The 49ers and Rams are set to kick off the 2026 NFL regular season at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, and both defenses are showing up with a different look. San Francisco is rolling out a reworked front seven under new defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, while Los Angeles is bringing a loaded front line that includes trade acquisition Myles Garrett.
For the 49ers, the biggest shift is up front. Morris is leaning into a five-man front and more flexible nickel packages, aiming to create negative plays after San Francisco finished near the bottom of the league in pressure rate when rushing four last season. The projected front has Keion White at defensive end, Gracen Halton at nose tackle, Osa Odighizuwa at 3-tech, and Nick Bosa on the other edge, though Bosa is being monitored on a knee tendinitis rotation.
The rest of the starting defense lines up with Fred Warner at MIKE and Dre Greenlaw at WILL, with Deommodore Lenoir and Renardo Green at corner, Upton Stout in the slot, and Ji'Ayir Brown and Malik Mustapha at safety.
San Francisco’s depth chart is being shaped by availability issues. Sam Okuayinonu is out with a foot injury, and rookie Mykel Williams is on the PUP list, which pushes veteran Keion White into the starting role opposite Bosa.
Khalid Kareem is expected to handle the main edge rotation. Inside, Osa Odighizuwa is the key addition, but with Alfred Collins out for the year, the 49ers need more production from the rest of the interior to keep Matthew Stafford from settling in.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, is bringing the star power. With Aaron Donald easing his way back after unretiring, second-year defensive tackle Braden Fiske is expected to start next to Kobie Turner, especially since Donald did not travel with the team to Australia. Poona Ford rounds out the interior, while Garrett headlines the edge group and makes his Rams debut opposite Byron Young.
The Rams also made moves in the secondary, where trade additions Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson give them two physical boundary corners to match up with San Francisco’s perimeter passing game.
In Other News...
Rams Fans Face An Unusual Week 1 Problem Against The 49ers
The 49ers and Rams are set to open the 2026 season in a setting that already feels out of the ordinary, with their Week 1 Thursday night matchup landing in Melbourne, Australia. For fans following along from home, the pregame show begins at 6:30 p.m. ET, and the broadcast will be handled by Noah Eagle and Luke Kuechly as part of Netflixs growing NFL presence.
For Los Angeles supporters, though, the bigger wrinkle may be where they have to go to watch it. The game will stream exclusively on Netflix, marking the first time the service has carried a Thursday Night Football game outside of Christmas Day after renewing its contract with the league, a sign of how quickly the NFLs media landscape keeps shifting around a marquee NFC West rivalry. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Just Became Part Of A Much Bigger NFL Showcase
A regular-season meeting between the 49ers and Rams in Melbourne was already going to stand out on the NFL calendar, and now it has become part of a much bigger production. Netflix and the league announced that the Jonas Brothers will handle halftime for the 2026 game at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, adding another layer of entertainment to a matchup that will be played far from the usual NFL stage.
For San Francisco, the spotlight will be as much about the event as the football, with kickoff set for 8:35 p.m. ET and halftime expected to land deep into the night back in the United States. The performance is slated to begin sometime after the break, likely between 10:45 and 11:00 p.m. ET, and the Jonas Brothers said they were excited to take the field for what is being billed as a historic NFL showcase in Australia. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Just Made Their Defensive Tackle Problem Feel Even Worse
Alfred Collins season-ending injury in practice before Week 1 only sharpened a concern the 49ers were already carrying into the opener: the interior of their defensive line suddenly looks thinner than expected. Collins was part of the group San Francisco was counting on to help stabilize the tackle rotation, and losing him this early forces the team to reconsider how it wants to piece together snaps in the middle.
The timing is especially awkward because Bryson Eason, an undrafted free agent who turned heads in training camp and the preseason, was cut by the 49ers and then landed with the Kansas City Chiefs on their practice squad. With Collins out and Eason gone, San Francisco may have to make a roster adjustment sooner rather than later to keep the defensive tackle room from becoming a problem it can no longer paper over. [Read more 🡒]