The San Francisco 49ers defense had a good night last night. The pitched a shutout against the visiting Los Angeles Rams with their 28-0 victory. We already know that CB Tramaine Brock ended the night as the 49ers' highest graded player. He was targeted eight times and only gave up three catches for 16 yards. So how did the rookies do?
This morning, advanced analytics site Pro Football Focus released their list of the top 10 rookie performances during Week 1 and two members of the 49ers defense made the list. The 49ers were the only team represented more than once on the list.
The two rookies that caught the attention of Pro Football Focus were DE DeForest Buckner at No. 7 and CB Rashard Robinson at No. 10.
"No rookie earned a higher pass-rushing grade than Buckner in Week 1," said senior analyst Michael Renner. "He may have been blanked in the box score, but his four hurries contributed greatly to the 49ers' win.
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"Unfortunately, he missed a tackle in the run game and got taken out of a couple other plays, and that's why he slips to seventh on this list."
Buckner recorded a 77.1 grade on Monday night. And that was only the third highest grade among interior defenders on the team. Arik Armstead graded at 82.9 while Quinton Dial graded at 81.4.
Robinson pitched a shutout of his own against Rams receivers. "In 23 coverage snaps, Robinson allowed a grand total of 0 yards into his coverage," explained Renner.
Robinson's 74.9 grade was also third among those at his position. Brock, who has already been mentioned graded at 88.2 while CB Jimmie Ward came in only slightly lower at 87.7.