This 49ers defense is absolutely lethal. The 49ers get their revenge on the Rams for their NFC Conference Championship loss last season as they hounded after Matt Stafford all night long and ended up sacking him SEVEN times.
It sure seemed like the 49ers were still really upset with the Rams and QB Matthew Stafford for knocking them out of the playoffs last season and going on to win Super Bowl 56. Especially the 49ers defense as they took no prisoners on offense and utterly dominated the Rams from the first minute to the last minute.
You could tell right from the start that the Rams offensive line was filled with backups and third-stringers as the 49ers front line hounded Matt Stafford on every drive he took the field. The Rams QB was forced into throwing quick slant passes and screen passes in order to beat the rush as if he took longer than 2 seconds to throw the ball, he was getting sacked.
Obviously, with any long passes downfield cut off because of the pass rush, the Rams offense suffered and stagnated early. And that stagnation affected the run game too as not a single Rams player had more than 10 carries or 30+ rushing yards.
Yet, it’s not like this offense is really bad or is missing key players at the skills positions as Cooper Kupp (14 RECs, 122 yards), Tyler Higbee (10 RECs, 73 yards) and big free agent signing Allen Robinson II (2 RECs, 7 yards) all played last night, while Matt Stafford (32/48, 254 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT) was presumably healthy enough to compete at the highest level.
It was just simply that the 49ers linebackers were just too quick in closing down the rushing lanes and gaps when they sprung open. In truth, the 49ers’ starting linebacker core, consisting of Fred Warner, Dree Greenlaw, and Samson Ebukam, is probably the best linebacker core in the NFL today as each one of these guys are not only capable of wrecking a gameplan, but also are of All-Pro quality.
The 49ers finishing with 68 total tackles, 7 sacks, 11 QB hits, and 9 tackles for a loss would not have been possible without the trio.
Greenlaw finished the game with the most tackles (15) out of any player, Warner had the third most (9) of any player, and Ebukam had 2 sacks, 1 TFL, 1 FF, and 1 QB hit. These three are simply monsters in the middle of the field and forced Matthew Stafford into making poor, ill-thought throws that cost the Rams the game.
Though, before I get to the crucial mistake, I have to mention the heroics of Deebo Samuel last night. The 49ers WR proved why he is without a doubt (at least in my opinion) the most versatile WR in the league as he turned a 3-yard curl/comeback pass into a 40+ yard TD catch (that ended up winning the game) out of literally nothing.
Like I said, just before halftime, Jimmy G widely snapped the ball out to Deebo Samuel, who had to jump over his defender to catch the pass. Now, that would have been impressive on its own as Garoppolo unintentionally threw the ball at least three feet over his head (or something like that).
Still, Deebo brought the pass down and landed on his feet, to only then proceed to instantly shed a tackle, ran past five Rams defenders, shed another open-field tackle from Jalen Ramsey, and then burst into the endzone to send the Santa Clara fans into an uproar.
Deebo Samuel is simply an All-Pro running back with the hands and hand-eye coordination of elite WR as he is impossible to bring down in the open field by a CB or safety, while also more than capable of catching any pass thrown his way. The man is simply incredibly to watch.
As for that mistake from Stafford, it came late (under 7 minutes) in the 4th quarter as the Rams were driving down the field down 17-9. With only being down by 8 points, as Robbie Gould missed a 49ers field goal on the previous possession, the game was definitely still in reach as Matthew Stafford prepared for another 1st and 10.
However, as the screen was still developing, Stafford blindly threw the pass out to Kupp as the rush around him became unbearable to hold onto the ball any longer.
Obviously, a QB should never just ‘blindly throw a pass’ to any player, and especially not on a screen route, as 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga undercut the route and picked off the pass to return it for a touchdown, icing the game at 24-9.
To be honest, this game was really that great of a watch as the Rams offense and the 49ers offense (to a certain extent) struggled with moving the ball downfield. Without the heroics of Samuel and the hard work of his other wide receivers, Jimmy Garoppolo (16/27, 239, 1 TD, 0 INT) only managed to throw around 50 or so of his 239 yards without RAC (run after catch). That’s not great.
It was the 49ers defense and Deebo Samuel who stole the show and won this game for the 49ers to put them back at .500 with a 2-2 record, while sinking the Rams to the same 2-2 record. The NFC West division title race will go down to the wire this season…like always.
Actually, scratch what I said about stealing the show. Bobby Wagners ruthless take-down of the streaker was the highlight of this game as the former Seattle LB absolutely annihilated the skinny, flare-holding streaker in front of the whole world.
It’s tough to get your message across when the only thing people will remember you by is getting rocked by one of the best LBs in the league.
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