Tarvarius Moore is Reducing the 49ers' Need for a Safety
Jaquiski Tartt is going to test the market when he becomes an unrestricted free agent in March.
His return to the San Francisco 49ers is unlikely at this point given all the other pressing areas the team has to address, especially with a tight salary cap. Tartt's pending departure will leave a need at safety for the 49ers despite having Jimmie Ward. Having two adequate starters is necessary for the 49ers defense to fully function.
This is where the opportunities that Tarvarius Moore has been granted in Tartt's stead is paying off. His performance this season is reducing the 49ers' need for a safety in the offseason.
Moore reinforced that notion with his excellent performance against the Cardinals last Sunday. He registered 11 combined tackles, which shows just how much of a heat-seeking missile he was in the game. Moore was hustling out there and wanted his presence felt. That much was evident when he completely laid the wood on wide receiver Christian Kirk to erase a possible touchdown.
"Yeah, I think T-Moore, just as you guys can see too, he makes a lot of good plays," said Kyle Shanahan at his presser on Monday. "Anybody who can run and hit and cover ground like he does can help you out on the field and he has definitely shown us he can be a candidate. He's trying to clean stuff up and get more consistent, so not keeping both teams in the game, just keeping one in and I think he's done that better each week. I thought he played well last night and probably his best game, so he's got one more left to prove that and it seems like he's going in the right direction."
I'm going to call shenanigans on Shanahan's final sentence.
Moore has nothing left to prove because he IS going to be the starter alongside Ward in 2021. Shanahan just has to say that to ensure Moore doesn't grow content and continues to work. It is not like the 49ers are going to waste resources bringing another safety in when they can put all of that to better use elsewhere.
Plus, Shanahan doesn't make decisions on players based on one game. According to him, when he commented on if the 49ers will pick up Robbie Gould's option after his poor performance he mentioned how one game will not alter his body work. So there's that.
As solid as Moore has been lately, he hasn't been the cleanest safety. Taking angles is still his weakest trait. It was put on display against the Rams and the Bills. The bright side is that he looks improved on that end. He is going to need to take that to heart in the offseason or else the 49ers defense will end up letting more big plays occur than they'd like.
And with Robert Saleh assuredly leaving at the end of the season, the 49ers need as many familiar faces on their defense. The massive gash from Saleh leaving is already enough damage to them. The last thing they need is to start scrambling for another safety. Luckily, the 49ers have a good one in Moore. He still has some work to do, but that is where the 49ers coaches get paid the big bucks to mold these players.
