NEW ORLEANS — The 49ers just beat the Saints 31-21. Here are the grades for the 49ers coaches. Coaching: B-. The 49ers committed a whopping 10 penalties – that’s on the head coach. Greg Roman did not establish the run in the first half for the third time this season. He did not get Vernon Davis involved in the offense for fifth time this season. Most of the offense’s big…
Vic Fangio held a press conference Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the 49ers defense, courtesy of the 49ers. It looked like LB Patrick Willis had a really good game in coverage on Monday. Is that typical? Is that what you expect from him? “He did. Yes, he did have a very good game in coverage. Particularly, [RB Matt] Forte’s a tough back to handle. They went to…
Vic Fangio held a press conference Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the Saints offense, courtesy of the 49ers. What are your initial thoughts on the Saints offense? “Pretty proficient and explosive. Any time you’ve got a quarterback of [QB Drew] Brees’ ability and stature playing in the same offense now for six or seven years with a lot of the same guys around him and with all…
SAN FRANCISCO – The 49ers destroyed the Chicago Bears 32-7 Monday night. Here are the grades for the 49ers coaches. Coaching: A. The entire world expected the 49ers offense to come out running against the Bears. After all, the 49ers are a running team and they were playing their backup quarterback. They’d be nuts to come out passing. But passing was exactly the game plan Greg Roman drew up. He…
The 49ers play the Bears Monday night at Candlestick. In the meantime, I’ll break down five key matchups. Offensive coordinator Mike Tice vs. Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio This matchup isn’t even close. It’s like Mike Tyson vs. Michael Spinks. Fangio is a good defensive coordinator and Tice is not a good offensive coordinator. Tice isn’t going to have anything creative or unusual in the Bears offensive game plan. He’s going…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s what Vic Fangio said at his Saturday press conference about the 49ers defense’s recent struggles covering slot receivers. ME: Your defense has struggled to cover quick inside receivers. What do you attribute that to, and has it had an effect on the overall defense? FANGIO: Everybody has a little bit of a hard time covering some of those guys. It’s just a tough position at times…
SANTA CLARA – Vic Fangio spoke in the media tent Saturday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the 49ers run defense, which has not performed well in three of their last four games. Q: The run defense hasn’t been as good as it was last year. What do you attribute that to, and does it concern you? FANGIO: Obviously it’s always a concern if you’re not playing something as well…
SANTA CLARA – Ahmad Brooks spoke at his locker Friday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the 49ers defense. Q: How can your defense get even better the second half of the season? BROOKS: We just need to stay together and keep doing the things we’ve been doing all season. And learn from the previous games that we had, the games that we lost. And then on top of that,…
SANTA CLARA – Vic Fangio spoke in the 49ers media tent Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said about Dashon Goldson. Obviously Dashon Goldson was very good last year. But, have you seen significant strides in certain areas this year? “I don’t know that they’re significant. But, he’s made little strides in all areas. And again like I’ve said before, little strides in a lot of areas equals a big…
SANTA CLARA – Vic Fangio spoke in the 49ers media tent Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the Rams offense. Them having WR Danny Amendola back, how does that kind of change what they do? “I don’t think it changes what they’re going to do schematically because they had a good guy to replace him with in [WR] Steve Smith, the guy that was with the Giants and…
The 49ers defense ranks first in both yards and points allowed. They haven’t given up a touchdown in four of their last five games. Give Vic Fangio credit. The defense’s statistics have improved since last season even though they’re not getting as lucky forcing turnovers, they’re not getting as much pressure on the quarterback, and Justin Smith and Carlos Rogers have declined a little bit. The 49ers defense has weaknesses…
Coaching: B+. Vic Fangio called more blitzes than usual and the 49ers defense got a ton of pressure on John Skelton. Greg Roman called some creative run plays in the first quarter out of Bill Walsh’s old “Blue” and “Brown” formations, lining Gore and Hunter up side-by-side in the backfield. After the first quarter, the run game did very little. In the passing game, Roman mostly called plays for the wide…
SANTA CLARA – Vic Fangio spoke in the media tent Friday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the Arizona Cardinals offense. What do you see in the Cardinals and what are the biggest challenges for you guys going into this game? “Well, number one, when you think of the Cardinals you’re going to think of [WR] Larry Fitzgerald, obviously. And he’s one of the top receivers in our league,…
SANTA CLARA — Here’s what Vic Fangio said Tuesday about the 49ers pass rush. The sack numbers are down, but yet you guys rank, I think, second in the league in passing defense. How do you view how things are happening up front as far as the pressure on the quarterback? “Well, I think you answered your own question there when you said we were ranked second in pass…
SANTA CLARA — Here’s what Vic Fangio said about the 49ers’ upcoming opponent, the Seattle Seahawks, at his Tuesday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. What are you doing over in the meeting room this week? Is it less about the Giants and more about the Seahawks? “Yeah. Very little about the Giants game. We spent 10 minutes on it yesterday in the meeting and moved right on to…
SANTA CLARA — Here’s what Vic Fangio said about Justin Smith in particular and the 49ers pass rush in general at the Thursday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. How has DT Justin Smith been playing this year? And how do you expect the Giants to counter him? “He’s been playing the same that he always has at a very, very high level, Pro Bowl level. He’s one of…
SANTA CLARA — Vic Fangio spoke in the media tent on Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the New York Giants offense, courtesy of the 49ers. Can you point to some of the major differences with the Giants offense from when you played them nine months ago? “There’s not much difference. No sense for them to change a successful formula. They have a real good offense, starting with…
SANTA CLARA — Vic Fangio’s Thursday press conference transcript, courtesy of the 49ers. You played a couple teams earlier in the year that liked to spread you out, a lot of multiple receivers. Are the Bills the same way? “They play a lot of three wide receiver formations, yes. They do.” Is that similar to what the Packers and Lions did? “In some degrees, the formations are similar….
Vic Fangio’s Thursday press conference transcript from Youngstown Ohio, courtesy of the 49ers. With Vikings QB Christian Ponder’s feet and WR Percy Harvin’s speed, was the game plan good and was it just the execution that was lacking in that game? “It was both. We didn’t execute as well as we’re capable of executing and I could have had us in some better calls in certain situations. So, it…
Vic Fangio’s Thursday press conference transcript, courtesy of the 49ers. From what you’ve seen, does RB Adrian Peterson look like a guy who is coming off an ACL injury? “No, he really doesn’t. He still has his great speed, cutting ability and I’m sure that he’ll get better and better as he goes throughout the season. Week one to week two he was better. I’m sure he’ll be better…
