2013 - Week 5: Thoughts after rewatching the game...

Originally posted by Eugene88:
Did the 49ers wr's just not do an adequate job of getting open last night, or was Kap not seeing the open receivers?

Other than Boldin and a hurt Davis, it seems like everyone else can't get more than a foot away from a defender. It's going to be nice when we get Manningham and Crabtree back, and Davis gets healthy. THEN we'll be a better passing team IMO.

Dont forget the Texans D is pretty stout and were able to keep Kap at bay (similar to how they held Wilson in check last week). Opponents are taking advantage of the Niners lack of a receiver corps and a hurt VD.

Originally posted by DelCed2486:
Re: Reid, Brock, and the entire secondary in general...there's still been stretches where they don't play the ball, dumb penalties, too much cushion, missed tackles, etc., BUT, 5 games into the season I think the unit many thought would be a liability has been a strength. Last night the pass rush was not putting consistent pressure on Schaub/Yates, so it was great coverage by the secondary that throttled Houston's passing game.

I'd have to agree. Playing Brock instead of Nnamdi seems to have made a difference as well.

I also haven't seen Reid really burned yet in coverage. He's playing back much more often and i think that has attributed to both the Pass D and the Run D. That isn't a criticism BTW...the less he bites on Play Action the better he's going to be in coverage.

Originally posted by VaBeachNiner:
Dont forget the Texans D is pretty stout and were able to keep Kap at bay (similar to how they held Wilson in check last week). Opponents are taking advantage of the Niners lack of a receiver corps and a hurt VD.

Yeah it looked like they got consistent pressure on Kap, but the cameras never seemed to show if anyone actually got open or not. All they seemed to do was close-ups of JJ Watt's face and pan back to Matt Schaub's painful expressions. Good lord that is a broken man.

*** Brock has played better these last two weeks and deserves to be the nickel corner. I am not a fan of him but he deserves the job.

Every time the 49er Offense is on the side line why is Kaepernick not reviewing photos like elite Qbs, Manning, Brady? Did Alex Smith review photos when he was on the sideline? Does Harbaugh not believe in it?

If their has not been a wide out to step up and be the number 2, why not use more two tight end formations and pass out of them on first and second downs? Since Walker has been gone they do not target Celek or Mcdonald much when they have multiple te formations they mostly run out of it and this can be predictable.

I had faith in Harbaugh that we could at worst be 3-2 on this tough stretch and feel good about where they are, however I look at the seahawks schedule and they get NEW ORLEANS at home and the 49ers play Saints on the road, so it looks to me that it might favor them.

Originally posted by Marvin49:
I'd have to agree. Playing Brock instead of Nnamdi seems to have made a difference as well.

I also haven't seen Reid really burned yet in coverage. He's playing back much more often and i think that has attributed to both the Pass D and the Run D. That isn't a criticism BTW...the less he bites on Play Action the better he's going to be in coverage.

I really like Goldson but he did get to aggressive and teams in the play offs attacked him and Hitner. He plays Ed Reed style where he is deep and comes up at times to support the run, I think I can live with a miss tackle a game and never give up a deep pass.

Originally posted by Eugene88:
Yeah it looked like they got consistent pressure on Kap, but the cameras never seemed to show if anyone actually got open or not. All they seemed to do was close-ups of JJ Watt's face and pan back to Matt Schaub's painful expressions. Good lord that is a broken man.

J.J. WATT is all they talked about!

Originally posted by crabman82:

Originally posted by SportsFan:
Don't agree with you that Reid is missing too many tackles. He missed one that I saw last night. Other than that the dude is tackling really well (as far as I can tell).

yeah thats what i am seeing too through my drunk eyes watching the game. i see him 3 or 4 times make a nice tackle. he probably does miss some if marvin is mentioning it, but nothing i can remember off the top

Reid missed one tackle that I noticed against the Texans, but maybe it was two.

He is playing very well, and has room to get even better. Not a bad pick.

Originally posted by GORO:
*** Brock has played better these last two weeks and deserves to be the nickel corner. I am not a fan of him but he deserves the job.

Every time the 49er Offense is on the side line why is Kaepernick not reviewing photos like elite Qbs, Manning, Brady? Did Alex Smith review photos when he was on the sideline? Does Harbaugh not believe in it?

If their has not been a wide out to step up and be the number 2, why not use more two tight end formations and pass out of them on first and second downs? Since Walker has been gone they do not target Celek or Mcdonald much when they have multiple te formations they mostly run out of it and this can be predictable.

