For 49ers, pass defense must step up
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — With a fearsome front four capable of pressuring quarterbacks without blitzes, a lockdown cornerback in Richard Sherman and the speed at linebacker and safety to limit big plays, the 49ers had the league’s stingiest pass defense in a decade.
Shutting down Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ passing game in the Super Bowl will be a far tougher challenge than anything the 49ers have faced this season.
“His mobility is unique. His arm strength is ridiculous. He’s very, very accurate,” defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said. “But what I don’t think people give him enough credit for is that he actually plays quarterback. There’s a lot of people, there’s a lot of quarterbacks in this league that will say no to number one and then it just becomes street ball. He gets rid of the ball on time. He puts it where it needs to be. He hits a lot of throws in rhythm. And when he needs to take his shot, he knows how to buy time in the pocket and do it. So he’s a superstar in every way you can possibly imagine and he’s going to be tough to deal with.”
The 49ers had to deal with Mahomes already in his brief but brilliant career. Back in Week 3 of the 2018 season in Mahomes’ first year as starter for the Chiefs, he threw for 314 yards and three TDs and led touchdown drives on all five possessions in the first half of a 38-27 win.
That marked the only time in the last 20 seasons that the 49ers allowed five straight TD drives to open a game. They had no answer for Mahomes’ play-making ability.
In the rematch Sunday in the Super Bowl in Miami, the 49ers should be better equipped at least to try to slow Mahomes down.
It added a dynamic edge rushing duo in the offseason, acquiring Dee Ford in a trade with the Chiefs and drafting Nick Bosa second overall. That led to the team allowing the fewest yards in a season since the 2009 Jets.
“When you have edge rushers it speeds up the process of the quarterback, and, not that he needs speeding up, he already gets rid of it pretty quick. But it changes the game,” Saleh said. “It unlocks the offensive line so it creates a little bit more space and it gives the guys inside more space to operate. So having those guys out there, having them at full speed, will do nothing but help.”
Bosa and Ford transformed the entire defense as the added pressure helped the 49ers create more turnovers after having a record-low seven takeaways in 2018.
The 49ers have 57 sacks including the playoffs, with Ford, Bosa, Arik Armstead and DeForest Buckner all recording at least 71⁄2, making it difficult for offenses to key on one spot.
“If we’re covering and that guy takes two or three hitches most likely he’ll be laying on his back,” safety Jimmie Ward said. “But Patrick Mahomes is a mover in the pocket. I’m pretty sure he’ll make some guys miss and he’ll make some plays. We just have to make more plays than he does.”
The 49ers got a league-best 40 of those sacks without bringing in extra pass rushers, which will be especially important against Mahomes, who has 22 TD passes, zero interceptions and a 118.3 passer rating in his career when defenses rush five or more players.
But not getting pressure with four creates its own problems, giving Mahomes the extra times he needs to generate big plays downfield to speedsters like Tyreek Hill, Mecole Hardman and Sammy Watkins.
Mahomes leads the NFL with 76 completions the last two seasons on throws at least 20 yards downfield, an aspect the 49ers are designed to stop.
“We believe in each other,” Sherman said. “We believe in the scheme. We believe in what we’ve done all year, and we plan on ... putting a good product on tape and seeing how it goes.”