DVR study: 1st quarter

kearly

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You might remember that I had a post after the GB preseason game that floated the possibility of putting Bennett at LEO. Bennett took a few snaps at LEO in that preseason game and looked fantastic. Well, in the 49ers game Seattle's starting line for both of the first two drives was Bennett-Mebane-McDaniel-Bryant (biggest starting DL in NFL history?), with Bryant at the 5-tech and Bennett out wide at LEO. In those first two drives the 49ers only locked down Bennett one time. He didn't get a sack in those drives but forced several hurries and quarterback movement.

Unlike previous years where Bryant was almost always on the defensive left and the LEO almost always at the defensive right, in this game Bennett and Bryant were switching sides (not roles) constantly.

The Seahawks used Malcolm Smith and Bobby Wagner very aggressively at the line. On many plays, they were like stand up Defensive lineman.

Seattle loves to stunt and twist their pass rushers around.

Derrick Coleman gives top effort, but he just has zero power as a lead blocker. On either the first or second play of the game for Seattle, Coleman charges into a well blocked hole, catapults himself into a 49ers LB, and literally bounces off of him, falling backwards right into Lynch's path. This adds a body in the hole for Lynch to step over. Lynch ends up with a 2 or 3 yard gain.

JR Sweezy and Breno Giacomini were bull rushed into Wilson, forcing a hurried throw that fell incomplete to a marginally open Sydney Rice on 3rd and 6. I wouldn't say they were beat so much as that they ceded too much ground too quickly. Both teams went 3 and out on first possession.

After the blocked punt, Kaepernick makes a few clutch 1st down conversions before setting up 1st and goal.

Kaepernick ran for a 1st down to set up first and goal on 3rd and 7, which I think might have been the official debut of the "spinner" package, as far as I'm aware. Seattle had double LEOs (Bennett, Avril), D'Anthony Smith at the 3-tech, and Schofield came in as a linebacker and lined up over a guard. After the snap, multiple Seahawks twisted and stunted which brought instantaneous pressure and a sure sack for most NFL QBs. Bennett just missed it, and Kaepernick ran straight ahead for a cheap 1st down. Bennett might have gotten Kaepernick had he not been redirected ever so slightly by one of his blitzing teammates.

Earl Thomas had a clutch pass breakup on a potential TD a few plays before getting the INT on a tip drill.

On that pick, WTIII knocked the ball into the air by breaking on the football with perfect anticipation. He nearly intercepted the pass himself. It was a bad pass by Kaepernick (targeting VD), though I think he threw so far outside of VD because he was afraid of Chancellor jumping the route from the inside.

On said play, the 49ers fully committed two blockers at the line to stop Bennett at LEO. It took very little time in this game before Harbaugh started showing Bennett respect in his game plan.

Russell Wilson's accuracy was terrible early in the game. His first pass was far down the field, not a gimme. His second pass was hurried, not a gimme. His 3rd pass though, was to Sidney Rice in the flat, right around the LOS. The pass was high and behind Rice with no pressure imminent.

JR Sweezy has a great pull block to the left, McQuistan seals the NT, Marshawn Lynch runs almost untouched for 17 yards.

The very next play was the Sweezy cut block play that injured NT Williams. It was perfectly blocked by all five linemen, and would have gone for an easy 10 yards normally, but Coleman gave a weak lead block that Lynch didn't trust, which caused Lynch to hesitate, and then ultimately abandon his assignment for only a 1 yard gain.

Next play, Wilson has reasonable time to throw but is eventually hurried by Sweezy's assignment, who may have been held. A voice off the screen from a directional mic can be heard screaming "HOLDING!" The pass is reasonably accurate, but not perfect, and arrives slowly enough to allow the DB to close on the play for the breakup (target: Miller). Had the pass arrived with zip or been a little more inside, it's probably caught.

I'd love to hear Wilson explain that interception. Did the ball slip out of his hand? Did he misread Tate's intentions? Did Tate run the wrong route? Was it just stupendously bad deep accuracy? It could have been a lot of things. It was ugly.

