Five 49ers to watch in Week 7: Can Washington slow down George Kittle?

The 49ers head across the country for an early Sunday start against Washington at FedEx Field as significant favorites in Week 7.

Not since the 49ers advanced to three consecutive NFC Championship Games with Jim Harbaugh has the club been expected to win so decisively on the road.

That is how things have changed for the 49ers through their first five games of the season. Now, they are expected to win on the road, where they went 0-8 last season. The 49ers have opened this year with road victories at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Rams.

Here are five important players to watch for the 49ers as they attempt to remain unbeaten and atop the NFC West through six games:

5. RB Tevin Coleman

The 49ers have reason to like their stable of running backs, as they settle into primarily a two-back attack with Coleman and Matt Breida.

Breida leads the team with 376 rushing yards and 5.8 yards per carry, but Coleman is beginning to see more action after missing 2 1/2 games with a high-ankle sprain. Coleman has been in Kyle Shanahan’s system, and it appears to be only a matter of time before he really makes his mark.

Despite a dropped pass in the end zone last week when he turned himself around, Coleman is known to have very good hands. He should provide a matchup problem for Washington because of his versatility out of the backfield.

Coleman has rushed for 165 yards on 40 rushing attempts. He has four catches for 49 yards.

4. CB Richard Sherman

Washington does not have many offensive threats, but speedy rookie receiver Terry McLaurin is one of them. McLaurin’s style is probably better suited for cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, who is smaller and can run as well as anyone on the team.

But McLaurin’s young legs could provide a big challenge for Sherman, who is at his best when he can use his size and technique to take away his side of the field. McLaurin will try to keep the 49ers veteran cornerback off-balance throughout the day with his threat of getting over the top for the deep ball.

McLaurin has 23 receptions for 408 yards and five touchdowns for an offense that has sputtered with Case Keenum under center.

3. RT Daniel Brunskill

Brunskill made his first NFL start last week and held up very well in place of injured Mike McGlinchey. Brunskill surrendered just one quarterback hurry in 36 pass-blocking snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.

Brunskill and fill-in left tackle Justin Skule can make life a lot easier on themselves if they are able to help open holes for the 49ers’ running game.

If Brunskill continues to play well, he will force the 49ers to make a difficult decision. Joe Staley is due back before McGlinchey. Will the 49ers move Skule to right tackle when Staley is back or keep Brunskill where he is?

2. DL Solomon Thomas

Because most of the pieces along the 49ers’ defensive line are interchangeable, Thomas saw more playing time after nose tackle D.J. Jones exited last week with a hamstring injury.

And Thomas again will see a heavier workload in Washington with Jones ruled out of the game. Thomas saw his snap count rise last week in Los Angeles to 25 defensive plays. He used his quickness to penetrate for a sack of Rams quarterback Jared Goff.

“He’s getting better every single week,” 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said of Thomas, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2017 draft. “He plays his tail off. He’s doing some really good things.

“He’s only going to get better in my opinion, but I was just really excited for him because you could just see in his excitement how big of a deal that was for him. Now he just needs to stack it up, continue building off of it and keep getting better.”

[RELATED: Samuel, Jones ruled out for Week 7 vs. Washington]

1. TE George Kittle

Kittle might have been bothered by a groin injury last week in Los Angeles, but how could anyone tell? Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo directed nine passes toward Kittle, who caught eight of them for 103 yards.

The 49ers have not had to rely on anyone else in the passing game because no team has been able to slow down Kittle. Although he is not on pace to threaten his NFL-record single-season receiving yards for a tight end that he set a year ago, he still is the central focus of the team’s passing game.

Kittle has twice as many receptions and receiving yards as any other 49ers player. He has 31 catches for 338 yards and one touchdown.

But Kittle is equally effective as a blocker in the 49ers’ run-first offense. Kittle’s threat of blocking helps set up his route-running and pass-catching success. If Washington devotes too many resources to stopping Kittle, it could open the door for others on the 49ers’ offense to have a big day.