One Weakness That is Concerning on the 49ers Defense
Going into Las Vegas to face a downward-spiral Raiders team looked like an easy outing for the 49ers, especially for the defense.
The Raiders were rolling out backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham who was making his first career start. It seemed like the Raiders were setting up Stidham for failure by starting him for the first time against an elite defense.
Not only did Stidham not fail, he excelled beyond belief. San Francisco's defense struggled to slow down the Raiders offense with Stidham being largely responsible. He carved up the 49ers defense completing 23-of-34 passes for 365 yards, three touchdowns, and two blameless picks. Patrick Mahomes is the only other quarterback this year to gash the 49ers defense like this.
The 49ers may have emerged victorious in a hard fought battle, but there is one weakness that was put on display by their defense that is concerning.
Where the weakness lies with them is defending deep pass plays. The 49ers just do not defend that well when an offense is actually willing to attack them that way. They have been able to mask that since their pass rush makes it difficult for opposing quarterbacks to just sit there and let the play develop. But when the pass rush is absent, the defensive weakness gets spotlighted. Stidham wasn't sacked at all in this game, which partly explains why he was able to pick apart the 49ers defense.
From the opening drive of the game they allowed tight end Darren Waller to get behind them on a 24 yard touchdown play-action pass. Then there was a Davante Adams 60 yard touchdown on the Raiders' opening second half series. Stidham averaged 10.7 yards per attempt, so he was basically throwing first downs at will. The 49ers could not defend those passes to save their lives against the Raiders, and really it's been that way all year long.
It isn't even really just deep pass plays of 20-plus yards. Rather it is when a pass goes beyond 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. Even going back to the 49ers' previous game versus the Commanders, they were struggling to defend several deep pass plays. It was the only success the Commanders had in that game. They just were afraid to dial up more because of the threat of taking a sack. One team that wasn't afraid to take shots like the Raiders was Miami. Had Tua Tagovailoa not been horrendous with his accuracy, then that game ends up closer than it was.
The pass rush of the 49ers has helped mask this weakness, but really they have benefitted from facing offenses that are afraid to take those shots against them. A lack of elite quarterbacks also comes into play, but really all it takes is for an offense that isn't scared to attack the 49ers that way. The Raiders showed they weren't and gave the 49ers defense their greatest battle since the Chiefs.
This is concerning due to the fact that the playoffs are right around the corner. Their weakness has been emphasized to a greater degree now. Offenses will see what the Raiders did and realize that is what it is going to take to have success against the 49ers. This defense is leaking oil right now. Talanoa Hufanga, who has been great for most of the season, has become a liability in coverage the past several games. Deommodore Lenoir and Jimmie Ward have been solid in pass defense, but can be had for big gains.
It's essentially pass rush or bust for the 49ers defense. They are still a high-level side that will give everyone struggles, but they do have a great weakness that can derail them.