Avril replaced Bennett at LEO on 3rd drive. The rest of the group stayed the same. Quinn does not substitute / rest his DL as much as I remember Bradley doing it. He works those guys.

Lots of Seahawks pass rushers lunging at Kaepernick and missing in this game.

D'Anthony Smith at the nose on 3rd and 11. Bennett and Avril duo LEO. SF gets 12th manned. 3rd and 16. Smith moves to 1 tech, Bennett to 3 tech, Schofield takes over Bennett's LEO spot. Short gain on a pass. Punt.

Max Unger drops Dorsey to help double Sweezy's assignment. Must not have known where his QB was. It's Unger's mistake. Wilson is sacked in about 3 seconds flat by Dorsey. This sack is on the OL. Sweezy is not responsible on this play but it's worth noting he gets moved back in a hurry.

Sweezy gradually walks a DT 3 yards downfield, Giacomini makes a nice 2nd level block, and Turbin executes a disciplined run up the middle for a 4 yard gain. Carpenter looks much more athletic attacking the 2nd level, although he still whiffs. He was close on this whiff though.

Sweezy lunges, loses, fails to get his head in front, and gives up a pressure almost immediately forcing Wilson to move. Compounding this mistake, he puts his left arm on the DTs back and gives a little shove, drawing a legit holding penalty.

Anthony Davis grabs Bennett by the chest and illegally pulls him to the turf, which would have drawn a penalty if seen. Ironically, the move propelled Bennett into an ankle sack of Kaepernick.

3rd and 20 for SF. Avril-Bennett-D. Smith-Schofield again. The O-line picks it up but Kaepernick's internal clock goes off very early and forces a very short pass with no chance of converting the 1st. Punt.

Sweezy makes a nice 2nd level block which creates a nice running lane for Coleman and Lynch. Coleman misreads the hole and juts to block a non-factoring defender. Despite Coleman's gaffe, the hole is still good enough to net Lynch 9 easy yards.

Carpenter had a nice run block away from the play during the same down that Okung got injured.

Even before the Okung injury, Seattle strongly preferred running the ball to Sweezy and Giacomini's side.

Wilson's accuracy issues vanished after the weather delay.
 

Scottemojo

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I found it interesting that Wilson went in during the weather break and washed the start off of him. Took a shower and started over.
 

themunn

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kearly":1ynp36id said:
I'd love to hear Wilson explain that interception. Did the ball slip out of his hand? Did he misread Tate's intentions? Did Tate run the wrong route? Was it just stupendously bad deep accuracy? It could have been a lot of things. It was ugly.

It looked like one where he threw it up and trusted Tate to grab it in a one-on-one situation, but then Tate stumbles when he catches the corner and it's an easy grab
 

Happypuppy

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Wilson for much of the game seemed was really nervous and tight , more like a rookie in his first game than a 2nd year player. I suspect the plan was to run away from Willis and Smith rather than at them.
 

Fudwamper

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get excited Kearly. I watched the YouTube game tonight and that leo lineup was splitting the oline and it looked like either Wagner or wright were spying kapernick on man coverages. I saw a lot of Bennett, Averil, schofield and mebane towards the end.

The other thing I think I saw was when san fran ran the 4-3 we attacked the middle on the read option. Unger went to the second level untouched a lot.
 

Hawkscanner

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Scottemojo":2ij65yxc said:
I found it interesting that Wilson went in during the weather break and washed the start off of him. Took a shower and started over.

Psychologically, I'd say that's the exactly what you do. Wash the bad start away, relax, and focus on renewing oneself for when play resumes.

kearly":2ij65yxc said:
Derrick Coleman gives top effort, but he just has zero power as a lead blocker. On either the first or second play of the game for Seattle, Coleman charges into a well blocked hole, catapults himself into a 49ers LB, and literally bounces off of him, falling backwards right into Lynch's path. This adds a body in the hole for Lynch to step over. Lynch ends up with a 2 or 3 yard gain.

