Niner Noise
FanSided

5 49ers players who have surprised the most in 2019 so far

By Peter Panacy

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 13: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers throws a pass while Justin Skule #67 blocks Dante Fowler #56 of the Los Angeles Rams in the third quarter at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on October 13, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 13: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers throws a pass while Justin Skule #67 blocks Dante Fowler #56 of the Los Angeles Rams in the third quarter at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on October 13, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 5
Next
CLEVELAND, OH – DECEMBER 13: Quarterback Johnny Manziel #2 of the Cleveland Browns scrambles while under pressure from defensive end Arik Armstead #91 of the San Francisco 49ers during the first half at FirstEnergy Stadium on December 13, 2015 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH – DECEMBER 13: Quarterback Johnny Manziel #2 of the Cleveland Browns scrambles while under pressure from defensive end Arik Armstead #91 of the San Francisco 49ers during the first half at FirstEnergy Stadium on December 13, 2015 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

No. 1: Defensive Tackle Arik Armstead

Last season, defensive tackle Arik Armstead was quietly the second best defender on the 49ers roster behind DeForest Buckner. But Armstead didn’t exactly receive a lot of credit.

More from SF 49ers News

Playing in a contract year, which is a good thing for him, Armstead is having a career-type 2019 campaign.

Dee Ford leads the defense with 3.5 sacks, while Buckner and Nick Bosa are shortly behind him with three sacks apiece. But then there’s Armstead with 2.5 sacks. His 20 tackles are tied for fifth, while his four tackles for a loss are tied for most on the Niners defense. Armstead’s four quarterback hits also ranks third so far.

The stats tell the story, for sure. According to Pro Football Focus, though, Armstead is San Francisco’s second best defender again, with an impressive 89.5 overall grade, which is just a shade behind Ford’s 91.1 mark.

Considering Armstead had a 74.8 overall grade in 2018, this is quite the feat.

Next. Power ranking 49ers' top 10 defenders in 2019 so far. dark

Armstead is something of a forgotten commodity along a stacked 49ers defensive line, which is just fine. If teams are forgetting to game plan against him, it’s only a strong likelihood those impressive stats will get even better.