The 49ers left Denver with more than a win last Sunday. They also appeared to force a coaching change on the other sideline.
After San Francisco’s defense bottled up the Broncos, Sean Payton moved to reclaim control of Denver’s offense by taking over play-calling duties from offensive coordinator Davis Webb. That shift came after another rough outing for a unit that has spent most of the season struggling to move the ball.
Denver did manage a 30-26 win over the Los Angeles Rams, but outside of that game the Broncos had not topped 15 points, and the pressure for a change had been building. Payton, after all, is no stranger to handling the calls himself.
Against the 49ers, Denver was limited to 14 points, and San Francisco’s defense had a lot to do with it. Linebacker Dre Greenlaw turned in a fired-up performance and, as the source reporting notes, seemed to have extra motivation after feeling slighted by Payton during his time with the Broncos last season.
The whole defense was in on the act. Raheem Morris did an excellent job dialing up pressure on quarterback Bo Nix, which had been identified as a weakness going into the game. The Broncos never really found their footing, and the 49ers kept them in check for most of the afternoon.
That kind of showing only strengthens the case for what San Francisco has done through four games. Morris has the defense playing well in three of the team’s first four contests, with the lone poor outing coming against the Arizona Cardinals. Even there, much of Arizona’s production came after the game had already tilted into garbage time.
What makes the start even more impressive is the personnel San Francisco has been missing up front. Nick Bosa has been sidelined for multiple weeks, Mykel Williams has not played yet, and Alfred Collins is out for the year. Even with those absences, the defense has stayed disruptive and physical, a credit to Morris and to a group that has been playing with real fire and tenacity.
Fred Warner’s return has also been a major boost. Having him back making plays has been a welcome sight for a defense that continues to lean on both experience and youth.
Now the challenge gets bigger in Week 5 against Seattle. Bosa will still be out, and Sam Darnold, like Bo Nix, has a hard time when pressure gets home. That means Morris will need to keep mixing things up to find ways to get after the former 49ers backup.
Even so, this group looks confident. The blend of young players and veterans has given San Francisco a sturdy foundation, and with Williams set to return against the Seahawks, the defensive line is about to get a needed lift.
In Other News...
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The concern is on the defensive side, where injuries have piled up and left the front short on depth. San Francisco has 16 players on injured reserve, though some expected returns are coming, and the team could still target reinforcements in the trenches, with an interior defender and an edge rusher among the spots under consideration. [Read more 🡒]
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The baby arrived on Sept. 29, and the timing was no accident. Culpo arranged the delivery around a 49ers off day so McCaffrey could be there, a detail that underscores how carefully the family worked to make the moment fit within the grind of the season. Friends, family and NFL connections quickly sent congratulations, and for McCaffrey, the newest chapter at home now runs alongside everything happening on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Niners Clash Took An Ugly Turn Fans Need To See
The 49ers matchup with Seattle got chippy in a hurry, and Dre Greenlaw found himself at the center of it late in the game. After a personal foul penalty for a late hit on Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold, the San Francisco linebacker got into a sideline altercation that quickly escalated and put an already testy division game over the edge.
Greenlaw has never been shy about playing on a hot edge, and this latest scene only adds to that reputation after his previous profanity-laced confrontation with Broncos coach Sean Payton. For the 49ers, the concern is bigger than one ugly moment, because losing a defender like Greenlaw in that kind of fashion can shift the tenor of a game and leave the league watching closely afterward. [Read more 🡒]