I had faith in Harbaugh that we could at worst be 3-2 on this tough stretch and feel good about where they are, however I look at the seahawks schedule and they get NEW ORLEANS at home and the 49ers play Saints on the road, so it looks to me that it might favor them.

1) I'm having to adjust my opinion of Brock as well. He's played better than I thought him capable.

2) Do you really think he doesn't review? We don't see him on camera on every defensive play. Don't make assumptions.

3) They do use multi-TE formations...and they have trouble getting open. I like McDonald, but he's not nearly as dynamic a player Walker was. He'll learn how to get open, but it won't be in the same way Walker did. People underestimate how big a part of the offense Walker was even when he WASN'T Catching (or dropping) the ball. The issue here is that outside of vernon, there is NOBODY on the team that scares a defense vertically or can create separation. I'm not just talking WRs. I mean TEs too. Who were the skill positions running routes in the Super Bowl? Crabtree, Davis, Walker and Moss. ONE of those guys was available yesterday and he's not healthy.

Originally posted by Eugene88:

Originally posted by VaBeachNiner:
Dont forget the Texans D is pretty stout and were able to keep Kap at bay (similar to how they held Wilson in check last week). Opponents are taking advantage of the Niners lack of a receiver corps and a hurt VD.

Yeah it looked like they got consistent pressure on Kap, but the cameras never seemed to show if anyone actually got open or not. All they seemed to do was close-ups of JJ Watt's face and pan back to Matt Schaub's painful expressions. Good lord that is a broken man.

Guys are constantly open, especially Vernon. NFL is a timing league, you have to throw the ball BEFORE the guy is open. Kap can't do that yet. He basically looks like Alex in years 2-5.

My Brother has been on the Brock bandwagon for awhile now. He really liked the kid before his last two games. Looks like he was right about Brock. I was never as high on im, but was never really down on him either. Nhamdi may end up a casualty when some of these guys come back healthy from the PUP.

Originally posted by IdahoNiner:
My Brother has been on the Brock bandwagon for awhile now. He really liked the kid before his last two games. Looks like he was right about Brock. I was never as high on im, but was never really down on him either. Nhamdi may end up a casualty when some of these guys come back healthy from the PUP.

Always liked the kid. Looked real good in 2011 but then that hand injury seemed to set him back a bit. Glad to see he is back.

Reid, Brock and the "new" guys on defense are playing really well.

I think the only teams better than the 49ers are: Denver, Colts, Seattle and Saints.

Not too worried about the Colts, the Dec game against Seattle is key. Saints and Denver are tough...so let's see.

Originally posted by Marvin49:

Originally posted by LasVegasWally:
Thanks for the fine post Marv.

Add Ian Williams to another D starter who's out.

Dorsey played very well.

Skuta played well.

Boone played a very good game.

Miller's blocking was spot on and I think [please correct me if wrong] that he has more receptions than all our receivers exept for VD & Boldin. That's a real cause for concern.

Kap seems to be going through something. BUT he isn't playing stupid. Zero interceptions was important last night. He doesn't seem to be going through all his progressions or he seems not to be confident in his other receivers. Frankly, I wish I knew.
Last night he was hit more frequently than I can recall.

Has any OLineman beat Watt this year. He seemed to dominate everyone.

Brooks was awesome.

Hey Marv, do you think we make a play for a FA if Ray Mac is out?

Dunno...heard yesterday they were looking at Seymore so thats possible. They'll get Dial and Carradine back here so

Originally posted by Marvin49:
Hrmmm. Mixed feelings on this one...

1) Kap: CAREER regular season statline as a starter - 12 starts, 194 comp, 324 att, 59.87 comp%, 2569 yards, 7.92 YPA, 16 TDs, 7 INTs, 92.47 QB Rating. There has been a discussion here on the 'zone as to the "fault" of Kaps numbers this season. Has he regeressed? Have teams figured him out? Can his receivers not get open? I think the answer is "yes". Its clear that his receivers are getting very little separation. That in turn has made him a bit more wary of letting the ball go. Teams have learned to trap him in the pocket and play press man all day. He needs to learn to defeat it. He also needs his horses back. He didn't need to put up big yards yesterday, but it was clear he was a bit scattershot. Some of it wasn't his fault and I'll go into that later, but some of it IS his fault. He needs to play better.

2) Vernon: I give him all kinds of credit for being out there and giving it everything he has, but he's not healthy. His presence makes a HUGE difference even while he's hurt and they need him in there, but he's clearly not the same Vernon right now. That sideline pass was not perfect by Kap but it was catchable...and he barely tried. Thats not criticism BTW because the effort for that ball might have aggrivated the injury. The ball close to the goal-line was another ball that he just seemed really gimpy on that leg. I dunno if he'd have been able to go get it if healthy, but you have to wonder. He seems just fine tho running in straight lines as evidensed by the 64 yard TD. He still has the speed to stretch the D, but he's struggling with that leg. I just hope he can get close to 100% at some point in the not too distant future.

