Five 49ers players to watch in Sunday's game vs. Patriots
The 49ers saved their season with a win over the Rams. Can they keep the good times rolling in Jimmy G's return to New England? Matt Maiocco has the five 49ers players to watch vs. the Patriots.
The 49ers are not off to the start they had envisioned for the 2020 season.
The New England Patriots are below .500 through five games for the first time since 2002.
But it does not matter. This Week 7 matchup has infinite layers of intrigue because it matches two of the NFL’s most skilled and creative minds: Kyle Shanahan vs. Bill Belichick.
Throw in the added storyline of the quarterback returning to the place where his career began as Tom Brady’s backup, and it makes for a fascinating matchup on Sunday at 1:25 p.m. in Foxboro, Mass.
Here are five players who must come up big for the 49ers (3-3) in order for them begin to build some momentum and make a move in the NFC West:
The 49ers’ offense will not have the big-play threat of running back Raheem Mostert in the running game for a while. Mostert is out indefinitely with a high ankle sprain.
Samuel is rounding back into form after missing all of training camp and the first three games of the season following offseason foot surgery. Now, there’s nothing he cannot do. And there is nothing the 49ers would not think to ask of him.
Samuel will help the 49ers compensate for Mostert’s absence with his contributions in the run game. The 49ers like to get the ball in Samuel’s hands with jet sweeps or forward tosses that he hauls in at top speed to enable him to quickly get to the edge.
Samuel will face his biggest challenge of the season on Sunday when he is matched up against Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore, the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year last season.
Samuel will have to keep the Patriots’ defense honest with routes at every depth in order to open up plays on underneath routes that he can turn into big games with yards after the catch.
Opposing quarterbacks have compiled a 7.8 passer rating when targeting Verrett this season. For a point of reference, if every pass thrown his way was merely an incompletion, the rating would be 39.6.
You know the story of Verrett’s horrible luck with injuries through his NFL career. He has been healthy over the past five games and he has performed at an exceptionally high level.
Verrett’s interception of Jared Goff in the end zone last week was the key play in the 49ers’ victory over the Los Angeles Rams. Verrett has stepped in and been remarkable since Richard Sherman left the lineup due to a calf injury after Week 1.
As long as Verrett remains healthy, there is no reason for him to ever leave the 49ers’ starting lineup. The 49ers need Verrett, as Sherman is expected back no earlier than late-November, Shanahan said this week.
Belichick this week spoke so highly of Kittle that it could have been interpreted as over-the-top praise. But, really, it was not. Belichick did not embellish.
Kittle is the 49ers’ top pass-catcher and big-play threat in the passing game. As Belichick said, “He can take a short one to the house.”
Belichick’s blueprint typically consists of identifying the opposition’s best offensive weapon and designing a plan on defense to limit that player’s effectiveness. There are ways he can do that in the passing game.
But what makes Kittle such a great player is that he can have a less-obvious-but-just-as-important impact in the 49ers’ running game with his blocking.
And if the Patriots devote too many resources to slowing down Kittle, that could also leave some of the 49ers’ other offensive players in inviting one-on-one situations for big plays.
An unquestioned leader on the 49ers’ defense has emerged. In the 49ers’ current state, Fred Warner is not only the team’s best defensive player, but he is also the heartbeat of that unit.
Warner is a tone-setter, and he is well aware of how his energy impacts each of his teammates. Warner brings the energy and provides a spark for the other players on the 49ers’ defense.
Warner will serve a key role in this game against Patriots quarterback Cam Newton.
Newton is New England’s top ground-gainer and there are times it looks as if his running ability is the best hope for this collection of offensive players.
The 49ers will likely play a lot of zone coverage in order for the defense to keep Newton in their line of vision. For those times when Newton breaks out of the pocket, Warner must react quickly and forcefully to bring down Newton in the open field.
C’mon, was there any question who would be No. 1 to watch for this game?
Garoppolo spent his first three-and-a-half NFL seasons with Belichick and the Patriots. That organization knows him better than any team in the league -- with the exception, of course, of the 49ers.
The folks in New England seem to hold Garoppolo in high regard. Belichick certainly does.
Belichick said this week he wants to see Garoppolo succeed ... but not this week. The Patriots (2-3) need a victory. So what will Belichick devise specifically to limit the effectiveness of his old quarterback?
It seems likely after Garoppolo’s dink-and-dunk performance against the Rams that the Patriots will crowd the line of scrimmage and the middle of the field in an attempt to limit the 49ers’ short-passing game.
The Patriots have to feel good about their matchups on the outside with veteran cornerbacks Gilmore and Jason McCourty. There should be plays available for the 49ers in the passing game, but it might require some tight-window throws for Garoppolo.
That’s the challenge for Garoppolo. His ability to deliver with his right arm might determine the outcome of this game.
