49ers studs and duds from strong Week 8 victory vs. Rams

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Allen Robinson, Los Angeles Rams (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

Dud: 49ers pass defense (for the first half)

While the 49ers defense clamped down hard on the Rams for the second half, the first half was considerably more frustrating for fans to watch as Los Angeles was moving down the field with alarming irregularity.

Matthew Stafford to Cooper Kupp is a combination the Niners have grown tired of seeing, but San Francisco was still forced to watch it repeatedly as the two were making life difficult for the 49ers defense again and again.

Part of the scheme wasn’t right either, with Kupp catching his touchdown while being followed in coverage by backup linebacker Oren Burks. Burks should never have been put in a position where he had no help to cover Kupp, and the Rams took advantage.

The primary concern will be to stop such coverage mishaps in the future, as better teams can (and have) take much better advantage of San Francisco’s defense.

Kupp finished the day with eight receptions for 79 yards and a touchdown. However, he had only one reception for the second half. Allen Robinson was the only other receiver of note, with five receptions for 54 yards but he too didn’t have a big impact in the second half of the game.

Just clean up the first half.