All49ers Week 2 Preview
Here's what five All49ers writers think will go down Sunday when the 49ers play the Philadelphia Eagles.
Jessie Naylor
On paper, this game will be much tougher for the San Francisco 49ers than Week 1. The Eagles destroyed the Atlanta Falcons 32 to 6 on Sunday and are at home for this matchup. In watching the Eagles game from this past Sunday, I noticed they like to stretch the field horizontally a lot more than they do vertically. This forces the defense to stay disciplined on the outside with their tackling assignments. They also showed an extremely stout defense once pressed in the red zone. Although the score was out of hand, the Eagles led the Falcons just 7 to 6 until the final moments of the first half. This game will be tough in the trenches for both teams and the 49ers defense will be tested with its first mobile quarterback foe of the season. All of this said I am going with the San Francisco 49ers to win this game in a nail-biter.
Final prediction: 49ers win 23 - 20
Waruna Perera
Week 1 left a few questions for the 49ers. First, their defense struggled to stop the run game during the first quarter against the Lions. And now with Jason Verrett missing, defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans will face his first real test. How quickly Ryans can adjust the scheme against Jalen Hurts will determine the outcome of this game. George Kittle had an under-the-radar game the previous week compared with his usual performances. This week, you can expect fireworks. Playing away from home is a crucial factor, but this team can come out on top. The strong showing by the rest of the NFC West should not be a reason to underestimate the 49ers.
Final prediction: 49ers win 31 - 21
Chuy Marquez
In Week 1, the Eagles showed a good run game, and Jalen Hurts played as well as can be expected. The Eagles haven’t fully transitioned to a running identity on offense and rely on a short-to-intermediate passing game in addition to Hurts’ mobility. The 49ers will likely play underneath coverages with safety help and force Hurts to win over the top which will expose his deep ball inaccuracy. As a result, Hurts will struggle against tough 49ers pass rush.
The 49ers offense will continue utilizing the outside run game, this will keep the Eagles talented front off balance. The 49ers will sprinkle in more Trey Lance and I expect to see an expanded zone read-option package. Expect Lance to have 12 to 17 snaps, while the 49ers rely on a heavy rushing attack. The 49ers offense will need to avoid costly turnovers.
Final prediction: The 49ers will edge out the Eagles 27-23
Kev Mitchell
We’re back in the Silverado, and in the words of Willie Nelson, “On the road again” in Week 2 as the San Francisco 49ers face the the Philadelphia Eagles.
Another solid performance by the offense (with a heavy dose of the run game controlling the clock) and another relatively mistake free game by Jimmy Garoppolo, with an increased dose of Trey Lance (to keep the defense guessing), and the 49ers should be able to keep Hurts and the Eagles offense off the field.
Unfortunately, the 49ers are down three key players: Jason Verrett (ACL), Raheem Mostert (Knee) and Dre Greenlaw (Groin). Will the absence of each be felt? Of course. Cleaning up the interior run defense (paging Javon Kinlaw), better communication in the secondary, forcing Hurts to play traditional quarterback by keeping him in the pocket and making him uncomfortable with constant harassment by edge rushers and pressure up the middle, thus limiting him time to find his weapons, the 49ers should come out victorious.
Final prediction: 49ers 34 Eagles 24
Ben Meyerson
Philadelphia's offense was excellent Week 1 against Atlanta, but there may be some fool's gold there, because Atlanta's defenses is one of the NFL's worst.
With the loss of Jason Verrett, and Emmanuel Moseley being doubtful, the 49ers secondary is scary. After Verrett left the game in Week 1, Jared Goff went 17/25 (68%) for 165 yards and 1 touchdown.
With Hurts extending plays so well and the 49ers' struggles to handle dual-threats, the Eagles will push this very good defense that could have Javon Kinlaw back.
The defense Kyle Shanahan will match up will be a much tougher task than Week 1, and has excellent players such as Darius Slay and Fletcher Cox.
But the 49ers should be able to run the ball and rely on a few chunk plays from their playmakers. As long as Jimmy Garoppolo doesn't turn the ball over, they should be in good shape to outscore the Eagles.
Final Prediction: 49ers 31 Eagles 23
