Where Bears Rate an Edge Over Niners

The Bears felt no qualms about making Roquan Smith a team captain.

They really had no choice because it was teammates who voted on naming a player who wasn't practicing with them throughout the first month of training camp as he sought to advance his future with a contract extension.

"On the grass, man, he's been great," coach Matt Eberflus said. "And he's been great in the locker room, and he's been great with the coaches. It's just the negotiations didn't work out the way that he wanted to, and that we wanted to. It didn't go the way that we wanted, but, in the same regard he's been A1 on the football side, the coaches side, teammate side, all that. So it's been really good."

On Sunday they'll see the football side close up for the first time with Smith making a debut as weak side linebacker in a 4-3.

The 49ers could have difficulty matching up with Smith's speed and strength combination, especially when he attacks running plays or screens in the middle of the field from the new position. It's a surprise element the Bears haven't shown as of yet in any preseason game.

The starting 49ers center is Jake Brendel, an undersized (6-4, 299) undrafted journeyman who started last year and had one other season as a starter in Miami. He was waived by Dallas, Denver and Baltimore and released by the Dolphins.

Considering the right guard is a rookie, Spencer Burford, that particular part of the line of scrimmage is a good place for Smith to start attacking.

As good as the 49ers have been in recent years, they have weaknesses and here are three other matchups where the Bears can press advantages.

Bears DT Justin Jones vs. 49ers RG Spencer Burford

It's Jones' first regular-season game playing Bears three technique but he likes how the position allows him to attack constantly. Jones, who is 6-3, 309, has been in the league four years, all with the Chargers and has 118 tackles, 12 for loss. The Bears are counting on the TFL total to climb greatly this year. Burford is undersized by NFL standards for a guard but it's not necessarily a detriment in their wide-zone blocking scheme. He is 6-5, 295. A fourth-round pick in April from Texas-San Antonio, this is easily the biggest game he's ever played in. He was thought to be a tackle coming out of college but in the NFL things change and he's at guard. Curiously, speed is something linemen in the wide zone need but according to NFL MockDraftable, Burford's 5.19-second 40 time put him in the bottom 14% for timings at his position in the draft.

Bears WR Darnell Mooney vs. 49ers S George Odum

It's going to take sending Mooney downfield to have him matched up on Odum, but he's the fastest healthy Bears receiver and that was supposed to be a great strength of his coming into the draft. It's just that Matt Nagy rarely let him attack downfield. If they can get him matched up deep on Odum, they should have an advantage. Odum has started just 10 games in a four-year career. He was a sub for Matt Eberflus' Colts defense and the 49ers brought him in to fortify their depth in free agency. He wound up starting because of a severe hamstring injury to Jimmy Ward.

Bears WR Byron Pringle vs. 49ers CB Samuel Womack III

Pingle has missed most of training camp and all of preseason with a quad injury but that should be healed at this point, five weeks after he suffered it. Working in the offense shouldn't be a problem as he was with the Bears all offseason learning the attack. Trying to match Pringle up for catch-and-run situations in the middle of the field, or any Bears receiver for that matter, should be easier because the 49ers are relying on rookie Samuel Womack as their slot cornerback. Playing the slot cornerback position is one of the toughest assignments on defense and the 49ers are doing what the Bears are doing—they're letting a rookie handle it in his first pro game. But they aren't turning it over to a second-round pick from a major school with a reputation for producing defensive backs such as Washington, like the Bears are with Kyler Gordon. Instead, Womack is a fifth-round cornerback from Toledo and was a walk-on in the MAC. He wasn't invited to the NFL scouting combine. Womack, however, impressed immmediately against the Packers in preseason by interception a throw for Amari Rodgers and another for Romeo Doubs.

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