49ers

49ers linebacker Fred Warner has been Pro Football Focus beast lately

49ers linebacker Fred Warner has been Pro Football Focus beast lately

By Dalton Johnson December 04, 2019 8:22 AM

During Sunday's battle with the Ravens in Baltimore, 49ers tight end George Kittle looked at the camera and said, "He is special" when referring to linebacker Fred Warner. The advanced analytics agree, too.

Warner has been a Pro Football Focus beast the past two weeks. The second-year pro has 14 run stops, and a 91.6 overall PFF grade in the 49ers' last two games. 

Warner, who turned 23 years old last month, recorded a season-high 11 solo tackles in the 49ers' 37-8 blowout win over the Packers two weeks ago. He followed that up with 11 total tackles -- eight solo, three assists -- in San Francisco's last-second 20-17 loss in Baltimore. He has been more than a tackling machine, too, making plays all over the field. 

On the fifth play of the game, Warner caused a fumble while hitting Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers in Week 12. Running back Tevin Coleman scored a 2-yard touchdown on the next play to give the 49ers an early lead. 

The young linebacker was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his impressive performance against the Packers. 

While Warner's ascension this season might be a surprise to some, it certainly isn't to head coach Kyle Shanahan.

“Fred got to play a ton and exceeded expectations, I think, with everyone his first year," Shanahan said after the 49ers' win over the Packers. "Then, he was just even more hungry, came back like a 10-year vet and came back better mentally, better physically and I think it’s shown to everyone in every game.”

Warner has been more than a run-stopper. He has come up huge as a pass-defender, especially with fellow linebacker Kwon Alexander out for the rest of the season. The former third-round draft pick was credited with two pass defenses last week against QB Lamar Jackson and the Ravens.

[RELATED: Could Panthers firing Rivera make opening for 49ers' Saleh?]

Through 12 games, Warner has six pass defenses -- tied for his season total last year. He also has three forced fumbles, three sacks, six tackles for loss and four QB hits. 

Simply put, Warner was a steal in the draft last year and quickly is turning into a star.

Why NFL history, Aaron Rodgers' past bode well for 49ers vs. Packers

Why NFL history, Aaron Rodgers' past bode well for 49ers vs. Packers

By Brian Witt January 18, 2020 5:10 PM

If the Green Bay Packers are going to upset the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday at Levi's Stadium, they're going to have to do it without history on their side.

It has been less than two months since the 8-2 Packers waltzed into Levi's Stadium hoping to knock off the conference-leading 49ers on "Sunday Night Football" in Week 12. By halftime -- if not much earlier -- it was readily apparent no such event would occur, as San Francisco raced out to a 23-0 lead on its way to a 37-8 win. It was a thoroughly dominant performance by the 49ers, and resulted in Green Bay's most lopsided defeat of the season.

The Packers haven't lost since, winning their final five games of the regular season to earn the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs. They held on to beat the visiting Seattle Seahawks in the divisional round, but historically speaking, all that momentum might not mean much as it pertains to a rematch with San Francisco. As NFL.com's Chris Wesseling noted, the last 13 playoff teams to lose a regular-season game by at least 20 points have also lost the postseason rematch against the same opponent.

Now, obviously, not all teams are created equal, and in a sport where quarterback is the most critical position, one might argue that the Packers have a significant advantage over those previous 13 teams that have occupied the same space they will Sunday.

That wouldn't necessarily be accurate, though.

Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers will go down as one of the best QBs of all-time, and while he has put together several memorable postseason performances, he has not had much playoff success against teams he previously lost to that same season. In fact, the last five times he and the Packers qualified for the playoffs, they were eliminated by a team that had beaten them earlier that season.

[RELATED: Beathard gets 49ers scout-team honors for imitating Rodgers]

That obviously bodes well for San Francisco, and that's before even digging into the specific head-to-head matchup between Rodgers and the 49ers' top-ranked pass defense. Throughout his career, Rodgers has faced the No. 1-ranked pass defense a total of five times; he has not fared well in those matchups, and has never won one on the road.

There's a reason why the 49ers were the NFC's No. 1 seed, and there are plenty more as to why San Francisco is favored by more than a touchdown over Green Bay on Sunday. The Packers are going to have to overcome plenty to prove victorious, and you can add NFL history to the list.

Programming note: NBC Sports Bay Area feeds your hunger for 49ers playoff coverage at 2:30 p.m. Sunday for “49ers Pregame Live,” with Laura Britt, Jeff Garcia, Donte Whitner, Ian Williams and Grant Liffmann previewing the NFC Championship Game against the Packers. That same crew will have all the postgame reaction on “49ers Postgame Live,” starting at approximately 6:30 p.m.

Richard Sherman recalls interception in 49ers-Seahawks NFC title game

Richard Sherman recalls interception in 49ers-Seahawks NFC title game

By Alex Didion January 18, 2020 5:03 PM

Not all nostalgia is good nostalgia.

The last time San Francisco advanced to the NFC Championship Game, the game was ended on an interception from then-Seattle Seahawks linebacker Malcolm Smith.

The man who deflected the pass to Smith -- cornerback Richard Sherman -- now wears a 49ers uniform. But he can recall, in vivid detail, one of the most heartbreaking moments young 49ers fans have experienced. One he was the architect of during his reign as the leader of the infamous “Legion of Boom.”

As receiver Michael Crabtree broke out of his route, Sherman wasn’t going to bite on any short routes from the 49ers’ then-No. 1 receiver.

“As he stuttered, I’m thinking to myself, ‘There’s no reason to stutter,’” Sherman told The Athletic’s Matt Barrows. “‘You’re not running a hitch. You’re not in a position to run a hitch. That’s not the play y’all need.’”

Despite losing the ball in the bright lights of Seattle’s CenturyLink Field, Sherman still managed to make a game-defining play.

“The ball comes in, and then it comes right out of the lights,” Sherman recalled. “And now I’m blinded from looking at the light, so I can’t see it. But I’m dialed into where it should be. And I’m just starting to refocus back and I’m going up to get it.”

[RELATED: 49ers list no injuries ahead of NFC title game vs. Packers]

Sherman managed to get a hand on the ball and bat it away from Crabtree and into the arms of Smith, sending the 49ers home and the Seahawks to Super Bowl XLVIII. 

Sunday gives Sherman another chance to help send a team to the Super Bowl, as he and the 49ers play host to the Green Bay Packers with a trip to Miami on the line.

Programming note: NBC Sports Bay Area feeds your hunger for 49ers playoff coverage at 2:30 p.m. Sunday for “49ers Pregame Live,” with Laura Britt, Jeff Garcia, Donte Whitner, Ian Williams and Grant Liffmann previewing the NFC Championship Game against the Packers. That same crew will have all the postgame reaction on “49ers Postgame Live,” starting at approximately 6:30 p.m.

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