49ers vs. Rams: Niners who must bring their A-game on Monday night

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Darrell Henderson Jr., Talanoa Hufanga, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers

Darrell Henderson Jr. #27 of the Los Angeles Rams runs against Talanoa Hufanga #29 of the San Francisco 49ers (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /

No. 4: 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga

Given many of the Niners’ offensive struggles so far this season, it’s no surprise so much of their prospects for a win over the Rams on Monday Night Football will hinge on the defense maintaining the kind of prowess it has shown through three weeks.

Granted, LA has had a number of its own offensive problems, too, and the lack of contingency targets for quarterback Matthew Stafford behind All-Pro wide receiver Cooper Kupp is one of them.

Kupp isn’t going to be mentioned just once here, so keep that in mind. But one of Stafford’s other favorite targets is veteran tight end Tyler Higbee, who is second on the team behind Kupp with 16 catches for 171 yards.

Frequently, Higbee will find himself covered by second-year safety Talanoa Hufanga, who has been quite the positive for San Francisco’s defense, currently boasting 21 tackles, four of which are for a loss, an interception and three passes broken up. And despite his reputation for not having adequate coverage speed, Hufanga is nevertheless forcing opposing quarterbacks to throw for a lowly 48.7 passer rating when targeting him.

Higbee might be Hufanga’s toughest challenge to date, though, and it’s likely Los Angeles looks to exploit this matchup to see if the former USC defensive back is the real deal.