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What the Eagles' Postseason Win Over the Rams Means for the 49ers

This offseason, the 49ers need to add two defensive tackles, two linebackers and two safeties -- then they might be able to match up with the Eagles.
Grant Cohn|
Jan 19, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams in the first half in a 2025 NFC divisional round game at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Jan 19, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams in the first half in a 2025 NFC divisional round game at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

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San Francisco 49ers

After the Philadelphia Eagles eliminated the Los Angeles Rams from the playoffs with a 28-22 win on Sunday, we have some good news and not so good news for the 49ers.

THE GOOD NEWS

The Rams really aren't that good. Sure, they beat the 49ers twice this season, but so did the Cardinals and the Cardinals aren't special. The Rams have a good head coach, a good quarterback, a good running back, one good wide receiver and an excellent pass rush, but their offense is slow and methodical and their defense can't stop the run. So if Christian McCaffrey comes back strong next season, the 49ers should match up well against the Rams and potentially win the NFC West.

THE NOT SO GOOD NEWS

Saquon Barkley makes the Eagles better than they've ever been under head coach Nick Sirianni. The 49ers haven't beaten this version of the Eagles, and they won't beat them until they drastically improve their run defense. The 49ers haven't had a high-quality run defense since 2022. Now, they have zero good defensive tackles, one good linebacker (Dre Greenlaw is a free agent) and one good safety (Talanoa Hufanga also is a free agent). The 49ers are decidedly weak up the middle, which means the Eagles would run right through them. This offseason, the 49ers need to add two defensive tackles, two linebackers and two safeties -- then they might be able to match up with the Eagles. Fortunately for the 49ers, Jalen Hurts isn't particularly dangerous as a passer.

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Grant Cohn
GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.

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