Prepping For Physical 49ers, Seahawks Must Improve Consistency Defending Run

Seattle managed to escape with a win in Monday's opener despite suspect run defense. But a second straight victory won't happen without stark improvements as the team braces for Kyle Shanahan's well-oiled run game machine in Santa Clara.

RENTON, Wash. - Limiting Russell Wilson and the Broncos to just 16 points in their season opening win at Lumen Field on Monday Night Football, coach Pete Carroll, coordinator Clint Hurtt, and the coaching staff had plenty to be giddy about in regard to the performance of their defense.

Despite allowing more than 400 yards of offense on the night, Seattle turned away Denver twice at the goal line, forcing and recovering a pair of fumbles to send Wilson and company back to the sidelines empty handed. On a decisive drive midway through the fourth quarter, the unit continued to defend every blade of grass, again denying the opposition from finding the end zone and holding them to a Brandon McManus field goal to keep a one-point advantage.

But as the old adage goes, particularly in Week 1 to open a new season, things are never as good and never as bad as they may seem. In that case of the Seahawks defense, Carroll wasn't pleased with how his team defended the run on Monday night, allowing Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams to rush for 101 yards and average more than five yards per carry.

“We were not consistent," Carroll said prior to Wednesday's practice. "We gave up too many plays on the edge. It wasn’t as good as it needed to be, we have to do better than that.”

For most of the evening, as Carroll specified, Denver found success running off tackle, particularly when running to the right towards outside linebacker Darrell Taylor. The third-year defender found himself out of position on several runs, including a pair of runs where he appeared to end up in the same gap as a teammate, and got bullied by right tackle Cam Fleming a few times at the point of attack.

But Taylor was far from the only Seahawk who struggled against the run on Monday. Executing run fits was problematic for the unit throughout the game as Williams and Gordon found massive holes to explode through frequently and linemen were able to successfully reach linebackers Jordyn Brooks and Cody Barton for second level blocks to spring the ball carriers for additional yardage.

On top of that, Pro Football Focus charged Seattle's defense with a whopping 12 missed tackles, including three from safety Josh Jones and two from Brooks. Gordon and Williams combined for 53 yards after contact on Monday and the latter also proved to be a handful after the catch, forcing five missed tackles as a receiver mostly on screen plays.

Set to face a familiar foe whose bread and butter remains a physical, diverse ground game, Carroll knows the Seahawks have much to clean up in short order before traveling to Santa Clara to battle dual-threat quarterback Trey Lance and the 49ers in a rugged NFC West road opener on Sunday.

“Their commitment to it and what Kyle (Shanahan) does with the running game and what they have done over the years has really been impressive because they have always been able to run the football well," Carroll commented. "That commitment, I love to see that it is part of their makeup. They have a big variety of runs and they have a bunch of style to them... They are as hard to defend in the running game as anybody we play."

Finishing seventh in the NFL in rushing yards in 2021, San Francisco deploys a versatile run scheme featuring a multitude of zone and gap concepts. As Carroll noted, the presence of All-Pro tight end George Kittle and fullback Kyle Juszczyk gives coach Kyle Shanahan great "freedom" as a play caller formation and concept-wise, making life challenging for opposing defenses preparing for a bevy of looks.

Mixing in a lot of pre-snap motion to create additional run gaps while having a large pallet of run concepts such as wide zone, counters, and traps at his disposal, Shanahan's fine-tuned run game is especially stressful on opposing linebackers. Often playing on their heels, they don't flow as well to the football defending the run and can get caught flat-footed against play action, opening up the intermediate passing game. That puts a lot of pressure on Brooks and Cody Barton this weekend.

Making the 49ers even tougher to prepare for, Lance brings an element to the run game that former starter Jimmy Garoppolo simply did not. Capable of breaking tackles and making defenders miss on designed runs as well as scrambling on extended pass plays, the second-year signal caller rushed for 54 yards in a Week 1 loss to the Bears and amassed 168 rushing yards in just six games and two starts as a rookie.

“They have a running quarterback with all of the read options and the things of that nature, so it’s old school option football. It forces you to be really, really disciplined," Hurtt remarked. "But the one thing about San Francisco is that they are a really physical team. Not only do you have to match the schematic part of it and be responsible for your job in the run game, but also you have to match the physicality."

Heading into Sunday's divisional opener, the 49ers will be without starting running back Elijah Mitchell, who landed on injured reserve earlier this week with a knee injury. But even without him, Shanahan has proven time and time again he can coordinate an effective run game regardless of who lines up in the backfield. He could probably sign a 1,000-yard rusher off the streets in his system and having talented linemen such as All-Pro tackle Trent Williams in the trenches doesn't hurt either.

In Mitchell's place, hard-nosed runner Jeff Wilson will likely take over as the starter with rookie Tyrion Davis-Price seeing his first regular season action behind him. San Francisco can also utilize physical receiver Deebo Samuel out of the backfield, as he rushed eight times for 52 yards and a touchdown against Chicago and could be used more in that capacity moving forward.

For the Seahawks to improve to 2-0 and stay atop the NFC West, maintaining gap integrity, executing run fits, and finishing tackles will be crucial on Sunday. Without a more disciplined, physical approach defending a well-rounded 49ers rushing attack, things could get out of hand in a hostile road environment, but Hurtt anticipates his squad will be up to the challenge as they renew their bitter rivalry with some old school smashmouth football.

“It’s a slugfest. Both teams love to run the football, play hard, fly around and want to hit you, so you know that is going to be like that for 60 minutes. It’s always a super competitive game, so I enjoy these ones playing against them. I have a lot of respect for this organization and what they do.”