Funny, but going into this game there was a lot of teeth gnashing about Garrett's record after the bye. A lot of talk how San Francisco wasn't that bad, just a young team trying to learn how to win. A lot of talk about how Deforest Buckner was going to wreck the interior line and a lot of rueing over Ruben Foster.
None of that mattered. We came out and blew this team out and had one of the more dominating performances in a long time. Yes, it was against a winless team, but this is exactly the kind of game that is a bit of a trap. Going West is never easy with the time change, and if nothing else the 49ers crowd was expected to be charged up with the Dwight Clark day and the return of many of their greats. The OL gave Dak a lot of time and Zeke had nice lanes all day. THe defense, especially the pass rush was effective all day long. Five sacks from five different players including one that stopped a scoring drive where the 9ers probably had their one chance to get back into the game.
Things I liked:
1. The OL. They dominated all day long. No sacks given up and huge holes all day. Putting Cooper in the starting lineup was the right move. The OL looks more like a unit than they have all year. Martin was amazing and from first glance it looked like Tyron had a good game. I saw him with several exceptional blocks in the run game.
2. Zeke. It was a different player today. THe speed was there like it hasn't been all season. THe vision was there and he never went down on first contact.
3. Play calling. We remembered that we are a running team. We started running and never let up. It opened up the play action passing and put Dez in favorable one on one matchups. We also mixed things up a little. Involved Switzer, Swaim, Beasley...although I would have liked to see something from Butler or Williams.
4. The pass rush. These guys are becoming a handful. They can all beat one on one blocking with some regularity. It is starting to make the secondary look a little better as well.
5. Sean Lee. He just makes the defense play a lot better. He is clearly the leader and what holds the defense together.
6. No drive killing or brainless penalties.
7. Special teams. They had a good day, especially without Bailey. Good coverage. Chris Jones continues to be one of the better punters in the league. His directional kicking is amazing.
8. Roster. I just liked the fact that they showed some cajones and made some moves that were against the grain. Putting Mayowa on the bench was the right thing to do and you want to get Charlton some playing time. Putting Moore inactive and moving Rush up. Hoping to see more of the young guys in the secondary.
Things that I didn't like.
1. Losing Bailey. I am hoping that it is not more than a game or two at most, but if it is a groin and was bad enough to put him on the bench completely I am somewhat concerned. THe upcoming games are going to require some steady FG kicking. Maybe it makes us a little more aggressive on offense or at least I hope so.
2. The run defense. It is obvious we have some guys now that can get to the QB. Beathard was under constant pressure. He rarely got any time in the pocket. Hyde was able to find holes and if there was more of a passing threat might have been able to have a big game.
3. Poor tackling. It reared it's head again, mainly in the first half. Tightened up a bit in the second and hopefully that will continue.
4. Dez drop. It's infuriating. He had a good game otherwise and made a couple of really tough catches, but it is annoying that he still drops a lot of catchable balls.
5. Invisible Butler and Williams. We need balance in the receiving corps. These guys are almost always single covered and the fact they were held without a catch and only a target or two is a bit disturbing. Dak had time so you have to think if they were open he would have targeted them.
Outside of that, it's hard to find too much to complain about. That's a good thing. I like the fact that we are going into next week's game with a day's advantage against our opponent and the fact that the game tomorrow should be very physical for both teams. Knock on wood I think we will be healthy going into next week outside of Bailey.
One item that remains to be determine. Jaylon had a different game today since he didn't have to play the whole time. Not sure what his play numbers were but he made a couple plays including the strip sack. He did have a couple of other plays that were ok. I did see some missed tackles and at least one play where he looked like he tried to get blocked on a nice run by them. He was definitely rushed into a fill time role before he was ready but I think a package role is going to be much better for him at this point.
