Niners Nation
By now, we know who the San Francisco 49ers are. This team will go as far as its offense can take it. It won’t be easy if Ricky Pearsall misses time, but the scheme is superb, and the execution on that side of the ball has been outstanding of late.
The same cannot be said for the defense. At some point, you can only get by for so long without top-tier talent. We’ve seen some of the bottom-of-the-barrel offenses move the ball against the Niners during the past month. That did not change in Week 15 against the Tennessee Titans, who wound up scoring the second-most points they had all season.
There were some strong performances by the 49ers in Week 15, but also some underwhelming ones that can’t be ignored. Let’s review a stock report that leans positive but also outlines some concerns going forward. It’s less about who the Niners played and more about how they played.
Stock up: Trent Williams & Colton McKivitz
Williams had a week to stew on a performance against Myles Garrett that, statistically, was the worst of his season. Sports Info Solutions credited Williams with five blown blocks against the Browns. That was a season-high for Williams and the most since Week 4.
Williams looked fresh against the Titans. He moved like a 27-year-old and consistently finished blocks. What stood out more than the several pancakes was the arsenal Williams displayed. That Browns game brought out the competitor in Williams.
Kyle Shanahan wasn’t aware of the number of knockdowns Williams had, but knew how well he played: “But, I didn’t know that about Trent as far as that, but I did know he had a hell of a game. He played really well in the run and the pass game. I’ve been very excited with how Trent’s been this year.”
Williams wasn’t the only tackle to struggle in Cleveland. Colton McKivitz has quietly had a career year at right tackle, but he whiffed a few times in pass protection against the Browns and had a couple of uncharacteristic blocks in the run. McKivitz bounced back against the Titans. I only saw one “whiff.” Outside of that, McKivitz looked like the player he has been all season.
Stock down: Curtis Robinson and Jason Pinnock
Robert Saleh is in an impossible situation. This defense needs Tatum Bethune back in the worst way. If Eric Kendricks can contribute anything, Saleh can ditch these big nickel snaps with Pinnock. Yes, he had a tackle for loss. But it was unblocked. That was a scheme play. The Titans averaged 9.63 yards per play with Pinnock on the field.
On the first snap, they run Pinnock’s way, and he overruns the block, avoiding contact, creating a rushing lane for Tony Pollard, who goes untouched until he’s eight yards down the field. On that same play, Curtis Robinson misses a tackle after getting off a block late.
Robinson gave up a 17-yard pass on a play-action, where he gets lost...
