The San Francisco 49ers likely aren’t going to find a victory over the Seahawks in Week 2. But dominating Seattle’s offensive line should make things interesting.
In all likelihood, the San Francisco 49ers are going to start off their 2017 campaign with an 0-2 record.
Facing the Seahawks in Seattle — a place where the Niners haven’t won since 2011 — one can see how this pending matchup has “blowout” written all over it. There’s a reason SportsBookReview.com lists the Seahawks as 13-point favorites.
But if San Francisco is capable of manhandling Seattle’s offensive line, Week 2 might be less of a blowout and, perhaps, something a bit more watchable.
San Francisco 49ers
The Seahawks offensive line problems are nothing new. Entering 2017, Pro Football Focus ranked this group dead last in the NFL.
And PFF wasn’t particularly friendly to Seattle’s O-line in Week 1. Just check out this unit’s grades versus the Green Bay Packers:
- LT Rees Odhiambo — 26.3
- LG Luke Joeckel — 42.9
- C Justin Britt — 75.1
- RG Mark Glowinski — 36.8
- RT Germain Ifedi — 44.5
No wonder quarterback Russell Wilson took three sacks and seven quarterback hits.
In terms of matchups, the Seahawks outmatch the 49ers in almost every category except this one. And it’s why this battle at the line of scrimmage is the one San Francisco needs to exploit.
Importance of the 49ers Edge Players
Odhiambo isn’t exactly an ideal blind-side protector, which opens up the door for San Francisco’s edge pass-rushers to rush from the left side.
Take a look at this clip from Week 1, courtesy of @Brennen_Rupp, showing Packers EDGE Nick Perry easily beating Odhiambo for a sack on Wilson:
San Francisco entered 2017 with some questions about its pass rush. 2015 former first-round pick, Arik Armstead, was one option at the right defensive end position. And he saw the lion’s share of snaps here on base downs against the Carolina Panthers in Week 1.
And then, of course, there’s veteran EDGE Elvis Dumervil sitting on 99 career sacks.
Yet the 49ers did not activate fellow pass-rusher Aaron Lynch in Week 1, although one might expect that to change after the Niners failed to record a single sack against Panthers quarterback Cam Newton.
In fact, second-year defensive tackle DeForest Buckner was about all the San Francisco pass rush had to offer last week.
That’s not bad, though, as this interior Packers rush from defensive tackle Mike Daniels shows:
Now all the 49ers have to do is take advantage of the situation at hand.
Time for the 49ers Defensive Investments to Pay Off
The Niners have spent three-consecutive first picks in the NFL Draft on defensive linemen — Armstead in 2015, Buckner in 2016 and Solomon Thomas in 2017.
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And with nose tackle Earl Mitchell a big free-agent pickup last offseason, one would have thought San Francisco’s defensive front would be one of its few big strengths this season.
Sure, Week 1 is a small sample size. And PFF ranked the Panthers’ O-line No. 11 in the NFL heading into 2017 — not terrific, but certainly not bad.
What little pressure existed in Week 1 is a bit of concern heading into Seattle.
The 49ers defensive line is going to be under the gun to perform up to expectations against a sub-par O-line this week. And while Wilson’s elusiveness is a thing of trouble, creating pressure within the backfield is about the only way San Francisco can remain competitive in a game nearly everyone views as a Seattle blowout.
Next: 3 positive takeaways from 49ers' loss to Panthers
More importantly, though, Week 2 provides a chance for the Niners’ investments to finally start paying off in a way where the team can start focusing on other areas of need.