Henderson, Nevada The San Francisco 49ers defense is over a tough postgame film session, more than a week after they overcame the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship.
The defensive film analysis provided a few instances of how the Niners trailed by 17 points early on in the game, even though they managed to overcome the Lions 34–31. The startling truth was that the 49ers defense failed to field all 11 players at full strength on several occasions.
Steve Wilks, the defensive coordinator, described it as “unacceptable” and “embarrassing” last week. Several Niners defenders voiced self-doubt on Tuesday at their team hotel, promising to ensure that the same thing doesn’t happen to them in Sunday’s Super Bowl LVIII matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs.
According to safety Tashaun Gipson, “that’s something that needs to be coached,” never. “That’s not something that should ever be spoken… It goes without saying that every character in the movie has occasionally been able to identify themselves and say, “Man, I could have played with better effort on that.” That movie was challenging. That’s not our kind of football, so you had to watch that and hear some harsh remarks. That is not nearly as good a football team as us. Going forward, it’s nothing to worry about.”
As expected, the days following the NFC Championship Game were stressful due to the issues with effort. The defense as a whole, according to defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, “put our heads down,” dissatisfied with what they saw and Wilks’ ensuing tirade. In addition, head coach Kyle Shanahan criticized his defense for what he saw as inadequate backside pursuit during Detroit run plays.
The two plays on the film that most disappointed people ended with touchdowns for the Lions. The most notable instance occurred during the first half on a 15-yard touchdown run by Detroit running back Jahmyr Gibbs. When the rookie rushing back cut back in front of him for the touchdown, defensive end Chase Young—who the Niners acquired from the Washington Commanders at the trade deadline—was seen jogging toward Gibbs.
With so much at stake this week, Young acknowledged that it is imperative that such mistakes never be repeated. However, he refrained from providing specific details about how that play came to be on Tuesday.
“The only thing we’re worried about is doing our job every play and preparing for this game the best we can,” Young stated. “We must perform better. This game, you will witness it.”
Similar problems with effort were seen in the secondary during Lions receiver Jameson Williams’ first-quarter 42-yard touchdown run. Wilks should have been furious with the Niners, Dre Greenlaw said.
“I think the most important thing is just how we felt about it as a team,” Greenlaw stated. “I wholeheartedly concur. We could play harder, I thought, and I could play harder too. Thus, you also need to examine yourself. It truly comes down to it.”
Gipson, Greenlaw, and Shanahan all noted that since Shanahan and general manager John Lynch joined the Niners in 2017, the team has never questioned effort. But that was also a contributing factor in the startling nature of the performance versus the Lions. It wasn’t only that it took place. The fact that there was so much on the line during the greatest game of the year was the reason.
“For it to be on the biggest stage, obviously it’s magnified a little more,” said Gipson. It is unacceptable to be on that stage. But as I’ve already stated, doing so is inappropriate. The guys shouldn’t have to go out there and exert that kind of work because we are paid too much. include me. In other words, we simply know that’s not our style of play… It was just one of those things that got to us, but fortunately we overcame it and are now standing on a major platform.
There’s hope this week that the Niners can return to their typical level of focus after taking last week’s pre-Super Bowl bye to consider the problems. The previous 49ers team to participate in a Super Bowl, which lost to the Chiefs four years ago after blowing a 10-point fourth-quarter lead, included linebacker Fred Warner and end Nick Bosa as key players. Warner and Bosa have emphasized this week how crucial it is to perform at your best level for the entire 60 minutes in order to win and defeat Kansas City.
In light of this, Hargrave claimed the Niners accepted their critiques, considered them, “and then we put our heads down and got back to work and back to playing Niner football.”
Shanahan thinks his squad will return to its previous level for the majority of the season.
Shanahan remarked, “Our guys are really proud of what they accomplish.” Since I’ve known them, they have put in a lot of effort in practice and games every day. Therefore, I don’t think Sunday will be any different.”
