Can the 49ers Contain Kyler Murray the Second Time Around?

The 49ers have a great defense until they face a quarterback who scrambles.

On Saturday, they'll face arguably the best scrambling quarterback in the NFL -- Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, who beat the 49ers Week 1 when they were close to full strength.

The 49ers were winning that game 13-10 in the fourth quarter. Then Murray started scrambling. He ran six times for 37 yards and one touchdown in the fourth quarter, and the Cardinals came back and won. The 49ers defense collapsed and gave up 14 points in that fourth quarter. The defensive ends repeatedly rushed past Murray and gave him wide-open escape routes from the pocket, and he gladly took them.

Here's what 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said about the rematch against Murray this Saturday:

“These mobile quarterbacks, they are a challenge. I think they’re a challenge for everybody. We've had some opportunities to go against some guys throughout the year, and we feel really good about our scheme and how we defend the quarterback run game. But the quarterback scramble, I feel like our guys are really starting to understand what we're asking out of them, especially with [DL] Kerry [Hyder Jr.] and [DL] Dion Jordan and the two interior guys in third down situations and pass rush. Understanding rush lanes and understanding the discipline of keeping quarterbacks in the pocket and not making it easy for them to just exit out, if that makes sense. So, this will be the ultimate challenge. Obviously, with Kyler, he's one of the best in the world with regards to getting out of the pocket and extending plays and getting first downs with his feet. So, I guess Sunday will tell us everything we need to know about how far we've come. So, great challenge ahead.”

It's interesting Saleh called out Jordan and Hyder by name as players who have given up containment, but not Arik Armstead. Because Armstead is by far the biggest offender, especially when he plays defensive end. He has allowed quarterbacks to escape to their right all season.

Let's see if Armstead and the rest of the defensive line can correct a season's worth of mistakes against scramblers.

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