Will the 49ers Impeach the Commanders?
Last Thursday Night in Seattle, Trent Williams closed out his hype speech by yelling: "Trenches on three!"
That might be an even bigger key this Saturday at Levi's Stadium versus the Commanders on Christmas Eve.
The Commanders have the best defense that the 49ers have faced all season, other than Week 3 at the Broncos in Denver. And Chase Young will make his season debut, so this Commanders D could arguably be the best that the 49ers offense has faced in 2022. Brock Purdy didn't play until week 13 against the Dolphins, so this will be by far the best defense that he has ever faced. Much like the 49ers, the Commanders have invested heavily in their defensive line. Montez Sweat (7 sacks), Jonathan Allen (7.5 sacks) and Daron Payne (8.5 sacks) all are monsters. Chase Young was the No. 1 pick in 2020 when he won Defensive Rookie of the Year. They will pose a gigantic challenge in the trenches for the 49ers offensive line and Purdy. Luckily, Purdy is mobile. He will likely need every bit of speed and quickness in order to survive and possibly thrive, in this game.
The 49ers defensive line is playing very well, too. If they aren't quite as talented as the their opponent's front four, then they more than make up for it with their back seven. Dre Greenlaw is best linebacker in football right now and even he can't cover the middle of the field as well as Fred Warner does. Azeez Al-Shaair is easily the most talented third linebacker in the NFL. Talanoa Hufanga is arguably a top five safety. Jimmie Ward has been a man possessed for the past two or three games at nickel cornerback since getting his club off and getting his game shape on. Charvarius "Mooney" Ward is flat out the best tackling cornerback this season. His coverage ability is nothing short of elite as well. Hopefully he will be able to play after sustaining a concussion last Thursday night, which gives him nine days to recover. The last I knew, the average return from concussion protocol took about eight days, but the rules have gotten a lot more strict since then. Charvarius Ward was limited in practice on Tuesday, which I took as a good sign that he would play. This was an even better sign from Wednesday:
If the 49ers starting front four isn't quite as prolific, then their depth is likely quite bit a better. Kalia Davis is back at practice off the non-football injury list. He is a DJ Jones clone, with similar height, weight, combine statistics and even the quick get off when the ball is snapped. Davis even wears Jones' old No. 93. One thing that might make the 49ers starting four rival those of the Commanders would be if Javon Kinlaw were able to play. We can't count on him, but there is some hope.
Nick Bosa is finally getting attention as being most deserving of the Defensive Player of the Year Award for 2022.
Arik Armstead is so underrated. He constantly eats double-teams, both as a run-stuffer and as a pass-rusher. Samson Ebukam is a solid pass-rusher and one the best run-stuffing edge players. Charles Omenihu is adept at rushing the quarterback off the edge or up the middle. Rookie Drake Jackson has one of the highest sack rates for any first year player and some of the most batted balls, too.
On offense, the Commanders aren't nearly as scary, despite having wide receiver Terry McLaurin aka "Scary Terry", who has already eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards. Curtis Samuel has 789 combined yards and four touchdowns. Brian Robinson Jr. is a very impressive rookie running back and Jahan Dotson is a solid rookie wide receiver who has six touchdown catches on just 23 receptions which is about eight times the rate McLauren who has three touchdown catches on 104 receptions. Outside of that big four, the Commanders don't have many other weapons that Taylor Heinicke can rely upon. Heinicke reminds me of a fair amount of Purdy mixed with some of Jimmy Garoppolo. If Heinicke struggles, then I wouldn't be surprised if we see Carson Wentz. He's not very good, but he did beat the 49ers in 2020 as an Eagle. If I'm being honest, then I'd say that Nick Mullens lost that game by throwing a pick, losing a fumble and throwing a pick-six. Wentz also beat the 49ers in 2021 as a Colt. There again, the 49ers quarterback lost the game. This time it was Garoppolo by throwing two picks and losing a fumble in a monsoon. I don't think that Wentz will beat us, but losing to him three straight seasons, on three different teams, would be super embarrassing, if not historic!
The 49ers will be without Deebo Samuel, but against the Broncos they were without Christian McCaffrey who has been the best 49ers offensive player this season, so they should be at least slightly better off.
Purdy seems to be better than Garoppolo, especially in play action, so that's another advantage. Tarvarius Moore was back to practice as a limited participant, so that could boost special teams. So could the return of Samuel Womack from the concussion protocol. Mike McGlinchey is always a concern, but he played pretty well against the Seahawks, so hopefully he can build off that. Center Jake Brendel and the the rest of the 49ers interior offensive line hasn't faced a pair of defensive tackles like this all season. Vita Vea was supposed to be a challenge, but he got injured almost immediately two weeks ago.
The Commanders are very similar to the 49ers, but just not quite as good on either side of the ball. As of now, I'm picking the 49ers to impeach the Commanders, but that's assuming that Charvarius Ward will play. It should be low scoring game -- 17 points might just be enough to win it.
I will reply to this article with my official score prediction, about an hour prior to kickoff, once we know exactly who will play and who won't.