3) Reid: Let me first start off by saying I already like this kid better than I ever liked Goldson. Smart. Good instincts. Hits with his shoulder. Getting better every week...but the missed tackles are driving me nuts. LOL. Too many arm tackles. He's a big strong kid with LONG arms...there is no reason he should be missing the tackles he's missing. I love the big hits, but he's gotta be a better tackler than he is right now. I like that he seems to be getting a bit more aggressive every week (that was one of my very early criticisms in the preseason...played tentative). Perhaps as he gets more comfortable his tackling will improve (I seem to remember Goldson having a similar issue), but right now he just misses way too many.

4) Brock: Yeah, Nnamdi ain't getting his job back. This is two weeks in a row that Brock has looked really good and he looked really good early in the preseason as well. In the past I've always remembered Brock as the guy who gave up the TD to Manningham when Brown got hurt in the NFC Championship game after the 2011 season. I have to start looking at him differently tho just as I've adjusted my view of Kyle Williams. He is playing very, very well and just seems so much better than Nnamdi.

5) Wilhoite: Gotta give him a shout out for stepping up now twice in place of Willis. Very solid game. The Texans are going to move the ball on the ground if you only play 7 in the box. Thats just gonna happen. He limited that damage tho and played very well.

6) Pass Rush: A bit concerned here. Not getting a ton of pressure right now, but it's understandable considering Aldon is still out. Lemonier looks kinda stiff and is too easily pushed beyond the pocket. The 49ers are being forced to blitz more often than they have in the past but teams have thus far been unable to capitolize on that. Something to watch going forward.

7) Surviving the Crucible: This opening 5 weeks was always going to be a challenge. It became even more so when Crab, Vernon, and Willis got hurt and Aldon went into rehab. While I'd have loved to get through at 5-0 or 4-1, 3-2 really isn't so terrible. The schedule gets a whole lot easier here for a stretch and that will give some guys time to get healthy. Right now, all the Niners need to do is survive these games. They don't need to be pretty. Eventually the horses will start coming back and this team will look very different in week 16 than they do in week 6. We sit only 1 game back of the division lead and Seattle still has to come to our house. With all that has gone wrong, the 49ers fate is still in their hands.

8) Defense: This defense is still elite. When the offense can sustain a drive or 2 and not turn it over and give the D a short field, they can stay rested and dominate. That they have done so the last two weeks without both Willis and Aldon just speaks volumes. The Rams are not a very good team and the Texans are struggling, but 14 points in 2 games is 14 points in 2 games. Moreover, 8 of those points were a result of yet another short field off a turnover. Otherwise, we'd be looking at SIX points in 2 games. Despite lopsided losses in weeks 2 and 3, the 49ers defense currently sits 5th in yards per game and second in passing yards per game. They are 20th in rush yards per game, but ALOT of that is due to constantly playing 7 men in the box and because they wore down in weeks 2 and 3 because the offense couldn't sustain anything. On a per carry basis, they are tied for 7th in the NFL only allowing 3.7 yards per carry. In total yards per play they rank 4th. The next thing people would bring up is the most important stat...POINTS per game. Believe it or not, the 49ers currently rank 12th. This is despite scores by the Seahawks, Colts, and Rams late in games when the D was worn down and the O was turning the ball over. It was 12-3 late against Seattle despit the O doing nothing. It was 13-7 vs the Colts despite the O doing almost nothing. Bottom line, if the offense had produced more in weeks 2 and 3 we might be looking at the highest ranked defense in the NFL. Where has the 49ers D gone? Nowhere. Its just fine thank you.

9) Special Teams: OK, I wanna know who spiked the coolaid on those coverage units. WOW. Signing all those players specifically for Special Teams has really paid off.

