What Kyle Shanahan is Impressed About With Ambry Thomas

Ambry Thomas has had a typical rookie season.

Every single time he is out there, he has a rough outing. The opposing offense almost always targets him. They see Thomas as a liability, which he is. Matt Ryan had no issue just chucking it to Russell Gage against Thomas this past Sunday.

The amount of successful reps with Thomas are slim. This could cause a concern or panic for a team, but for Kyle Shanahan it doesn’t. In fact, Shanahan has been most impressed with Thomas regarding his mentality.

“It didn't look like a shock to him, by no means was it perfect,” said Shanahan. “He got beat a couple times, had some penalties. But his body language, his demeanor, he kept competing, kept trying to be physical. And by watching him and how he was moving, you could tell he wasn't looking to hide or looking to get off. He was competing.”

This is a phenomenal point by Shanahan. Looking back at the game, Thomas was actually in relatively good position on all of his battles. Yes, he was beat on all of them, but he didn’t waver. He didn’t become afraid or jolted from the early plays given up. Plenty of rookies would become deflated from that.

As a matter of fact, plenty of cornerbacks regardless of experience do that. So it is encouraging to see Thomas keep battling and brushing off those plays he allowed. That can go a long way in terms of his development, and it is something the 49ers can work with.

“That's what I've been most impressed with him about in these last two weeks. Sometimes it takes guys a little bit of time and you don't always have time in the NFL. But not every single guy right when they get drafted, no matter where it is, is ready to play right away. And I thought it did hurt him missing his last year of college with COVID.

"Coming in here not getting him into OTAs and getting used to football and at the same time getting used to NFL football and those preseason games. I think it was a little bit of shock to him and some of our other guys. And then he didn't get an opportunity for a while and when he did, you could tell that he had learned from what he had done earlier.”

You can’t be mentally weak as a cornerback. You’re going to get beat. You’re going to give up yards and scores. It happens. How a cornerback responds to that throughout the game is crucial. Remember, Ahkello Witherspoon suffered through this. He would get in his head and wouldn’t play up to his capabilities. But when he was strong in confidence, he could match up with the best of them.

Thomas has a chance at starting three games in a row. The 49ers have the Titans on a short week in Tennessee. Starting Thomas again can be dangerous short-term, but beneficial long-term for the 49ers. I would say it is a toss up that they start him as the Titans do not have anyone worth mentioning in their receiver group.

Whoever the 49ers roll with, Thomas is gaining Shanahan's trust.

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