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What the 49ers defense does surprisingly well

Originally posted on San Francisco 49ers on SI
By Grant Cohn | Last updated Jan 3, 2026 10:57 AM ET

It's hard to fathom how the 49ers could win the Super Bowl with a defense that's this depleted.

It doesn't have an elite player that's healthy. It ranks 29th out of 32 defenses in interceptions with six. And it ranks 32nd out of 32 defenses in sacks with a mere 18.

And yet, the 49ers' defense isn't terrible. In fact, it ranks 13th out of 32 defenes in points allowed, which means technically it's a good defense compared to the rest of the league.

So how do the 49ers stop teams from scoring without a pass rush or the ability to create turnovers in bunches? That's where defensive coordinator Robert Saleh comes in.

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Most defensive coaches blitz when their defense struggles to generate pressure with four rushers. Not Saleh. He almost never rushes more than four players, because he's not concerned about creating pressure for pressure's sake. He's concerned about stopping explosive plays.

An explosive play is defined as a run of 10 or more yards or a pass of 20 or more yards. Through 16 games, the 49ers have given up 74, which is tied for the third fewest in the league,. Only the Seahawks and the Broncos have given up fewer.

Which means Saleh is not aggressive. He's decidedly conservative. And he's good at getting opposing quarterbacks to check the ball down.

"That's one thing I feel like we've done a really nice job of, with the exception of last week," Saleh said. " I felt like the explosive plays we've allowed had been to a minimum. And when we do that, I feel like we can play pretty good defense. But, like any defense in football, if you're giving up explosive plays, the offense can light up the scoreboard.

"So, the more aggressive you get, the more aggressive they can get with regards to creating those explosive plays. And so again, it's a cat and mouse game, just how aggressive do we want to be. We’ve got to pick and choose our battles and hopefully we choose right when the time is right.”

Tonight, the 49ers will face the Seattle Seahawks, who have the No. 2 ranked offense in the NFL. They're averaging more than 29 points per game. But when these teams faced each other Week 1, the 49ers held Seattle to just 13 points.

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Granted, the 49ers had Nick Bosa and Fred Warner. Still, Sam Darnold got sacked only once. He wasn't under a ton of pressure. And yet, the Seahawks offense struggled all game.

And that's because the 49ers gave up four explosive plays -- all of them to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who didn't score a touchdown.

Tonight, the 49ers defense will have the same game plan it had Week 1. Shut down everyone other than Smith-Njigba. Make sure those mediocrities don't create and big plays. Force the Seahawks to operate their entire offense through their No. 1 receiver. See if he can generate more explosive plays on his own than the entire 49ers offense.

If the 49ers win this game, expect their defense to play extremely well.

This article first appeared on San Francisco 49ers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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