The 49ers are already in the kind of September bind teams usually spend months trying to avoid.
Three weeks into the season, they’re openly weighing whether they have too many injured players. That’s not a hypothetical or a bit of doom-mongering - it’s the reality in the building. By the end of September, San Francisco has effectively used all eight of its designated-to-return slots on injured reserve, and now John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan have to get creative just to keep the roster functioning.
That means some players who might otherwise have been available are headed for season-long IR, tucked away until January. It also means the team has to decide whether to place DeMarcus Robinson, James Thompson, or now Nick Bosa on injured reserve, or simply keep them on the active roster and let them sit inactive for weeks while San Francisco operates with 51 or even 50 players.
Those are not the kinds of roster conversations you want to be having this early. But they’re the ones the 49ers are stuck with as they head into a real test against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
Arizona came into the year with a rough reputation, but compared with last week’s opponent, there’s at least some competence here. The Cardinals won’t make this easy. San Francisco may not need a perfect performance to win, but it needs something close.
Even with a defensive line that’s running on fumes and a receiver group that might need a 13-year veteran signed off the street this week, the 49ers should still find a way. Just not cleanly.
The first place this game tilts is on defense, where Raheem Morris needs to get aggressive and stay there. Playing soft against this Cardinals offense would be asking for trouble.
Jacoby Brissett is built to pick teams apart underneath, working quick throws, speed outs and checkdowns until a defense gets impatient. Give him time, though, and he can hit the bigger throws too.
San Francisco can’t count on its depleted front to win with a standard four-man rush. The answer has to be pressure, and lots of it.
Brissett’s numbers tell the story: when defenses rush four or fewer, he’s been efficient, completing 70 percent of his throws with a 95.9 passer rating and a +0.145 EPA/play. When opponents send five or more, the production falls off a cliff - 42.9 percent completions, a 26.5 passer rating and -0.49 EPA/play.
His lone interception this season came against blitz pressure.
The 49ers don’t have Seattle’s defense, but they need to borrow some of the same ideas the Seahawks used last week. Sitting back and hoping the rush gets home is not a plan here.
Offensively, the game should push Kyle Shanahan toward the edges. Arizona’s front is built to clog the middle, with big bodies that can swallow up straight-ahead runs.
Trying to hammer duo between the tackles would be a bad bet. Shanahan knows better than that, so expect San Francisco to work around the interior with gap schemes and pin-and-pull action, using Trent Williams and Connor Colby out in space.
The real centerpiece, though, is George Kittle. With Mike Evans banged up, the passing game needs bootlegs, misdirection and play-action throws into the middle of the field. Arizona’s coverage is still shaky, and linebacker Mack Wilson is strong against the run but not as comfortable when he has to move laterally.
That sets up Kittle to matter in a big way. In heavy personnel, he and Kyle Juszczyk can help seal the edge on outside runs, and then Shanahan can turn around and use Kittle on chip-and-release concepts off play action. It’s not ideal that the 49ers are leaning this hard on a tight end who tore his Achilles this calendar year, but this matchup points to another huge night for him.
The most important battle on the other side is not Marvin Harrison Jr. Harrison has been drifting through routes, rounding off his stems, pulling up early on scramble drills and generally looking like a player who doesn’t have much competitive juice right now. Raheem Morris doesn’t need to lose sleep over an eight-yard speed out to that version of Harrison.
Michael Wilson is different. He’s the Arizona receiver who actually deserves the attention.
He works with urgency at the catch point, snaps off sharp intermediate breaks and hasn’t been targeted much because Brissett hasn’t had time to find him. But if San Francisco is forced to blitz heavily and also account for Trey McBride in the middle, the corners outside are going to be left alone against Wilson.
That matchup could swing the game. If the 49ers hold up on the perimeter and keep Wilson under 80 yards, they win.
In Other News...
49ers May Need To Revisit A Familiar Receiver Much Sooner Than Expected
The 49ers have already been forced to patch together their wide receiver room early in the season, and the addition of Brandin Cooks to the practice squad only underscores how quickly the depth chart has been tested. With injuries piling up at the position, San Francisco is clearly keeping its options open as it tries to stay afloat in a passing game that has relied on continuity in the past.
Jauan Jennings is the familiar name now hovering back around the conversation, especially if his time with the Vikings does not get on track. A possible move would not be about nostalgia so much as practicality: Jennings knows the 49ers offense, fits the system, and would give the team an experienced option if the current receiver situation keeps thinning out. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Fans Have Every Right To Be Angry Over Kyle Juszczyk Fine
The NFLs latest fine has landed squarely in the middle of one of the 49ers more harmless celebrations, and it has predictably rubbed plenty of people the wrong way. Kyle Juszczyk was docked $14,926 for what the league viewed as a chugging-a-beer gesture during the Week 2 game against the Dolphins, a penalty that turned a lighthearted moment into a talking point for San Francisco fans.
Juszczyk and his wife pushed back on the interpretation, saying the celebration was meant to mimic drinking juice, a nod to the fullbacks longtime nickname. Even by the NFLs sometimes baffling standards, the decision has drawn criticism from players and fans who see little reason to police a gesture that was clearly part of the moment and not a shot at anyone. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Injury Crunch Is Forcing An Unproven Receiver Into The Spotlight
The 49ers are heading into Week 3 with their receiver room thinned out by a mix of season-ending and short-term injuries, and that has quickly changed the conversation around who might be needed next. Offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak said Jordan Watkins, a receiver with limited NFL experience, is among the players who should get opportunities because of the current crunch.
Watkins has barely seen the field in his previous seasons, which makes this an important chance for him to show he can handle a bigger role when the offense needs help. For San Francisco, it is another reminder of how quickly depth can get tested, and how a player who was more of an afterthought in August can suddenly become part of the weekly plan in September. [Read more 🡒]