This morning on KNBR’s Murph and Mac show, NFL Films insider Greg Cosell broke down the 49ers and their matchup with the Dallas Cowboys.
Here’s what he had to say.
Q: Should the 49ers fans be excited? The offense looked conservative.
GREG COSELL: Well, it is, but I think you have to understand what they’re dealing with. And by the way, they know this, but it’s just their guys, so the expression is you’ve got to dance with who brung ya. Alex Smith is at best an average NFL quarterback, and they’re trying to work through that. Right now they have an average quarterback. They have an offensive line that’s a major work in progress – they’re struggling a bit. They’re not running the ball particularly well, and that’s why they’re playing a lot of six offensive linemen. They’re trying to find a way to run the ball effectively. Gore’s best run last week, other than the gimmicky misdirection, came out of six offensive linemen. So, this is an offense that’s going to struggle, and it’s not going to get better this week because they’re playing a different kind of defense.
Q: Let’s talk about that Dallas Cowboys defense. What do they bring to the table and how did they play against the Jets?
GREG COSELL: Well, what Rob Ryan does is, it’s a lot of disguise. It’s a lot of pre-snap movement, all with the idea of causing confusion in identifying players, as to who is blitzing and who is not blitzing. That’s going to be difficult for this young, inexperienced offensive line that hasn’t worked together a whole lot. A new center, obviously, this year in Goodwin, even though he’s a veteran. It’s new. And Alex Smith, quite honestly, is not a very quick decision maker. A play that, to me, sums up Alex Smith – there was a 3rd & 9 in the 2nd quarter last week where he ended up throwing an incomplete check down to Frank Gore. I don’t know if you guys remember this specific play.
Q: We do, it was in the first half.
GREG COSELL: Yes, yes. And it was a very basic, what we call three-by-one set. Three receivers to his left, one receiver to his right. The read was defined before the snap of the ball. It was very basic stuff. And he panicked in the pocket, and threw a frenetic incomplete check down. And then what happened later in the game in the 4th quarter? They had two 3rd & goals – one before roughing the kicker and one right after roughing the kicker, both from the four yard line. Did you notice they handed off on both of them?
Q: Mhm.
GREG COSELL: Clearly, there’s not a lot of confidence in him. And now this week, combine that with the offensive line against a defense which, by the way, is going to be very decimated at corner. So you would look at the Cowboys’ defense and say, “We can throw the football.” But the question is: Will they be able to protect? And will Alex Smith be able to make the kinds of quick decisions that need to be made against pressure.
Q: That’s Greg Cosell firing warning shots, Niner fans…
GREG COSELL: On the positive side, gentlemen, I really like their front seven on defense. I think their defense, as the years progresses, and I think the back end has some questions, but I think their front seven has a chance to be very, very good in their base 3-4. They’re very strong at inside linebacker. Willis – we don’t need to discuss him. He’s the best. Bowman I thought played really well. And McDonald and Smith are really good 3-4 D ends who will then kick inside on their 4-3 sub package when they bring in nickel and dime. I think this front group is pretty good and they’re only going to get better.
Q: We had Ray McDonald on our show Wednesday and he seems like a guys whose time is coming.
GREG COSELL: I really liked him when he came out of Florida, and I forget what year that was.
Q: ’07.
GREG COSELL: Ok. I really liked him for what he is. He’s not a dynamic edge pass rusher, but he’s a really good pass rusher as an inside player. And you combine him with Smith, who, and I don’t want to be cliché, but obviously Smith has a motor that never stops, which allows him to make some plays. When you combine that with Aldon Smith, who obviously didn’t play a lot of snaps in this game because the Seahawks didn’t play a lot of three wide receivers, but he’ll probably get more snaps against Dallas. He’s an emerging player. Haralson can rush the quarterback from the outside. I even like their front when they go to their nickel and their dime.
Q: Should the 49ers defense be a little frightened that Romo’s coming in guns blazing?
GREG COSELL: Well, Romo has always had a little bit of an undisciplined nature to his play, and in this league to be a consistent player, It’s very hard to be consistent when you play outside of structure. Now, that doesn’t mean that in improvisational play here or there is not a great play. We know it is. But he steps outside the boundaries of that a little too often, and therefore he can be up and down. A lot of his performances are uneven. And as I understand it, Dez Bryant may not go, and that’s very helpful for the 49ers, because a healthy Dez Bryant and Miles Austin would be a difficult matchup on the perimeter for the 49ers. But if Dez Bryant does not go, I think that 49er front seven and their pressure might get Romo moving around. Sometimes does what we call, “Sees ghosts.” He perceives pressure that’s not really there and he breaks himself down.
Q: I’m getting excited about this Niners’ front seven.
GREG COSELL: I like their front seven. I just want to temper with the fact that the Seahawks might have the worst offense in pro football, but that doesn’t concern me, because I’m watching individual players and their physical attributes. But still, they’re going to clearly play a better offense. But keep one thing in mind – the Cowboys also have three new starters on their offensive line. So, that’s advantage 49ers.
Comments are closed.