Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden recently spoke to reporters following a practice at INOVA Sports Performance Center at Redskins Park and gave his assessment of the winless San Francisco 49ers. The two teams will play each other on Sunday at FedExField in Landover, Maryland.
San Francisco may be without a victory this season but that doesn't mean Gruden is taking his next opponent lightly and feels the 49ers have the talent needed on their roster to be dangerous.
"[49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has] got talent, that's for sure," Gruden said. "They've lost four games by three points or less, I believe, two overtime games, so they're right there. They had the Rams on their heels. They had a horrific – unlucky, I should say – offensive pass interference call that cost them, so they're right there. They have a very good running back [in Carlos Hyde]. [Brian] Hoyer's played a lot of football. They've got Pierre Garçon. They've got a heck of left tackle [in Joe Staley].
"Their defense is coming on. They have three first rounders [Arik Armstead, DeForest Buckner, and Solomon Thomas] on that defensive line. [NaVorro] Bowman's still a heck of a linebacker. I don't know if Reuben Foster's going to play but he's an excellent linebacker. They have pieces to be good. They're just trying to implement a system and I think it will take some time, but they're very dangerous. That's for sure."
On Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, the 49ers lost their fourth-straight game by three-or-fewer points and their second-straight in overtime. Shanahan pointed out on Monday that the 49ers could easily be 4-1 rather than 0-5. Gruden agrees with Shanahan.
"I don't know anything about who they have there as far as personality goes," Gruden continued, "but I know that watching them on tape, they play hard to the bitter end. Like I said, four games, three points or less. They're right there against some very good football teams – Seattle, the Rams, Colts. Panthers they struggled a little bit against, but four out of five games, they easily could be 4-1. I think from a talent standpoint, they have people in place that can compete and win games."
Sunday's game is a homecoming of sorts for Shanahan. He was Washington's offensive coordinator from 2010 through 2013. Washington's head coach at the time was Shanahan's father, Mike. It will also be a return for 49ers wide receiver Pierre Garçon, who played in Washington from 2012 through 2016.
As of Tuesday, Washington remains an 11-point favorite over the visiting 49ers, according to Yahoo! Sports. The two teams will kick off at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET on Sunday.
* h/t to our friends over at Redskins Wire for the quotes
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