SF 49ers: 3 ways Niners beat Bills in crucial Week 13 bout
By Peter Panacy
No. 2: SF 49ers must keep Bills quarterback Josh Allen within the pocket, force him to throw
San Francisco has had difficulty containing mobile quarterbacks this season, and Josh Allen is certainly of that ilk with his 311 rush yards and six touchdowns on the ground this season.
This is where deploying more nickel and dime packages would help the SF 49ers defense, electing to go with speed over size as would be the case with inserting Tarvarius Moore in the rotation. Doing so would help ensure Allen isn’t as capable of escaping the pocket even though he’ll look to do that if his primary read isn’t open.
That’s where things get troublesome for Allen. According to Pro Football Focus, Allen’s passer rating when holding onto the ball for more than 2.5 seconds is still a respectable 98.0. But seven of his eight interceptions this season have come when he’s held onto the ball for that period of time or more.
And on the season, he’s posting a 2.83 time-to-throw average. The opportunity to force more takeaways should be there.
Especially if San Francisco takes away Allen’s primary target, Stefon Diggs, like they did with the Rams’ top receiver, Cooper Kupp, in Week 12.