Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Despite loss to Rams, 49ers’ DeForest Buckner, Pierre Garçon and Brian Hoyer earn PFF’s top game grades
Videos are auto-populated by an affiliate. This site has no control over the videos that appear above.
Four key members of the San Francisco 49ers' passing attack -- as well as defensive tackle DeForest Buckner -- earned the team's
top five grades from
Pro Football Focus after the Niners' shootout
41-39 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night.
Although Rams cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman earned
Pro Football Focus' game ball -- partially due to his interception and fumble recovery -- three 49ers ended the matchup with higher overall grades than
Pro Football Focus' highest rated player on the Rams.
Buckner led all players with
an 88.9 overall grade, after earning
a 92.2 overall grade in last week's game against the Seattle Seahawks. The
Pro Football Focus analysis team noted that Buckner has its second highest overall grade among interior defenders, and is the the only interior defender who currently ranks in the top five against both the pass and the run:
Buckner has been the unquestioned best defender on the 49ers through three games, positioning himself among elite company at his position. With a 90.4 overall grade on the season, the Oregon-product joins Ndamukong Suh (90.5) and J.J. Watt (90.2) as the only interior defenders with 90.0-plus grades this season.
Those who left wide receiver Pierre Garçon out of their fantasy football lineups due to his perceived difficult matchup against Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson were likely surprised by Garçon's dominance over the Rams' top corner. Garçon's seven catches for 142 yards -- 133 of which came against Johnson -- helped earn him
an 88.1 overall grade from
Pro Football Focus, and further trust from quarterback Brian Hoyer:
Hoyer -- thanks to help from Garçon -- earned
Pro Football Focus' third highest overall grade of the game, as he broke himself out of a two-game funk. Hoyer's 332 passing yards
doubled his season's output, and his two touchdown passes were his first of the year. The 49ers' signal caller also added a touchdown score on the ground, for a
Pro Football Focus overall grade of 87.7. Hoyer was accurate, but not only in the short game; Hoyer completed two passes over 50 yards, and was accurate on the majority of his intermediate passes as well:
Fellow integral members of the Niners' passing attack -- left tackle Joe Staley and wide receiver Marquise Goodwin -- rounded out
Pro Football Focus' top five 49ers of the game:
5 highest-graded 49ers vs. Rams
- DT DeForest Buckner - 88.9
- WR Pierre Garçon - 88.1
- QB Brian Hoyer - 87.7
- T Joe Staley - 85.5
- WR Marquise Goodwin - 80.6
- Chris Wilson
-
Written by:
You may have seen Chris Wilson's work on NFL game theory, statistical analysis, and film breakdowns at Minute Media, FanSided, Niner Noise, Insidethe49, LockedonSports, ClutchPoints, and others. Follow Chris on Twitter @cgawilson.
Facebook Comments
More San Francisco 49ers News
Where the 49ers landed in PFF's latest power ranking
While it would be foolish to declare that the San Francisco 49ers lack any deficiencies, the team remains one of the most talented rosters in the NFL. That alone is enough to place them high on media power rankings.
The truth is, power rankings mean very little at this stage in the offseason. Yes, free agency has come and gone, but NFL rosters are about to undergo further changes this week, with the 2024 NFL Draft slated for Thursday.
Pro Football Focus' Amelia Probst posted a power ranking based on the analytics site's data on each roster and the offseason roster moves made so far. The San Francisco 49ers came in at No. 2, behind only the Kansas City
PFF high on this cornerback for 49ers in mock draft
Analyst Dane Brugler of The Athletic grades former Iowa State cornerback T.J. Tampa as a second or third-round draft pick and ranks him 55th overall on his big board. Pro Football Focus, however, holds a higher opinion of the young defensive back. In his latest mock draft, the site's lead analyst, Sam Monson, has the San Francisco 49ers selecting Tampa with the No. 31 overall pick.
"T.J. Tampa fits the prototype of a 49ers cornerback," Monson explains. "He has had consecutive seasons of very impressive play and allowed just 240 yards on 49 targets last season. The team doesn't necessarily need him to make an immediate impact, but they could
Top 49ers Offensive Prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft
With the 2024 NFL Draft just around the corner, the anticipation is palpable as San Francisco prepares to make their first first-round selection in over two years. Here, I present the top prospects for each offensive position, both inside and outside the top 100, with their potential to shape the team's future and draft grades.
Quarterback - Michael Penix Jr., Washington
2nd-round grade
Strengths:
Pocket passer
High IQ and processing
Blitz beater
Concerns:
Durability (Four season-ending injuries)
Accuracy outside the pocket.
Michael Penix Jr. is a great pocket-passing quarterback with a high IQ pre- and post-snap. He can read the defense well and
Breaking down the 49ers drafts under John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan
We are less than one week away from the NFL Draft, and the San Francisco 49ers have their first day-one draft pick since 2021. That was the year they selected QB Trey Lance number three overall. The trade-up to get Lance cost the 49ers their first-round picks in 2022 and 2023. And now that they are back in the first round, at pick 31, fans are anxious to see what the team does with the pick. And with former assistant GM, Adam Peters, now in Washington, it will be interesting to see how well the 49ers draft without Peters in the room.
We looked back at the seven drafts GM John Lynch and Head Coach Kyle Shanahan have led to see what information we could pull from those drafts. There were plenty of hits, plenty of misses, and a few surprises along the way. The draft picks are
