Niner Noise
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San Francisco 49ers: 5 Things to Look For Saturday vs. Broncos

By Trevor Irvine

Aug 14, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Braxton Miller (13) is tackled by San Francisco 49ers linebacker Tank Carradine (95) and cornerback Keith Reaser (27) in the third quarter at Levi
Aug 14, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Braxton Miller (13) is tackled by San Francisco 49ers linebacker Tank Carradine (95) and cornerback Keith Reaser (27) in the third quarter at Levi /
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The San Francisco 49ers have concluded their second day of joint practice with the Denver Broncos. With a look at their upcoming preseason game this Saturday night, Niner Noise takes a look at five things we should be looking for during the game.

San Francisco 49ers
Aug 14, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Chip Kelly looks towards the field during action against the Houston Texans in the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Texans defeated the 49ers 24-13. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports /

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The 49ers dropped their preseason opener to the Houston Texans 24-13 last Sunday. There were good things and bad things in this game, from patchy quarterback play to good cornerback play. The 49ers offense under new head coach Chip Kelly totaled 302 yards in the first half against the Texans, and finished with 409 for the game.

Remember last season the 49ers only managed 409 yards of offense or more in just six games for the whole season.

The running game had a good night – 236 rushing yards on 34 attempts for a nice 6.9 yard average per rush. The rushing game was surprisingly led by third-string back Mike Davis, who ran for 72 yards on just five attempts.

The 49ers defense held the Texans to 265 total yards, and just 94 yards on the ground. This was a good start by a 49ers rushing defense who were overall poor last season, getting gashed in several games right up the middle.

Admittedly, the Texans rushers are not household names by any means, but they are still NFL-quality runners so this effort was very good.

So now we look to this Saturday’s game against the defending World Champion Denver Broncos. The Broncos are having their own QB competition, but despite some turnover on the defensive side of the ball, their defense still looks to be top-shelf.

What are the five things we should be looking for in this matchup?

Next: Quarterback play