The 49ers have been hoarding draft picks like a survivalist and canned goods. It's also what gives them an edge when the injury bug bites, says retired NFL defensive end Stephen White.
If you take a look around the league this time of year in recent years, one thing always starts to become obvious: Very few teams that can boast quality depth across their roster. Guys start getting worn down and beat up and the next thing you know, several players are out with injuries for weeks and the backups are starting.
Those franchises that best prepare for untimely injuries tend to give themselves the best chance at the end of the season. Those that do not are basically stuck hoping, wishing and/or praying that nothing happens to one of their main guys.
The San Francisco 49ers have been hoarding draft picks every year like those crazy-ass "survivalists" hoard canned goods. Then, use the draft itself to help build your team's quality depth across the board. Many teams are still in a position where they have to find starters in the draft, which reminds you just how ahead of the game the 49ers have been the last few years. I sort of mentioned this in April after the 49ers once again were able to find quality gems in the draft well after the first round at positions that looked to be stacked on their roster.
I love that strategy because iron sharpens iron. If a backup who is currently on the team is the best man for the job, then no rookie should be able to take their spot. Conversely, if that veteran backup is slipping, then the rookie draft pick gives the team a better option should disaster strike. No matter what, the competition itself should bring out the best of everyone involved which will only make the team better overall.
That's how the 49ers defense continued playing lights-out football despite missing high-level defenders like outside linebacker Aldon Smith and inside linebackers NaVorro Bowman and Patrick Willis. Those guys are all Pro Bowl, All-Pro types, and their backups were also pretty good the last few years. And still the 49ers decided to use draft picks on players at those same positions this spring without batting an eye. This is the same defense that has been choking opponents out for like the last four years. They seemed to already have this whole kicking ass on defense thing down, but they still decided to select inside linebacker Chris Borland in the third round and outside linebacker Aaron Lynch in the fifth round and they are now reaping the benefits of those moves.
Chris Borland
Last Sunday against the New York Giants, with Willis out for the season and Bowman still not off the PUP list after his knee injury from the playoffs, Borland made his fourth start of the year and seemed to be everywhere, all day long. He was credited with 13 total tackles which included two tackles for loss, three passes defensed and two crucial interceptions to help the 49ers take down the Giants in New York, 16-10.
The thing I was most impressed with in watching Borland on film was his decisiveness on every play. As soon as he diagnosed whether a play was a run or pass, he immediately hauled ass to get to his responsibility in a hurry. I know 3-4 defenses are generally seen as read-and-react type schemes, but Borland did way more attacking than waiting or reacting. He barely even had to take on offensive linemen because he was so quick from side to side making his way to the ball, showing an uncanny ability to beat blockers without having to physically lock up with them. That left him free to make allllll of the tackles on the ball carriers in his vicinity. And as you might have heard, he's pretty damn good at getting opposing runners on the ground.
His decisiveness and suddenness is what also helped him in pass coverage. When you look back at his first interception in the second quarter on Sunday, you can see that Borland read Giants quarterback Eli Manning the whole way while dropping into zone coverage. As soon as Eli started his throwing motion toward Odell Beckham Jr, on a slant just a few yards away from Borland, Borland didn't hesitate at all. He jumped all over that pass, intercepted it and took it back 12 yards to the Giants' 29-yard line which helped to set up a 49ers field goal on the ensuing drive.
Fast forward to the end of the game with 4:50 left and the 49ers up just six points. The Giants made it all the way down to the 49ers 4-yard line, but it was also fourth-and-goal. That's what you call a pressure situation, and once again Borland showed up. He intercepted a pass that was tipped by his teammate corner Dontae Johnson and effectively closed the door on any chance for the Giants to come back and win.
You want to know the play that really made me like this kid though? After the 49ers offense had run the clock down to just 1:22 left in the game they had to punt again to Beckham, who had just returned a punt 25 yards the last time they punted to him. Guess who made the tackle on Beckham after a 6-yard return. No, seriously, go ahead and guess.
Yep, there was Borland the tackling machine, doing what he does best again and making sure that Beckham couldn't help the Giants much with field position in the event they wanted to try a last-gasp attempt to score a touchdown and win the game. Imagine that, a starter who had the kind of outstanding game Borland had to that point, running down on punt team and actually making the play. He's definitely going to be a monster and I can't wait to see how he develops over the years, even when/if the 49ers get Bowman and Willis back.
