49ers’ Warner looks like All-Pro to Romo in rout of Patriots
Fred Warner shed a block by fullback Jakob Johnson and combined to tackle running back Damien Harris on the Patriots’ first play Sunday.
Then, on New England’s first play of the second quarter, the 49ers’ inside linebacker followed both wide receiver Jakobi Meyers and the eyes of quarterback Cam Newton and made a shoestring interception.
Next, on the Patriots’ first play of the third quarter, Warner dismissed a block by center David Andrews and teamed up to tackle Harris.
You get the idea: Warner was a constant presence in a 336 win over New England that provided more evidence to suggest his nickname bestowed by teammates — “All-Pro Fred” — will become a designation he earns for the first time this season.
Warner also hasn’t been voted to a Pro Bowl. And his lack of recognition last year when he was a leader on a Super Bowl team fueled by a suffocating defense is why he’s often mentioned among the NFL’s most underrated players.
But that’s changing this season. On Sunday, Warner thrived on a CBS telecast that included a soundtrack of analyst Tony Romo singing his praises.
The former Dallas quarterback said Warner is “an All-Pro in every sense of the word” before calling him the “best linebacker in ball.”
Said Romo shortly after Warner’s interception: “I’m telling you, I’m trying to find a flaw.”
Last year, Warner’s contributions were overshadowed by bigger names such as
AllPro cornerback Richard Sherman and Pro Bowl pass rusher Nick Bosa, the Defensive Rookie of the Year.
But Sherman played in one game this season before being hurt and Bosa two before landing on seasonending injured reserve. They are among a group of seven seasonopening starters who didn’t play against New England, which didn’t score a touchdown, went 1for6 on third downs and had 59 net yards in the first half — the fewest the 49ers have allowed since 2012.
Despite the injuries, last year’s secondranked defense ranks fifth this season, allowing 309.6 yards per game. The 49ers rank fifth in points allowed per game ( 19.4).
How have they remained a top10 defense? On Sunday, CBS’ Jim Nantz relayed what defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said in their pregame production meeting: “As long as Fred Warner is on the field, we have a chance.”
Warner has stayed on the field.
He has started his career by making 39 straight starts and leads the 49ers’ defense by playing 93% of its snaps this season. Warner and defensive linemen Arik Armstead and D. J. Jones are the only defensive players to make all seven starts.
Warner is tied for the team lead with two interceptions, but his stat sheet actually isn’t eyepopping. For example, he’s averaging 8.1 tackles per game, which is tied for 16th in the NFL.
On Sunday, though, he quickly showed how he makes an impact without contacting an opponent.
On the Patriots’ fourth play, Warner mirrored their leading pass catcher, wide receiver Julian Edelman, who was running a crosser over the middle, and Newton was forced to flee the pocket on a 4yard scramble when he couldn’t find an open receiver. Romo noted the 49ers doublecovered other routerunners while Warner took Edelman.
“You can’t run these coverages unless you have a guy like that in the middle,” Romo said. “… I mean he’s so good, Jim. He’s guarding their best receiver oneonone. Who can do that at middle linebacker, right?”
Warner also played a role on two interceptions that didn’t produce a personal stat.
In the second quarter, he was again shadowing Edelman on an intermediate route when Newton heaved a deep pass that was picked off by cornerback Emmanuel Moseley. In the third quarter, Warner was bearing down on Newton on a blitz when the QB’s hurried, offtarget pass bounced off Edelman’s hands and was caught by cornerback Jamar Taylor.
Warner finished with seven tackles, a relatively modest total that nearly matched the number of times Romo raved about him.
“He hurts himself” statistically, Romo said. “He takes away so much stuff in the run game and the pass game that quarterbacks move past him so fast that he never gets to make the tackle. Because he covers things that you’re not actually supposed to be able to cover.”