Battered 49ers get injury break with Giants
The Giants know their pain after losing star Barkley
What if we told you the 49ers have actually had some good fortune with injuries this season?
Would you call us crazy? Delusional? Maybe worse?
Before getting too worked up and rattling off the long list of the 49ers’ wounded, consider that this coming Sunday could be the second consecutive game San Francisco’s opponent will be without both its star running back and top wide receiver.
The New York Giants will welcome the 49ers back to their house of horrors — aka MetLife Stadium — without Saquon Barkley, perhaps the NFL’s best running back, who went down with a season-ending torn ACL during his team’s 17-13 loss to the Bears. Sterling Shepard, the Giants’ No. 1 receiver, limped off the field with a toe injury at the end of the first half and may not face the 49ers either.
The Giants’ injury woes not only stack up with some of those suffered by the 49ers, they mirror the pain endured by the Jets, who were walloped by San Francisco on Sunday with star tailback Le’Veon Bell (hamstring) and top receiver Jamison Crowder (hamstring) nowhere to be found.
That’s not to suggest the 49ers aren’t plenty good enough on their own to easily dispose of the likes of the Jets and Giants. It’s just a reminder that NFL injuries really don’t discriminate. GIANTS’ LINE STRUGGLES CONTINUE » After a rough Week 1, the Giants’ line play was only slightly better in their loss to the Bears on Sunday. New York’s offensive linemen have allowed an eye-popping 56 pressures through
two games, just one fewer than the Texans’ NFL worst 57. The Giants line has only created enough room for 104 yards rushing, including just six from Barkley a week ago. Most concerning for the Giants has been the play of rookie left tackle Andrew Thomas, the fourth overall pick in this year’s draft. Thomas, who was the Giants’ highest-picked offensive lineman since 1974, was regularly beaten in pass protection against the Bears. Of course, the Bears have Khalil Mack rushing the passer. Even the Raiders will admit he’s no ordinary guy.
TAKING A RUN AT THE GIANTS » Should Nick Mullens get the start at quarterback over Jimmy Garoppolo (high-ankle sprain), we can probably expect a heavy dose of running the ball for the 49ers -with whomever is healthy enough to run the ball. The Giants’ defensive linemen — Leonard Williams, Dalvin Tomlinson, Dexter Lawrence and BJ Hill -- get solid grades as runstuffers, according to ProFootballFocus.com. But the foursome couldn’t prevent the Steelers and Bears from piling up 141 yards and 135 yards, respectively, against the Giants this season. But New York also had the league’s fourth-worst pass-rush grade last season among linemen. The general lack of pressure up front has made it easier for Ben Roethlisberger and Mitch Trubisky to attack Giants defensive backs not named James Bradberry
— mainly Corey Ballentine and Isaac Yiadom. Staying clear of Bradberry is probably wise for the 49ers, considering he’s coming off another outstanding game — he had an interception, three passes broken up and allowed just one catch on six targets against the Bears. Bradberry earned PFF’s highest grade — 91.6 — of any NFL defender in Week 2.
GIANTS’ NOW-DEPLETED RUNNING ATTACK » You obviously just don’t get over the loss of a premier back such as Barkley, and the Giants don’t seem equipped to be able to rebound from his loss. The discouraging thing about the loss of Barkley is that New York already had enough trouble running the ball with him in the game. He only gained 34 yards in 19 carries over the 1 ½ games he played this season. Overall, Giants have just 55 yards on 30 carries. Veteran Dion Lewis, who took most of the snaps after Barkley was hurt, had just 20 yards on 10 carries. Lewis, who turns 30 next week, has primarily been a thirddown specialist for the Titans,
Patriots and Eagles. It’s possible Wayne Gallman, who was a healthy scratch Sunday, will be the man to step into Barkley’s shoes. It was Gallman who took over an injured Barkley’s load in Week 3 last year and had 118 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns.
Reasons for pessimism
IN MULLENS WE TRUST? » Jimmy Garoppolo’s high ankle sprain could very well prevent him from playing, which would mean it’s Nick Mullens time again. Forced into second-half duty in the 49ers’ win over the Jets, Mullens looked like a man who hasn’t thrown a pass in two years, which, coincidentally, was the case Sunday. His last real action came in 2018 when he started eight games after Garoppolo tore his ACL. Mullens started eight games -- with just three wins -- and threw for 2,277 yards, 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. On Sunday, Mullens completed 8-of-11 passes for 71 yards, but he threw an interception and didn’t appear confident in the pocket.
He was sacked twice and if the 25-year-old isn’t able to settle down against the Giants, the 49ers may be in a little trouble.
HAVE YOU SEEN THE 49ERS’ INJURY LIST? » The Giants will enter Sunday’s game as an underdog, but they also won’t have to worry about a lot of the 49ers’ top level talent. While still talented, the 49ers’ talent advantage takes a hit if they’re without Garoppolo, Nick Bosa (knee), George Kittle (knee), Raheem Mostert (knee), Richard Sherman (calf) and Deebo Samuel (foot), as many expect. The 49ers who will suit up are probably dreading having to venture back onto the “sticky” artificial turf at MetLife Stadium.
A MATCHUP NIGHTMARE? » When things went wrong, the Giants got creative. With both Barkley and Shepard knocked out of Sunday’s game with injuries, New York slid tight end Evan Engram way down the line to wide receiver. He played 35 snaps at receiver and 28 at tight end. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound Engram was a tough matchup for Bears and he grabbed a team-leading six passes for a team-best 65 yards Sunday while flashing some of his rookie-season magic. He could very well cause similar issues for 49ers corners, should the Giants flank him out again. The Giants’ 2017 No. 1 pick has set 18 team records for a tight end, most of them as a rookie while catching 64 passes for 722 yards and six touchdowns. But injuries limited Engram to just 14 games the past two seasons — he was stellar when on the field, though, catching 44 catches in just six games last year.