On
the flip side, Warner had some poor moments in coverage, but was stellar in run
defense, leading the team in tackles on Sunday with 10. Warner was already among
the NFL’s leaders in tackles and I expected him to stay near the top of the
leaderboard, even with Foster returning to the lineup.Carolina’s Thomas Davis
and Luke Kuechly, Atlanta’s Deion Jones and De’Vondre Campbell, Seattle’s Bobby
Wagner and K.J. Wright, and Minnesota’s Anthony Barr and Eric Kendricks are the
other line-backing pairs that have similar athleticism to Foster and Warner.
Given their age and inexperience, I only expect the 49ers’ duo to improve as the
year goes on. 5. The 49ers may have found an emerging contributor in S Antone
Exum Jr.While injuries ruin a team’s chemistry and rhythm, it also provides the
opportunity for a practice squad player to immediately show off their ability to
the team’s decision makers. With starting strong safety Jaquiski Tartt unable to
dress on Sunday, Robert Saleh and the defensive coaching staff turned to Antone
Exum Jr., who delivered in the biggest way possible.On the Chargers’ first
offensive drive, Exum Jr. picked off Rivers and took it to the house for a
touchdown – giving the 49ers’ their first defensive score of the season. Adding
to that, Exum Jr. also had three tackles, three passes defensed and was around
the ball in numerous plays.While Tartt’s clearly the better player and will
re-assume his starting position when he comes back from injury, Exum Jr. is a
solid backup to have on the roster. Tartt’s brand of football gives way to lots
of bumps and bruises and having Exum Jr. waiting in the wings isn’t the worst
thing for Saleh.6. WR Kendrick Bourne continues to impress in Year 2.“Come for
the touchdown, stay for the end-zone dance,” is how I’d classify Bourne’s season
so far. After catching his first-career touchdown against the Lions, the
ex-Eastern Washington receiver has followed it up with another reception for six
points on Sunday. Every week, I’m expecting a different end-zone celebration
dance from Bourne after he scores a touchdown. Bourne finished the afternoon
with three catches on four targets for 34 yards. He’s starting to solidifying
himself as the third receiving option, after questions were raised about his
roster spot with wideout Richie James Jr. emerging during training camp.
Bourne’s speed and strong route-running ability is allowing him to get open
easily and make plays for the 49ers’ quarterbacks. With Pettis’ return time
frame unknown, Bourne will continue to earn more playing time in the next few
weeks.While there were improvements on certain parts of the roster, the
49ers-Chargers game certainly had shades of 2017, with San Francisco competing
for four quarters, but unable to close the deal in the waning moments of the
game. Onto rookie quarterback Josh Rosen and the win-less Arizona
Cardinals.
