5 PTW in the 49ers' Sunday Morning Battle with Chicago
The San Francisco 49ers (2-4) and quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo need a win after a listless effort in last week’s defeat.
Although it’s hard to imagine playoffs when sitting two games below .500, the 49ers still have a chance with some favorable games remaining.
The first step to get back “in the hunt” is to travel to Chicago for a Garoppolo homecoming and defeat the Bears (3-4).
Here are five Players to Watch in Sunday’s 10 a.m. matchup:
Trevis Gipson, Linebacker, #99 — Chicago Bears
Chicago’s defense must generate more pressure against a downtrodden Garoppolo after totaling just one quarterback hit against Tampa Bay’s Tom Brady last week.
Even so, the Bears are tied for the NFL lead with 21 sacks thanks to 11.5 combined from the stellar duo of edge-rushers Khalil Mack and Robert Quinn.
Luckily for Garoppolo and the 49ers, and unfortunately for fans of great football, Mack (foot) was ruled out on Friday. The Bears do, however, regain Quinn, who missed the last game on the Covid list.
Starting opposite Quinn will be 2020 fifth round pick Trevis Gipson, who made his first NFL start last week in place of Quinn.
After totaling just 71 defensive snaps during his rookie campaign, Gipson has nearly doubled that total in 2021, with two sacks and three tackles-for-loss on 141 snaps.
He’ll likely face off with on-the-mend left tackle Trent Williams (ankle, elbow).
The Bears need Gipson to set the edge on any Elijah Mitchell outside runs, generate pressure when rushing on Williams and take advantage of his reps against right tackle Mike McGlinchey.
Darnell Mooney, Wide Receiver, #11 — Chicago Bears
Even with the torrential downpour, the 49ers’ secondary was exposed vs Indianapolis.
In addition to the costly pass interference penalties, Michael Pittman Jr. torched San Francisco. The second-year receiver had 105 yards on four catches, one being a 57-yarder, while fighting through a penalty by corner Josh Norman.
Norman and co-starter Emmanuel Moseley will get the benefit of playing the young and mistake-prone rookie quarterback Justin Fields, while also needing to cover one of the better wide receiver duos in the NFL.
While attention will be focused on Pro Bowl receiver Allen Robinson, Fields has solid chemistry with the speedy Darnell Mooney (4.38 40 time).
Mooney and Fields have linked up for a team-leading 18 catches on 33 targets for 285 yards, 12 first downs and a touchdown.
The 49ers are down safety Jaquiski Tartt (knee). Rookie safety Talanoa Hufanga will need to keep Mooney in front of him when isolated up top.
Talanoa Hufanga, Safety, #29 — San Francisco 49ers
Mooney is not the only speedy deep threat on the Chicago offense.
In addition to Mooney, the Bears also have Damiere Byrd (4.28 40 time) and Marquise Goodwin (4.27 40 time).
Per Next Gen Stats, Fields is tied for eighth in the NFL with 8.8 average intended air yards this season. Garoppolo is 29th (7.0).
Although the Bears will want to establish their play-action early, something they had trouble doing against Tampa Bay last week, they will take advantage of their Olympic-level speed and gifted young quarterback.
There’s a lot of pressure on whichever safety is left alone, especially Hufanga, who is making his first NFL start. He’ll need to keep the top on the defense and turn his head to prevent costly pass interference penalties.
Arik Armstead, Defensive End, #91 — San Francisco 49ers
Outside of star defensive end Nick Bosa, veteran defensive lineman Arik Armstead has been the team’s best defender this season.
Yes, he has just 1.0 sack, but sacks aren’t everything and Armstead has been very good (84.3 PFF grade).
The 49ers need Armstead to continue that production with defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw (knee) out for the rest of the season, and edge rusher Dee Ford (concussion) questionable.
Armstead has two big responsibilities this Sunday. He needs to plug the gaps on Khalil Herbert runs, and also set the edge and contain any Fields scrambles.
In Herbert’s three games with over 10 offensive snaps, he has 272 yards and a touchdown on 55 rush attempts, and another 48 receiving yards on seven catches.
Herbert has been Chicago’s most consistent weapon. They’re going to use him a lot.
Mohamed Sanu Sr., Wide Receiver, #6 — San Francisco 49ers
Wide receiver Deebo Samuel needs the ball in his hands and will do his YAC thing when Garoppolo can hit him, but the 49ers need a second receiver to step up if they are to find a consistent passing game.
While everyone waits for the perplexing Brandon Aiyuk situation to resolve, veteran slot receiver Mohamed Sanu Sr. must step up.
That is in the cards, too, as the Bears have been burned by the slot in 2021.
Tampa Bay’s Chris Godwin caught 8-of-11 targets for 111 yards and a touchdown.
Las Vegas slot Hunter Renfrow hauled in 6-of-8 passes for 56 yards.
Rookie Detroit receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown had a season-high 70 yards on six catches and eight targets.
Cincinnati’s Tyler Boyd led his team with 73 yards on seven catches and nine targets.
Not surprisingly, the Rams’ Cooper Kupp had a big day, catching 7-of-10 targets for 108 yards and a touchdown.
Sanu is fourth on the 49ers with 11 catches for 113 yards. Eight of those catches have gone for first downs. That’s just 18.8 yards per game.
The 49ers need more from Sanu, or any of their non-Deebo receivers.
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