Two San Francisco 49ers defensive players made Pro Football Focus' top 10 list of rookies during Week 1. How did the rest of the team do during last night's 28-0 beating of the Los Angeles Rams? A number of 49ers defensive players, and one offensive player, ranked very high within their respective positions according to the advanced analytics site.
Cornerbacks
Tramaine Brock (88.2) and Jimmie Ward (87.7) ranked third and fifth among all NFL cornerbacks through one week of football. Seattle Seahawks CB DeShawn Shead graded the highest while Denver Broncos CB Chris Harris Jr. came in second and Green Bay Packers CB Damarious Randall came in fourth.
Brock was targeted eight times and allowed only three catches for 16 yards. Rams QB Case Keenum's passer rating when throwing in Brock's direction was just 45.8.
"This was a poor display of offensive football from both teams, but the 49ers never really allowed the Rams' offense to do anything," said Jordan Plocher of Pro Football Focus. "San Francisco's defenders on all three levels graded very well against L.A., but expectations of similar performances will have to be tempered, as the Rams have one of the league's worst offenses."
Offensive Tackles
Veteran All-Pro Joe Staley (83.6) ranked third among all NFL tackles and first among left tackles. That is not a big surprise considering that Staley was the team's highest rated offensive lineman last season and is consistently within the top of the list. He was behind only Pittsburgh Steelers OT Marcus Gilbert and New York Giants OT Marshall Newhouse among tackles.
"Staley didn't allow a single pressure on 44 pass-block snaps," said Plocher.
Safeties
Eric Reid (86.8) was not only among the top at his position during Week 1, he was the best graded safety in the NFL. He edged out Los Angeles Rams SS T.J. McDonald, Arizona Cardinals SS Tony Jefferson, and even Seattle Seahawks SS Kam Chancellor.
