The San Francisco 49ers, in the opinion of several people, are the Super Bowl favorites right now. They are riding a six-game winning streak after defeating the Arizona Cardinals in Week 15 and are currently the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
It is tough to pick out a weakness on the team as the 49ers are loaded with talent on both sides of the ball. However, All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner did issue a warning to his teammates about something that needs to be cleaned up. They need to stop missing tackles defensively.
“Missed tackles. Missed tackles,” he said after the game in his press conference. “I look at myself, I am always going to point the finger at myself first and foremost, I gotta be the standard for everybody else. And then if we do miss a tackle, we gotta make sure guys are getting to the football to get him down. Too many explosive runs. That’s honestly what sticks out the most.” (H/T Heavy)
Cardinals’ running back James Conner rumbled for a 44-yard gain when defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw was unable to bring him down after what would have been a modest gain of five yards. Instead, he put his team in a position to score points.
Later in the game, when the 49ers had a nine-point lead, Warner was one of three defenders who closed in on Emari Demercado after taking a handoff. Demercado was able to break free and score a 49-yard touchdown.
While those miscues didn’t end up hurting the 49ers on Sunday afternoon, as they won the game 45-29, they cannot afford such mistakes against stronger teams. If they miss tackles like that during a postseason game, San Francisco will be going home much earlier than they anticipated.
Tackling and run defense haven’t been an issue for the 49ers the entire season. They were leading the NFL in rushing yards allowed entering Week 15 with 1,018. Only three teams had gained 100+ yards against them this season, but the Cardinals managed to rack up 234 yards.
Their rushing defense will be put to the test in Week 16 when they welcome the Baltimore Ravens to the Bay Area. Baltimore is one of the best rushing teams in the NFL and will be a stiff test for a 49ers team that needs to clean things up in that area.
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