10) Offense: This is where I'm uneasy. I'm uneasy because for 2 weeks now I'm really not sure what I'm seeing. I really like the recommitment to the run game and Gore looks like a younger man. It looks alot like what the 49ers looked like under Alex Smith...but I'm not sure if what we are seeing is what we can expect from them the rest of the season or if its just what we are going to see on a very short week (Rams) and against possibly the best D in the NFL (Texans). Is this the same O they will roll out vs the Cards? I really don't know. Perhaps as some guys start coming back we see it start to open up again. I just don't know. Should be fun to watch tho. :)

On Kap: its really hard to get into a rhythm as a QB if you're attempting only 15 passes all game, once the score was 21-0, the game plan was simple. Having said that, I do feel that Kap has been instructed to two reads on passing down... 6-15 looks pretty bad, but if you go through all the throws... Boldin dropped a 3rd down pass close to the goal line, the one to VD down the sideline would be a completion had VD been healthy, Baldwin catch out of bounds was pretty close to being a completion. Those are 3 plays right off the top of my head that if were converted, you're looking at 9-15 maybe 180 yrds 95+ rating.

Originally posted by kam_niners1:

Originally posted by Marvin49:

Originally posted by LasVegasWally:
Thanks for the fine post Marv.

Add Ian Williams to another D starter who's out.

Dorsey played very well.

Skuta played well.

Boone played a very good game.

Miller's blocking was spot on and I think [please correct me if wrong] that he has more receptions than all our receivers exept for VD & Boldin. That's a real cause for concern.

Kap seems to be going through something. BUT he isn't playing stupid. Zero interceptions was important last night. He doesn't seem to be going through all his progressions or he seems not to be confident in his other receivers. Frankly, I wish I knew.
Last night he was hit more frequently than I can recall.

Has any OLineman beat Watt this year. He seemed to dominate everyone.

Brooks was awesome.

Hey Marv, do you think we make a play for a FA if Ray Mac is out?

Dunno...heard yesterday they were looking at Seymore so thats possible. They'll get Dial and Carradine back here so

Originally posted by Marvin49:
Hrmmm. Mixed feelings on this one...

1) Kap: CAREER regular season statline as a starter - 12 starts, 194 comp, 324 att, 59.87 comp%, 2569 yards, 7.92 YPA, 16 TDs, 7 INTs, 92.47 QB Rating. There has been a discussion here on the 'zone as to the "fault" of Kaps numbers this season. Has he regeressed? Have teams figured him out? Can his receivers not get open? I think the answer is "yes". Its clear that his receivers are getting very little separation. That in turn has made him a bit more wary of letting the ball go. Teams have learned to trap him in the pocket and play press man all day. He needs to learn to defeat it. He also needs his horses back. He didn't need to put up big yards yesterday, but it was clear he was a bit scattershot. Some of it wasn't his fault and I'll go into that later, but some of it IS his fault. He needs to play better.

2) Vernon: I give him all kinds of credit for being out there and giving it everything he has, but he's not healthy. His presence makes a HUGE difference even while he's hurt and they need him in there, but he's clearly not the same Vernon right now. That sideline pass was not perfect by Kap but it was catchable...and he barely tried. Thats not criticism BTW because the effort for that ball might have aggrivated the injury. The ball close to the goal-line was another ball that he just seemed really gimpy on that leg. I dunno if he'd have been able to go get it if healthy, but you have to wonder. He seems just fine tho running in straight lines as evidensed by the 64 yard TD. He still has the speed to stretch the D, but he's struggling with that leg. I just hope he can get close to 100% at some point in the not too distant future.

3) Reid: Let me first start off by saying I already like this kid better than I ever liked Goldson. Smart. Good instincts. Hits with his shoulder. Getting better every week...but the missed tackles are driving me nuts. LOL. Too many arm tackles. He's a big strong kid with LONG arms...there is no reason he should be missing the tackles he's missing. I love the big hits, but he's gotta be a better tackler than he is right now. I like that he seems to be getting a bit more aggressive every week (that was one of my very early criticisms in the preseason...played tentative). Perhaps as he gets more comfortable his tackling will improve (I seem to remember Goldson having a similar issue), but right now he just misses way too many.

4) Brock: Yeah, Nnamdi ain't getting his job back. This is two weeks in a row that Brock has looked really good and he looked really good early in the preseason as well. In the past I've always remembered Brock as the guy who gave up the TD to Manningham when Brown got hurt in the NFC Championship game after the 2011 season. I have to start looking at him differently tho just as I've adjusted my view of Kyle Williams. He is playing very, very well and just seems so much better than Nnamdi.

5) Wilhoite: Gotta give him a shout out for stepping up now twice in place of Willis. Very solid game. The Texans are going to move the ball on the ground if you only play 7 in the box. Thats just gonna happen. He limited that damage tho and played very well.

6) Pass Rush: A bit concerned here. Not getting a ton of pressure right now, but it's understandable considering Aldon is still out. Lemonier looks kinda stiff and is too easily pushed beyond the pocket. The 49ers are being forced to blitz more often than they have in the past but teams have thus far been unable to capitolize on that. Something to watch going forward.

