Broncos vs. 49ers: Top Week 14 storylines for San Francisco
By Peter Panacy
The San Francisco 49ers host the playoff-hopeful Denver Broncos at Levi’s Stadium in Week 14, and here at five notable storylines for the Niners during the contest.
When the 2-10 San Francisco 49ers host the 6-6 Denver Broncos at Levi’s Stadium in Week 13, the Niners will have a shot at playing spoiler for Denver’s slim-but-possible chances of making the postseason.
Three of the Broncos’ remaining four games are against sub-.500 teams: the 49ers, Oakland Raiders and Cleveland Browns. Only one, a Week 17 home bout versus the Los Angeles Chargers, could be seriously tough.
For San Francisco, however, embracing the spoiler role might be one of only a few positives head coach Kyle Shanahan’s squad can enjoy between now and the end of the regular season.
Coming off an ugly, one-sided 43-16 road loss to the Seattle Seahawks last week, the Niners can look to find some momentum against a Broncos squad coming off three wins in a row. Sitting at .500, however, Denver realistically needs to win out to have a solid chance at a Wild Card berth.
That won’t be the only notable storyline from this game, though. Instead, here are five more stories Niners fans will want to pay attention to during Sunday’s contest.
No. 5: How Well Running Back Jeff Wilson Performs
Shanahan has already ruled out running back Matt Breida (ankle) for the contest, meaning undrafted rookie tailback Jeff Wilson likely assumes the starting job against Denver.
Wilson did get charged with a lost fumble in Seattle, although one can argue the ruling on the field should have been changed. Nevertheless, one can’t overlook his 61 rush yards on 15 carries, along with his 73 catch yards on eight receptions during the game either.
Remember, a running back’s ability to catch passes out of the backfield is essential in Shanahan’s offense.
What’s more important is Wilson was seeing a lot of short-yardage carries versus the Seahawks. This matters, as neither Breida nor the injured Jerick McKinnon are exactly known for being these kinds of bruising, between-the-tackles tailbacks. Should Wilson show some prowess here, he may very well carve himself out a nice little role on the team’s roster in 2019.
After all, that’s the biggest focal point for the 49ers over this final stretch — figuring out which players deserve roles next season.