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For years, the San Francisco 49ers have hinged their identity on defense. They have been known for a relentless pass rush, suffocating coverage, and physicality that wore opponents down. On Sunday, though, that identity was nowhere to be found. The Los Angeles Rams came into Levi’s Stadium and exposed every crack in a once-formidable unit. The visitors cruised to a 42-26 win that was as lopsided as it was revealing.
The Rams scored touchdowns on each of their first three possessions. They jumped out to a 21-0 lead before the 49ers could even settle in. Matthew Stafford threw for four touchdowns and picked apart San Francisco’s patchwork defense with surgical precision. Mac Jones, in relief of the injured Brock Purdy, provided a spark with three touchdown passes of his own. However, it wasn’t nearly enough. A costly fumble, a blocked extra point, and a failed fourth-down conversion killed any hope of a comeback.
The loss dropped the 49ers to 6-4. Sure, their offense continues to find ways to produce. However, the same cannot be said for their defense. Missing stars like Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, and Mykel Williams, San Francisco looked helpless against a Rams offense that dictated the tempo from start to finish. Kyle Shanahan’s team still has the talent to contend. After Sunday’s loss, though, the NFC hierarchy suddenly looks a lot less certain.
Here we’ll try to look at why not even Kyle Shanahan’s best efforts can patch up 49ers’ defensive holes, and Rams loss proves it.
San Francisco’s defense once struck fear into opponents with a front four capable of wrecking entire game plans. Without Bosa and Williams, though, the 49ers simply couldn’t generate consistent pressure.
The numbers tell the story: one sack, zero turnovers, and countless clean pockets for Stafford. He completed completed 28 of 36 passes for 280 yards and four touchdowns. The Rams’ offensive line neutralized what was left of the 49ers’ pass rush. This gave Stafford ample time to read through his progressions and exploit mismatches.
It wasn’t just the pass rush that faltered, too. San Francisco struggled mightily to stop the run. They allowed chunk gains up the middle and off-tackle throughout the afternoon. The absence of Warner’s sideline-to-sideline presence left the linebackers exposed. Luke Gifford, pressed into a starting role, was repeatedly targeted. He was just too weak at the point of attack to hold the edge and too slow to cover tight ends in space.
Every time the 49ers seemed to build momentum, Stafford and head coach Sean McVay went right after Gifford. They isolated him in coverage and marched downfield. The lack of adjustments was glaring. It underscored how much this defense misses its cornerstone players.
If the defensive front was invisible, the secondary wasn’t far behind. The 49ers’ defensive backs were left to fend for themselves, and they failed spectacularly.
Stafford feasted on broken coverage and poor communication. He exploited mismatches at every...