Borland wasn't the only rookie to rise to the occasion on Sunday, by the way.
Aaron Lynch
Even though Aldon Smith made his debut for the season on Sunday after serving a lengthy suspension, Aaron Lynch still had a significant role in the game. Even though Lynch was starting his second game in a row, he was supposed to be a rotational guy working in and out with Smith and Ahmad Brooks. Later, he ended up basically getting true starters reps when Brooks refused to play after halftime (long story). That gave Lynch an opportunity to put his imprint on the game, and the kid did not disappoint.
Yeah, his stat line of two tackles and one sack looks a bit meager compared to Borland's, but Lynch also made some big plays that didn't make it onto his ledger. Hell, maybe Lynch's most impressive play of the game -- a sack of Manning in the second quarter -- didn't even end up counting. The reason it might've been his most impressive play wasn't really the result, but how he got to Manning in the first place. Lynch came off the ball and absolutely destroyed Giants tackle Charles Brown, knocking him on his ass and not even breaking stride on his way to the quarterback. The shit was so funny I had to rewind it a few times just to make sure a whistle hadn't blown or something. Nope. Brown evidently just wasn't ready for Lynch's power and took a major "L" as a result.
Unfortunately, Lynch's teammate Michael Wilhoite was called for defensive holding on the play. At the same time when you kick a guy's ass that way it has to affect him the rest of the game, and so I think with the way Lynch whupped Brown like a rented mule from that point on, it's accurate to say that the play did have an effect.
On the Giants' first drive after halftime, 49ers defensive tackle Ray McDonald notched what was basically a coverage sack on Manning on second-and-7. That set up a third-and-13 where Lynch poured a little salt in the wound by picking up another sack himself, and best of all, this one counted. He and McDonald did a great job running a Tex pass rush game. Because Brown was sitting so far back after the snap, he had no shot of recovering and blocking Lynch after he looped inside. That forced the Giants to punt and helped maintain the 49ers' lead.
I gave Lynch two demerits for celebrating after the play instead of picking up the fumble he hadn't realized that he caused, but most pass rushers have been there. Happened to me in college against Alabama my junior year. The sad thing is both Lynch and I didn't look nearly as cool as we thought we did celebrating in the first damn place. Hopefully, he takes that play as a learning experience and looks for the ball first from this point forward.
Now, I said that not all of Lynch's big plays showed up on his stat sheet, and one he made with 9:48 left in the game is a perfect example. The Giants were down 16-10 at that point and had driven down to the 49ers' 32-yard line. You had to figure they would have had a good chance at making a field goal from there and cutting into the lead. Instead, Lynch came off the ball on that second-and-5 looking like he was going to bull rush Brown again.
When Brown tried to sit on Lynch's power with his punch, Lynch used the window wiper move to knock both of Brown's hands to the side, leaving him right there at the line of scrimmage as he raced to put a hit on Manning. Lynch ended up making contact with Manning just as he released a pass that would ultimately be intercepted by Chris Culliver. Lynch was directly responsible for that turnover, but you would never know it by just looking up his stat sheet. Forcing the Giants to turn the ball over with the 49ers only up by six points and less than seven minutes left to go in the game was a fucking huge play, just in case you hadn't gathered that by now.
The 49ers have been awesome at using the draft to help build quality depth all over their roster for the last few years. The problem in trying to export that to other teams is that there is no Draft Pick Fairy that can go around and award everyone else the same number of extra draft picks. I guess it would be nice if they could all find some kind of magic way to accumulate more picks (not with a Draft Pick Fairy though, that shit sounds kinda creepy). And I mean nice as in it would be hilarious to watch most of them get more picks and still find a way to fuck up the picks.
What the 49ers have done and are continuing to do takes picks, but it also takes an ability to scout players. I can't act like their success is only due to them having extra picks. I also don't know how much longer they will continue to play this game of collecting extra draft picks every year, anyway. What I can say is that, for now, they are working that shit to perfection. It should end up serving them well the rest of this season and perhaps even the postseason if they find a way to get there.
from SBNation.com - All Posts http://ift.tt/1p9a5dK
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