The Miami Dolphins are begging to be overlooked. A trap game this early sounds insane, I know, but after coming back from such a long flight and an emotional win… going against an opponent that doesn’t seem like much… let’s not forget that the Dolphins are still an NFL team. The 49ers are going against a young, hungry, mobile QB-led team with nothing to lose and everything to gain from embarrassing the 49ers. They started rallying on the Raiders before the Raiders put them away. WR Caleb Douglas seems like the real deal, so the 49ers secondary can’t be coasting just because they shut down Puka Nacua and Davante Adams.
Everybody better lock in at practice today.
49ers Week 1 Tape Takeaways: Motion commotion (paywall)
“The 49ers looked coordinated in the run game. They went back to their zone-heavy roots, and I wonder if leaning on Dash helped simplify things. It made things easier for the offensive line and made every run look the same (sometimes they were).
San Francisco consistently attacked the Rams’ weak linebacker corps. The coordination on help blocks and second-level climbs was outstanding. Colby looked weak at times, and allowed a team-high six run stops (my measure), but he also had great moments. This is, at this moment, a legitimately good offensive line. A healthy Trent Williams and Dom Puni make a massive difference…The 49ers didn’t really go to dime looks until the fourth quarter, once the Rams had all but abandoned their run game and 13 personnel looks. I love it. Raheem Morris used the 49ers’ best DBs, letting Deommodore Lenoir thrive in that Star/Jackal/Apex/positionless position that’s really just a second nickel.
We’ll see how much they lean on dime going forward, but I’d be stunned if this was a one-off experiment. It was too effective….Also, I enjoyed how effective the 49ers were at running stunts. They were far cleaner than in the past. It created a lot of effective disruption, and helped limit some of the wear and tear Nick Bosa would face with head-up rushes….Lastly, George Kittle. He doesn’t look near where he was last year before his injury and I wouldn’t expect him to. I say that while also noting that he had some nice blocks on the move. But he can’t really power off his surgically-repaired right leg.”
49ers mailbag: What’s next after De’Zhaun Stribling’s and Alfred Collins’ injuries? (Paywall)
“But I still think the bigger need is at defensive end.
Though Mykel Williams is technically a defensive end, he’ll be able to play a lot of defensive tackle snaps — especially on obvious passing downs — when he’s back after Week 4. The same goes for Keion White.
There are also a lot more quality defensive ends available, a list that includes Haason Reddick, Leonard Floyd and Joey Bosa. Here’s how I’d classify them:
If the team wants another Romello Height-like player or is worried it’s not getting enough out of Height, Reddick would be a good solution. He’s a lighter-bodied edge player who’s played in systems similar to the one defensive coordinator Raheem Morris is running this year.
If the team wants a dependable, every-down defensive end, Floyd is the answer. He’s familiar to both the 49ers’ brass and Morris. Yes, Floyd turned 34 last week and had only 3.5 sacks last year for Morris’ Falcons. But the 49ers aren’t in a position to look down their noses at 3.5 sacks. Their sack leader last year had four.
If the 49ers want a second-half-of-the-season boost, how about Bosa? The team might be worried about how Nick Bosa’s oft-injured older brother might hold up over a 17-game season. But an eight-game season seems reasonable. Joey had five sacks and 54 quarterback pressures for the Bills last year. That’s not elite, but it’s better than what the 49ers have opposite Nick at the moment.
Another interesting option is Yetur Gross-Matos, whose recent stint with the 49ers was marred by a knee issue. Gross-Matos didn’t play or practice much, but when he was on the field, he made an impact. His 16.3 percent pass-rush win rate last season was second best on the team behind Bosa’s 20 percent rate.
Gross-Matos is currently rehabilitating from that knee injury and isn’t ready to play. That could change by midseason.”
Will 49ers’ De’Zhaun Stribling need an ankle procedure? Surgeons explain factors at play (paywall)
“To be clear, most deltoid ligament sprains heal on their own. And that could be the case with Stribling. But the nature of the injury is why athletes are sidelined for at least a month — with some recoveries requiring up to six weeks — if surgery isn’t required.
Jung and Dr. Nicholas Strasser, a foot and ankle surgeon who is consultant to the Tennessee Titans and Vanderbilt University, explained that the deltoid ligament is a stronger ligament than the two on the outside of the ankle that are associated with low and high ankle sprains. As a result, it requires more force to damage the deltoid. And more force means more trauma to the ankle.
…Jung said Stribling would have already had a procedure if he had “gross instability,” but it’s likely premature to say whether rest and rehabilitation will restore whatever instability Stribling is experiencing. Stribling’s stability will be determined by how the fibers in his torn ankle heal.
“If they heal a little bit stretched out, or in a way that it just doesn’t have enough support to it, that could lead to surgery,” said Strasser, an assistant professor of orthopedics at Vanderbilt. “Especially because it’s on the inside part of the ankle and you’re often cutting and pushing off that a little bit more. The stress in that area is a little bit more extreme.”
If Stribling needs surgery, his recovery would last three to four months, which would sideline him for most or all of the regular season.”
49ers overreactions: Will 2026 NFL season be a touchdown frenzy for Brock Purdy?
“Mike Evans and George Kittle are the most-likely players to have 10 or more touchdown catches. Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel are candidates to team up with Purdy for a lot of scoring receptions, too.”
49ers find needed balance in run game with McCaffrey, Black
“From midfield, Brendel turned toward coach Kyle Shanahan on the sideline and waved his arms to suggest he wanted to run the ball, run it again and keep running it until the Rams showed they could at least slow it down.
“After a few of those good chunk run plays hit, I’m looking right at Kyle, ‘Let’s go,'” Brendel said. “Let’s just keep going. Let’s keep dialing them up.”
Shanahan apparently agreed with Brendel’s assessment. The success of those plays only yielded more runs, and by the end of San Francisco’s 27-7 win, it had 30 attempts for a robust 5.8 yards per rush….San Francisco also took advantage of a schematic curveball from the Rams. According to Brendel, the Niners spent the week preparing for plenty of five-man fronts — similar to what Los Angeles threw at them in recent matchups. Brendel was surprised when the Rams not only played four down linemen more frequently but were also often in nickel packages (five defensive backs).
“The way that they chose to play us on defense schematically we weren’t really expecting,” Brendel said. “Most teams are a little bit more scared of our wide zone and our run game.”
49ers’ Renardo Green credits experience for his big interception vs. Rams
“I knew the way I played it, I knew he (Stafford) didn’t see me, and even if he did, he didn’t think I could get to it,” Green told NBC Sports Bay Area. “He underestimated my abilities and what I could do, and he paid for it. I sunk under it and made a play on the ball….“Once I made it, I was thinking I’m only as good as my next play,” Green said of his mindset after the interception. “So I just moved on. I didn’t get too high. I don’t even know what it looked like. I don’t know where I caught it. I don’t know what landed inbounds first. I was just playing ball.”
49ers signing TE Jack Stoll to practice squad ahead of Dolphins game
“Last season with the Saints, Stoll appeared in 15 games, including four starts. He recorded six receptions on 11 targets for 46 yards and one touchdown, averaging 7.7 yards per catch.”
49ers sign former Bengals 3rd-round pick to the practice squad; promote Brayden Willis
“As for Jackson, he came on late in the preseason for the Bengals, but was unlikely to crack their 2-deep. Jackson flashed toward the end of his rookie season for the Bengals, recording a tackle for loss in three of the final four games, as well as a sack. He didn’t generate much pressure, but that’s to be expected of a player of that stature.
The 49ers are looking for a defensive tackle who can hold their ground against the run.
Jackson has the size to do it.”
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