Preview: 49ers Run Defense vs. Eagles Run Game
The 49ers run defense has performed well since the bye week, but it hasn't faced a run game like Philadelphia's.
The past few weeks, the 49ers have shut down Travis Etienne, Rachaad White and Zach Charbonnet. But before that three-game stretch, they got run over by Joe Mixon and the Bengals' 32nd-ranked run game. So the 49ers run defense has some issues.
And now it has to stop not only an explosive running back in D'Andre Swift, but also an incredibly powerful runner in quarterback Jalen Hurts. And they'll have to battle the best run-blocking offensive line in the NFL. Last time these two teams faced each other, the Eagles won the battle in the trenches and ran for 148 yards and 4 touchdowns. And that was before they had Swift.
Now the 49ers have defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, who played for the Eagles last season. Hargrave is a devastating one-on-one pass rusher, but he's going to have a tough time holding his ground against left tackle Jordan Mailata and left guard Landon Dickerson, who combined weigh 700 pounds. The 49ers should consider moving Arik Armstead into that gap so he can battle those two behemoths instead.
Mailata and Dickerson generate so much movement at the point of attack, Swift averages more than 3 yards BEFORE contact per carry. And he isn't even the focal point of their run game. Hurts is. Hurts leads the Eagles in both rushing first downs and rushing touchdowns. Which means the 49ers have to find an answer for the quarterback draw, the quarterback scramble, the zone read and the tush push.
That's a lot to handle for a defense that historically hasn't defended running quarterbacks well.
Advantage: Eagles.