Film room: Vulnerabilities in 49ers’ defense the Cowboys can attack in wild card round

I mentioned earlier this week that the 49ers are a dangerous team with a defense starting to play at a similar level to 2019 when they went to the Super Bowl. That doesn’t mean they don’t have any weaknesses, though.

So let’s take a look at how the Cowboys offense can attack San Francisco.

Breaking down the 49ers’ zone coverage

The 49ers are towards the bottom of the league in man-coverage frequency, so the Cowboys will need to have their zone-beaters ready. Early downs are where they’ll generally see more zone coverage, and it’s in these situations when Dallas should look to attack.

One way teams have had success against San Francisco’s zone coverages has been to find ways to isolate their slot receivers on linebackers. The play concept below from the Rams offense last week is a great example.

This was second down. The 49ers matched up to LA’s 11 personnel (one RB, one TE, three WR) with nickel personnel, leaving two linebackers on the field. They would end up playing quarters coverage, a common look out of their defense:

One of the weaknesses of this coverage is that with four defenders responsible for the four deep vertical zones, that leaves just three underneath defenders to cover a lot of space. The key on offense is removing help defenders and then attacking one of those underneath defenders with two receivers.

To the back side, the Rams had the X-receiver run his route with a vertical stem that split the cornerback and safety to his side, occupying both. The running back released to the flat, taking the linebacker to that side with him:

To the front side, the Rams worked middle linebacker Fred Warner with a high-low combination:

With Warner in conflict, he was a couple of steps too slow to respond to Cooper Kupp’s in-breaking route. And with the backside occupied, Kupp was wide open:

It’s not hard to imagine CeeDee Lamb in that slot position running freely against linebackers in the middle of the field.

From the end zone angle, you can see another element of LA’s game plan that Dallas will need to utilize. Both the running back and tight end chipped San Fran’s edge rushers:

That’s an approach that must be utilized fairly frequently against Nick Bosa and company.

The big plays will be there

The 49ers have a great defensive line that gets after the quarterback (fifth in the NFL in sacks). However, when they can’t get to the quarterback, their secondary gets exposed. Whether in man or zone, there are always ways to create 1-on-1 matchups. And offenses have been able to take advantage all season:

Notice the chips on the edge in protection to give the quarterback enough time to deliver this ball downfield.

The 49ers defense allowed 54 passes of 20 yards or more this season (13th most in the NFL). The cornerback that opponents have gone after recently has been rookie Ambry Thomas, who has gotten the start in the Niners’ last five games:

Thomas came down with the interception against Odell Beckham a week ago to put the 49ers in the playoffs, but quarterbacks have had a lot of success against him since he became a starter. In fact, opposing quarterbacks have a 118.0 passer rating when targeting Thomas, including 17.5 yards per reception (good for third most in the NFL according to Pro Football Reference).

The Cowboys will have opportunities to make big plays as long as Prescott has time.

Protecting Dak

The 49ers defense is predicated on getting to the quarterback with just four pass rushers. Bosa in particular is an absolute game-wrecker who has to be accounted for.

The Cowboys can get creative in the ways they protect Dak Prescott. In addition to those chips shown above, play-action will be Prescott’s friend this week because it can help hold the pass rush. It also has the benefit of influencing defenders in coverage, opening up windows for big completions:

Another tactic you might see is the Cowboys using bigger personnel. We could see them use lots of 12 personnel (one RB, two TE) and keep one or both tight ends in at times. Perhaps offensive coordinator Kellen Moore will go to those six-offensive-linemen looks with guard Connor McGovern aligned in the backfield to bring some additional size to the protection.

The 49ers defense will be a tough challenge for Prescott and the offense. They’ll need to be sharp with their execution and take advantage of opportunities when they do arise.

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