49ers-Cowboys is last gasp at playoffs
They can dress it up as a high-noon showdown in Texas, the time in Arlington that the 49ers and Dallas Cowboys will kick off today.
It’ll be 10 a.m. back in the Bay Area.
In other words, not the marquee time slot it was supposed to be. “America’s Team” got flexed out of primetime for the first time, a byproduct of being mired in last place, like the 49ers.
Neither has won a Super Bowl since the mid-1990s, when the 1994 49ers interrupted the Cowboys’ trio of championships between 1992-95.
At stake this meeting: pride and slim playoff hopes.
The 49ers (5-8) will have their NFC title defense officially end before the postseason if they lose, combined with a victory hours later by the Arizona Cardinals (7- 6) over the Philadelphia Eagles (4-8-1).
The Cowboys (4- 9) can stave off NFC East elimina
tion another week, if they win for the third time in five games.
Here is what the 49ers’ must do for their sake:
1. MULLENS’ NO ROOM FOR ERROR >> Nick Mullens would have been pulled Sunday if C. J. Beathard had warmed up fast enough before the fourth quarter. Memo to Beathard: Have that arm ready at a moment’s notice this game.
Even though Mullens is making a sixth straight start in place of Jimmy Garoppolo, coach Kyle Shanahan should be compelled to make a quick change at the first sight of an ugly turnover, whether it’s prompted by another offensive line breakdown or mere sloppiness by Mullens.
Shanahan can only cry wolf so many times about demanding fewer turnovers without making a quarterback change. Disclaimer: Beathard has 18 career turnovers and was 1-9 as a starter from 201718, so don’t expect a magical elixir.
2. FAMILIAR SACK LEADERS >> This rivalry is filled with many examples of 49ersturned- Cowboys, and vice versa. Charles Haley, Deion Sanders, Terrell Owens, Ken Norton Jr., Larry Allen and Bob Hayes lead that crossover.
Where do Aldon Smith and Kerry Hyder Jr. rank? Well, currently, they lead their new team in sacks. And each should have opportunities to pad those numbers this game.
Smith, the 49ers’ sack artist from 201114, has resumed his career and racked up five sacks for the Cowboys, who used his fumble return for a touchdown last week to help rout Cincinnati.
Hyder produced one sack in 16 games last season for Dallas. Thrust into a fulltime role with the 49ers once Nick Bosa and Dee Ford got hurt in September, Hyder should win the 49ers’ sack crown this season. He has 7 1/2 sacks, just shy of his career-high eight in 2016 with the Detroit Lions.
3. AIYUK VS. LAMB >> Each team touts a rookie wide receiver living up to firstround expectations. A key difference is that Dallas’ CeeDee Lamb is complemented by Amari Cooper (80 catches, 942 yards) while Aiyuk is on an island again with Deebo Samuel sidelined by a hamstring injury.
Richie James and Kendrick Bourne have had their moments. Trent Taylor and River Cracraft are options off the bench. Tight end Jordan Reed has only 213 receiving yards.
Hence, the 49ers’ receiving burden falls on Aiyuk, the 25th overall draft pick who has 660 receiving yards (50 catches, four touchdowns) and is 267 yards shy of Jerry Rice’s rookie-season record for the 49ers.
Lamb, the third receiver drafted and taken No. 17 overall, has 742 yards on 61 catches with four touchdowns.
4. AWAKEN FROM SLUMBER >> Raheem Mostert aggravated an ankle injury last game, so the 49ers again could turn elsewhere to revive their rushing attack from its 2020 slumber. Most will expect Jeff Wilson Jr. to seize on more carries and go big like he did Oct. 25 in New England with three rushing touchdowns.
Wilson, however, seemed to aggravate his own ankle injury last game and played through it. Perhaps that is enough to call on 2019 starter Tevin Coleman or dust off Jerick McKinnon.
The most likely lanes will come when running left behind left tackle Trent Williams and Laken Tomlinson, although Shanahan continues to champion right tackle Mike McGlinchey’s run blocking. Thing is, the 49ers are glaringly vulnerable on the interior. Guard-turned-center Daniel Brunskill has a sprained shoulder. Issues with Colton McKivitz (COVID-19 reserve) and Tom Compton (concussion) have the 49ers scrambling for solutions at right guard.
5. WARNER LEADS RUNDEFENSE >> Presuming Fred Warner shakes off last game’s nerve stinger and keeps intact his streak of never missing a start, he could be facing a sleeping giant in Ezekiel Elliott, if he even plays.
Elliott missed practices because of a calf injury, so perhaps the more likely rushing threat is Tony Pollard, who had 39 yards (11 carries) while splitting time with Elliott in last Sunday’s win at the Bengals.
Elliott’s gone eight games without a rushing touchdown, dating back to Dak Prescott’s season- ending injury. Elliott has the NFL’s fifth-most carries (219) and just a 3.9-yard per carry average. He’s breached the 100-yard mark once this season.
The 49ers have not allowed a 100-yard rusher this season. Opponents, instead, have found success in the air when they possess receiving threats. The Cowboys have Cooper and Lamb – to complement Elliott on the ground.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy complimented Warner ahead of their matchup, saying: “His recognition, conceptually, about the run and the pass is impressive, amazing. Clearly one of the best linebackers that we’ve seen all year. Clearly.”
Added 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh on Warner: “I don’t think he got enough credit a year ago, because the front four stole the show every single game. The things he did and the way he lines us up, it’s Peyton Manning like in terms of a comparative measure.”
“I will be bias and say he is by far, by far the best middle linebacker in football,” Saleh said. “It’s not even close, in my opinion. With what he does, what we ask him to do, his positive energy, his leadership, his off- the-field stuff, you can’t make them like that, not very often, anyway.”