49ers news: The Niners need a major change defensively

The San Francisco 49ers didn’t have a great day at the office this past weekend, struggling to close out a close contest against the Los Angeles Rams, where they ultimately lost 27-24 to fall to 1-2.

While the offense was undermanned, the defense was the area that struggled more, as the 49ers had some costly penalties, while the Rams picked on San Francisco with similar concepts and stayed committed to the run.

While Kyren Williams rushed for under four yards per carry, generating 89 yards and two touchdowns on 24 rushes, he consistently was able to move the chains for the Rams, who remained focused on growing the ground game against the 49ers.

When re-watching the film, it is clear that the 49ers need a major change defensively.

For years, the 49ers have worked off the “Wide 9” defensive front as the baseline to their defense, which creates more space for their front four, helping the pass rush in their search to get to the quarterback.

With the space up front that is provided, San Francisco needed a big-bodied defensive tackle to occupy the A gap and help take away the run, otherwise; teams could take advantage by using doubles to free up space up the middle for solid gains.

And things worked for the 49ers, as they had D.J. Jones, DeForest Buckner, and Arik Armstead at different times occupying that role, allowing for the team to fare well in the run game, while being an elite-level pass rush.

Well, the 49ers don’t have that type of defensive tackle this year, while some of their top options have proven to be susceptible to the run game. San Francisco traded for Maliek Collins to pair with Javon Hargrave in hopes of creating a strong pass-rushing duo up the middle.

You could see the vision of what the 49ers wanted to do in this past game, as both players were able to win effectively against pass protection, leading to 10 total pressures between the two.

But, in the run game, San Francisco struggled to defend up the middle, as the Rams’ offensive line would create major holes that led to solid gains, helping them move the chains on a consistent basis.

That, in part, is due to the “Wide 9” structure, as the 49ers are getting beat due to the fact that they don’t have a run-stuffing, space-eating defensive tackle up the middle, but rather two good pass-rushers in those roles instead.

It’s unfortunate because San Francisco needs those pass-rushers, given that they aren’t getting much production from free-agent signee Leonard Floyd, who is winning less than six percent of his reps this year, and has just one pressure over the last two games.

Now, Hargrave is expected to miss the year, creating an even bigger issue, as the 49ers have already proven to be susceptible to the run and they could face issues with their pass rush as well now.

Will the 49ers look to make a change with their defensive fronts and shy away from the norm they’ve established over the past few years? It seems that the Javon Hargrave injury could finally tilt their hand into doing so.

“You’ve got to have plans for [making adjustments], and we do when Javon is here. You would love to always get there with front four,” Kyle Shanahan said of the pass rush. “That’s the goal. Getting there with four and having seven guys in coverage makes it a lot harder for the offense. But if you can’t do that, you’ve got to mix it up.”

“We mixed it up throughout the year. I thought our D-Line last week affected the quarterback the most that they had in their three games. I thought that they had one of their better games. But it’s a huge loss, losing Javon. Guys are going to have to step it up and when you don’t have the rush, then you’ve got to turn to other things schematically.”

At the moment, it feels that the 49ers are going to have to change things schematically. In an effort to stop the run, it seems that space-eating defensive tackle Jordan Elliott, whom San Francisco signed to a two-year, $10 million deal, is next in line for snaps.

He should help the run defense, but that comes at the expense of his struggles with rushing the passer. Elliott has just one pressure on 36 pass-rushing snaps this year. That would clear inconsistencies with two positions along the defensive line, with the No. 2 defensive end spot also struggling to create pressure consistently.

So, the 49ers need to make a change defensively. But, they honestly may not start to see major results until they make a move for a player midseason. It feels that their current assortment of players hasn’t met the standard for their normal defensive line play, and San Francisco will need to change that if 2024 is truly an all-in year.