Charvarius Ward quietly had a great game in 49ers loss to Broncos

The 49ers lost an ugly one in Denver on Sunday Night Football in Week 3, but Charvarius Ward was excellent, yet again, in the losing effort.

Good news, San Francisco 49ers fans. That awful Week 3 game is over.

It’s challenging to look at a loss like that, an 11-10 offensively limp debacle at the hands of the Denver Broncos, and take anything out of it even remotely positive.

And yet, for the second straight week, the Niners’ defense was nearly impossible to beat. It’s almost inarguable to say that the defensive unit has done enough to lead San Francisco to a 3-0 start instead of the 1-2 beginning the 2022 season is actually off to.

EDGE Nick Bosa has been predictably incredible so far and finds himself among the league leaders in sacks with four in three games.

But it has been the newest member of the 49ers’ defense, cornerback Charvarius Ward, who stood out in the Sunday Night Football loss to Denver, in a mostly unheralded performance.

Ward finished with eight total tackles, including one for loss, a forced fumble, and an excellent pass defense against Broncos wideout Jerry Jeudy on what felt like Denver quarterback Russell Wilson’s only real downfield throw of the entire game.

The latter play saved a surefire touchdown that would have broken the game wide open for the home team. And while his forced fumble against Broncos running back Melvin Gordon was recovered by Wilson, it was a good sign of a player who has a nose for the ball and wants to force turnovers.

According to Pro Football Focus‘ numbers, Ward allowed four catches on seven targets but gave up just 43 yards, only four of which came after the catch.

But Ward’s biggest impact is likely the ability he gives 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans to trust his secondary to do its job on the back end, giving more freedom to the defensive line to rush the passer and the linebackers to cover the middle of the field and make tackles in space.

The Niners’ offense was putrid on Sunday night, but the defense did enough to win the game against a sputtering Broncos offense that is still trying to find its footing behind a first-year head coach and a new quarterback.

Charvarius Ward was one of the key reasons that the 49ers were able to stay in the game, even if that eventually fell flat, leaving the Niners at 1-2 heading into a key Monday Night Football clash with their division rivals, the Los Angeles Rams in Week 4.