5 San Francisco 49ers players who need to step up against the Rams

Demarcus Robinson 

Life comes at you quick in the NFL. Robinson went from being eased back into the mix to being expected to be the man all in one week. The 49ers are going to be without Ricky Pearsall and Jauan Jennings in this game, so Robinson is now the de facto No. 1 wide receiver. He was suspended for two weeks and caught one pass against Jacksonville. Now, the team needs a big game. 

49ers tackles 

The Los Angeles Rams have a dynamic edge rusher duo with Jared Verse and Byron Young. All of the talk goes to Verse, the former first-round pick. He has earned it with 18 pressures and two sacks so far this season. However, it is Byron Young who has five sacks on 16 pressures that push them over the top. 

Verse wins with power, and Young wins with speed, so they can bait and switch you and wear you down throughout the game. Trent Williams has been good, but not elite, yet this season. Colton McKivitz has been solid after signing an extension, but when Travon Walker went down, his biggest test was erased. Now, the pair of tackles has a real test. Can they step up?

Christian McCaffrey 

It is almost hard to say because McCaffrey is expected to be the team's top pass catcher and runner. However, he has been great as a pass catcher and lacking a bit as a runner. San Francisco is going to need an all-time performance from McCaffrey to pull off this upset. That means not only grabbing eight or nine balls, but breaking tackles for multiple 15-yard gains on the ground. 

Bryce Huff

Bryce Huff had five pressures in Weeks 2 and 3, and it looked like he was going to have an excellent season. Then, without Nick Bosa, he had just two pressures against the Jaguars. San Francisco really needs a full team effort on the line without Nick Bosa, and he was not quite as good without him. 

Rob Havenstein is injured and had a poor game against Laitu Latu last week. One big play on defense can change a game and Huff has shown he can be the one to do it. San Francisco needs him this week.

Upton Stout 

Upton Stout has been solid as a rookie, but he is better against the run and has been tested in coverage. The Rams have been running Puka Nacua a career-high 41.5% of his routes from the slot. On routes from the slot, he is averaging over four yards per route. His slot rate is already up 10% from last season, and it was down at 23.8% last week because Indianapolis was weak at outside cornerback. This week, it will likely be over 50% as they try to attack the rookie cornerback. Is Stout ready for a heavy dose of the best wide receiver in the NFL?