7) Surviving the Crucible: This opening 5 weeks was always going to be a challenge. It became even more so when Crab, Vernon, and Willis got hurt and Aldon went into rehab. While I'd have loved to get through at 5-0 or 4-1, 3-2 really isn't so terrible. The schedule gets a whole lot easier here for a stretch and that will give some guys time to get healthy. Right now, all the Niners need to do is survive these games. They don't need to be pretty. Eventually the horses will start coming back and this team will look very different in week 16 than they do in week 6. We sit only 1 game back of the division lead and Seattle still has to come to our house. With all that has gone wrong, the 49ers fate is still in their hands.

8) Defense: This defense is still elite. When the offense can sustain a drive or 2 and not turn it over and give the D a short field, they can stay rested and dominate. That they have done so the last two weeks without both Willis and Aldon just speaks volumes. The Rams are not a very good team and the Texans are struggling, but 14 points in 2 games is 14 points in 2 games. Moreover, 8 of those points were a result of yet another short field off a turnover. Otherwise, we'd be looking at SIX points in 2 games. Despite lopsided losses in weeks 2 and 3, the 49ers defense currently sits 5th in yards per game and second in passing yards per game. They are 20th in rush yards per game, but ALOT of that is due to constantly playing 7 men in the box and because they wore down in weeks 2 and 3 because the offense couldn't sustain anything. On a per carry basis, they are tied for 7th in the NFL only allowing 3.7 yards per carry. In total yards per play they rank 4th. The next thing people would bring up is the most important stat...POINTS per game. Believe it or not, the 49ers currently rank 12th. This is despite scores by the Seahawks, Colts, and Rams late in games when the D was worn down and the O was turning the ball over. It was 12-3 late against Seattle despit the O doing nothing. It was 13-7 vs the Colts despite the O doing almost nothing. Bottom line, if the offense had produced more in weeks 2 and 3 we might be looking at the highest ranked defense in the NFL. Where has the 49ers D gone? Nowhere. Its just fine thank you.

9) Special Teams: OK, I wanna know who spiked the coolaid on those coverage units. WOW. Signing all those players specifically for Special Teams has really paid off.

10) Offense: This is where I'm uneasy. I'm uneasy because for 2 weeks now I'm really not sure what I'm seeing. I really like the recommitment to the run game and Gore looks like a younger man. It looks alot like what the 49ers looked like under Alex Smith...but I'm not sure if what we are seeing is what we can expect from them the rest of the season or if its just what we are going to see on a very short week (Rams) and against possibly the best D in the NFL (Texans). Is this the same O they will roll out vs the Cards? I really don't know. Perhaps as some guys start coming back we see it start to open up again. I just don't know. Should be fun to watch tho. :)

On Kap: its really hard to get into a rhythm as a QB if you're attempting only 15 passes all game, once the score was 21-0, the game plan was simple. Having said that, I do feel that Kap has been instructed to two reads on passing down... 6-15 looks pretty bad, but if you go through all the throws... Boldin dropped a 3rd down pass close to the goal line, the one to VD down the sideline would be a completion had VD been healthy, Baldwin catch out of bounds was pretty close to being a completion. Those are 3 plays right off the top of my head that if were converted, you're looking at 9-15 maybe 180 yrds 95+ rating.

This is true...but you can also say that one of the early passes to Boldin SHOULD have been intercepted.

There are alot of coulda and shoulda....I'm just not quite sure I even know what I think right now. LOL.

Originally posted by NinerGM:
As usual, love the post Marvin.

I have to add that I'm really struggling with the designs of the passing game. Here's what I mean; if you're going to introduce a new WR in to the mix, give him a chance to shine; start with some routes where he can catch and run pretty easily. Why start off with a deep sideline route against the team's best corner? It's not just a separation issue with the WRs, it's the scheme IMHO does very little in getting these guys open. Compare this to the TE passing game design; it's clear either Harbaugh or someone else other than Roman design those plays because Davis always seems to be so open - and it's not just a separation issue, it's he's WIDE open and that to me is more scheme than talent. I just see a lot of variation with the passing game/passing routes.

Thoughts ......

I know NCommand has brought this up, but it seems many of the WR routes are straight ahead type routes (sideline routes). This may very well be by design to get VD open. Why run curls and digs that take the CB back towards the middle of the field? If the primary read on so many pass plays is VD, then keep the CBs away from the middle of the field. One other thing I've seen that can support this observation is how Miller and Vance will line up wide on occasion, taking an LB with them. Another case of trying to clear the middle of the field for VD to work his routes.