"Lenoir crafted his 'Hyena' nickname to stand out as unique among his NFL peers, but contrary to his moniker, he has quietly dominated receivers with effective play," the analytics team wrote.
Since taking over as the 49ers' top corner following Charvarius Ward's offseason departure, Lenoir has delivered standout production that rivals the NFL's best. Here's a look at his key metrics this season:
- Has allowed the second-fewest yards per coverage snap (0.5) among cornerbacks with 100+ coverage snaps.
- Has spent the seventh-most time in tight coverage (109.3 seconds) this season.
- On 10 targets beyond 16 air yards, he has not allowed a single completion.
- His 11.6% target rate ranks 12th-lowest among 104 cornerbacks with 100+ coverage snaps. That's an improvement from 2024 (18.4%), when he frequently played in the nickel spot.
- Since the start of 2024, he has allowed only one touchdown on 124 targets. No other cornerback with 120+ targets has allowed fewer than four since then.
- His 5.6 yards per target is the lowest among all cornerbacks with 120+ targets.
On Sunday against the Houston Texans, Lenoir hauled in an interception, snapping an interception-less streak that spanned an NFL-record 14 games. However, Lenoir made the mistake of not going down or getting out of bounds, which could have set up a field goal to end the first half.
"It was really just I was trying to score," Lenoir said. "I should have slid. I wasn't aware how much time was left on the clock, but I just (saw) the end zone and I was trying to score (and) put us in a good position to be able to win the game."
With his strong coverage metrics and unwavering confidence, Lenoir continues to prove himself to be one of the NFL's premier cornerbacks.
Related News
More San Francisco 49ers News
-
49ers make history: Key stats from dominant 38-17 win over Raiders
The San Francisco 49ers improved to 7-1 after a 38-17 Week 9 win over the Las Vegas Raiders at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Below are several statistics and notes from Sunday's game, which were provided by the 49ers Communications staff. With The Win... The... -
John Lynch calls Brandon Aiyuk situation 'fluid' as 49ers weigh next steps
San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch wasn't ready to discuss the Brandon Aiyuk situation last week, ahead of the team's scheduled meeting with the wide receiver. Aiyuk was granted reinstatement by the NFL on Monday after reporting to the 49ers for a physical. He is... -
49ers Notebook: Purdy burns Raiders with his legs; Halton injury hits teammates hard; Do the 49ers have a Super Bowl defense?
The latest version of the 49ers-Raiders rivalry was a memorable one, with a large number of twists, turns and unpredictable moments en route to a 38-17 49ers win at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara. The teams don't play in the regular season often and didn't meet in the preseason... -
49ers' John Lynch addresses Mac Jones trade speculation
The November 10 NFL trade deadline is fast approaching, and with several quarterback injuries around the league, speculation is growing about the future of San Francisco 49ers backup quarterback Mac Jones. The 49ers have an intriguing bargaining chip in Jones, but...