49ers 2017 Season: San Francisco’s new pass defense

The players

When speaking of the pass defense as a whole, you need to take two things into consideration. First are the designated pass defenders that personally cover the routes.

Second is the pass rush and the players that disrupt the timing of these routes and pressure the quarterback, making the coverage guy’s jobs much easier.

Out of the 11 players on the field that are defending, there are eight that you can honestly say play a major role in this regard.

Out of what we now have on the roster after free agency and the draft, let us take a look at who and how each one of these positions could be filled.

Pass-rush

Not considering stunts or variations of the base defense, there are three positions that are designed to threaten a pass-rush on any given play. Those are the SAM LB, the weak side DT and the “Elephant” DE positions.

Sam

The SAM LB position is a fascinating position in this defense because of its requirements and the lack of addressing it this offseason.

What everyone needs to understand is that not every position could be addressed fully given the state of the roster in the first year of the new regime’s rebuild.

There is a reason linebacker Ahmad Brooks was not released, there is a reason why he has not been let go from any of the past regimes. He has been consistent and versatile throughout his career with the 49ers. He can play this position and has earned the right to fight for it.

After Brooks, the Niners have Eli Harold. A third-round investment in 2015 by the 49ers, Harold has frustrated many fans with a lack of production. He is fast and has the skills but has not shown them on any consistent level since being drafted.

In his defense, there has not been any consistency in a staff or game plan for him. The new regime has retained him and with their penchant for evaluating through game tape, there must be something that they see as untapped.

New 49ers LB Malcolm Smith does not historically fit this position but could fill in or compete.

Ray-Ray Armstrong was signed to a two-year extension this offseason and adds depth at every LB position with his speed and versatility. I would not be surprised to see him compete at the SAM position, regardless of his size. He is fast and has cover skills.

Given all the requirements of this position, these are the 49ers top candidates, any new players would need a year or two to develop their coverage skills. All things considered, this is our weakest position going forward.

Weak side DT

The top Round 1 selection this year for the 49ers was Solomon Thomas. During his years at Stanford, he proved to be one of the most versatile defensive linemen in all of college football. He can play anywhere on the line of scrimmage and should be penciled in at this position primarily.

With the situational versatility of this defense, you might see him playing any spot along the line but in a base format, you should expect him here.

Weak side DE (Elephant)

This was the most talked about position during the draft for the 49ers because of the need for it in the new scheme and the lack of top candidates after Myles Garrett, who was overwhelmingly projected to be selected before San Francisco’s pick. Although Thomas was a favorite to be selected, many said it was a redundant pick due to his positional similarity to Arik Armstead.

Armstead was the first Round 1 D-lineman selected out of a consecutive three years of D-lineman selected in the first round, followed by DeForest Buckner and Solomon Thomas. The 49ers announced Armstead will be training at the “Elephant” position after the draft, much to everyone’s surprise.

Most people would say that Armstead is too large, at 6-foot-7 and 290 pounds, to be a dedicated pass-rusher, but this might not be the case. Julius Peppers, who is virtually identical in size, at 6-foot-7 and 287 pounds, played this same role for the Green Bay Packers over the last couple of years with a lot of success. In the twilight of his career, Peppers speed is equatable to Armstead’s as well.

Aaron Lynch, who had a good bit of success two years ago, would fit the bill. But he showed up to camp 20 pounds overweight and his ability to even make the team at the moment is in question.

Given the hybrid nature of this defense, we can expect a rotation of players at this position, including Thomas and even Buckner.