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A prime reason why the defense has had such success? The unit has consistently pressured opposing quarterbacks while allowing the fewest rushing yards per game and fewest yards per carry.
DE Nick Bosa has led the charge, putting together a 15-sack, 70-pressure season, while generating a pass-rush win rate of nearly 25%, which is among the best in the NFL.
However, a critical aspect of the 49ers' success along the defensive line has been Bosa's "help", led by breakout DE Charles Omenihu, who has quietly produced a strong season as San Francisco's second-best pass-rusher on the edge.
On the season, Omenihu has 44 pressures, four sacks, and a 21.3% pass-rush win rate, all of which rank second on the 49ers this season.
With his 44 pressures, Omenihu ranks just outside the top 30 among defenders this season, which is elite for a player still playing out his rookie deal.
When adding perspective, the Texas Longhorns product has been phenomenal, ranking ninth in the NFL in pass-rush win rate by volume this season.
San Francisco brought Omenihu in at the trade deadline last season for one specific reason—to rush the passer. After fully acclimating to his new team over the second half of last season and through the offseason, Omenihu has done exactly that in his first full season as a 49er.
Following the 49ers' dominant 13-0 win over the New Orleans Saints, defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans praised Omenihu's efforts, which included 14 pressures—tied for best in the NFL with Nick Bosa over a two-game stretch at the time.
Ryans furthered his praise of Omenihu and his counterparts by including that even a player of Bosa's caliber requires help from his supporting cast.
"[Nick] Bosa may get most of the attention because he actually gets the quarterback down a lot more, and he's our best player, without a doubt. But Bosa can't do what he's able to do on the edge if it's not for [the others]. It's Kevin Givens, it's Kerry Hyder, it's Charles, it's Drake [Jackson], all those guys inside doing their job that allows Bosa to excel on the outside."
Fellow defensive end Samson Ebukam isn't far behind, ranking inside the top 60 with 34 pressures on the year, a 15.2% pass-rush win rate, and four sacks.
Ebukam has been very impressive, holding his own as a pass-rusher and a stout run defender, recording 18 run stops on the year with a 12.5% stop rate, which leads the team.
Behind Omenihu and Ebukam is rookie edge rusher Drake Jackson, who enjoyed a strong start to the 2022 season with three sacks in his first six weeks.
While the USC product hasn't recorded a sack since, he is fourth on the team in pressures with 16, despite a relatively low snap count, and sports a 10.1% pass-rush win rate, which ranks well among rookie edge rushers.
The depth continues with critical pieces such as defensive linemen Kerry Hyder and Kevin Givens, who each have over ten pressures on the season.
In fact, over San Francisco's past two performances, despite significant injuries to key players along the defensive line, each active player of the position group has recorded at least one pressure per game, truly encapsulating the effectiveness of the depth behind Nick Bosa.
While this 2022 group isn't necessarily composed of several superstars like the 2019 49ers defensive line, it is much deeper, which maximizes the performance of those on the field.
While there have been some lapses, especially without Nick Bosa, the 49ers defensive line has spearheaded this incredible defensive performance during their seven-game winning streak, limiting opponents to no more than 275 yards passing and 75 yards rushing during the stretch.
Although Javon Kinlaw and Arik Armstead have missed significant time this season, defensive tackles Kevin Givens, Hassan Ridgeway, and recently, T.Y. McGill have filled in admirably, maintaining the degree of consistency that the starters provided.
The reason behind San Francisco's defensive success this season begins in the trenches, and the players opposite of Bosa deserve some of the spotlight for their integral roles this season.
- Rohan Chakravarthi
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Written by:Writer/Reporter for 49ers Webzone