I believe that we're seeing that time and time again with Coleman. He's more getting in the way of his man rather than really hitting him with true force and knocking him back (like MRob did.) The result, as you say, is more of Coleman merely being another body to step over, rather than creating a hole for the runner to go through. OK, I know that this 49ers Front 7 is one of the best in the NFL (and that the Panthers Front 7 is one of the best in its own right) ... but honestly, how long can this be allowed to go on? Carroll and those guys undoubtedly are seeing the same thing on the game tape and see what's going on back there. Besides Michael Robinson, I honestly have no idea who else is out there on the street, but I do know this -- something's got to change.

I haven't seen you comment on this yet Kearly (and maybe you're going to coming up) but one thing that was particularly concerning for me was seeing Russell Wilson early on in that game seemingly be totally unaware that the rush was coming. After blowing up McQuistan, Aldon Smith came trucking around the corner right at Wilson -- and he seemed to be totally unaware that he was about to be leveled. That scenario played itself out a few times IIRC. Now, as the game wore on, that appeared to change, as I'm remembering a play in the 2nd Half where Wilson rolls out to the right and runs away from Smith for a sizeable gain. BUT, that's something that the good ones all have -- a clock in their heads. They know (in general) One Thousand One ... One Thousand Two ... And get Rid of the the Ball on One Thousand Three because that's all I've got. I don't know if that kind of awareness is something that Wilson can truly develop or not but I DO know this -- he's going to get himself killed if he doesn't have his head on more of a swivel.
 

BASF

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themunn":1k82vc04 said:
kearly":1k82vc04 said:
I'd love to hear Wilson explain that interception. Did the ball slip out of his hand? Did he misread Tate's intentions? Did Tate run the wrong route? Was it just stupendously bad deep accuracy? It could have been a lot of things. It was ugly.

It looked like one where he threw it up and trusted Tate to grab it in a one-on-one situation, but then Tate stumbles when he catches the corner and it's an easy grab

I took it to be a "this is as good as a punt" situation. No one was open for the first down on that third and eight play. Throw it deep and see if your receiver can make a play. If it's incomplete, you punt. If it is picked, the resulting yardage (caught at the Niners 24) is about where John Ryan would have put it. If it's caught, you have a huge momentum gaining play that sets you up deep in enemy territory.
 

lobohawk

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Hawkscanner":206b3ovu said:
Scottemojo":206b3ovu said:
I found it interesting that Wilson went in during the weather break and washed the start off of him. Took a shower and started over.

Psychologically, I'd say that's the exactly what you do. Wash the bad start away, relax, and focus on renewing oneself for when play resumes.

kearly":206b3ovu said:
Derrick Coleman gives top effort, but he just has zero power as a lead blocker. On either the first or second play of the game for Seattle, Coleman charges into a well blocked hole, catapults himself into a 49ers LB, and literally bounces off of him, falling backwards right into Lynch's path. This adds a body in the hole for Lynch to step over. Lynch ends up with a 2 or 3 yard gain.

I believe that we're seeing that time and time again with Coleman. He's more getting in the way of his man rather than really hitting him with true force and knocking him back (like MRob did.) The result, as you say, is more of Coleman merely being another body to step over, rather than creating a hole for the runner to go through. OK, I know that this 49ers Front 7 is one of the best in the NFL (and that the Panthers Front 7 is one of the best in its own right) ... but honestly, how long can this be allowed to go on? Carroll and those guys undoubtedly are seeing the same thing on the game tape and see what's going on back there. Besides Michael Robinson, I honestly have no idea who else is out there on the street, but I do know this -- something's got to change.

I haven't seen you comment on this yet Kearly (and maybe you're going to coming up) but one thing that was particularly concerning for me was seeing Russell Wilson early on in that game seemingly be totally unaware that the rush was coming. After blowing up McQuistan, Aldon Smith came trucking around the corner right at Wilson -- and he seemed to be totally unaware that he was about to be leveled. That scenario played itself out a few times IIRC. Now, as the game wore on, that appeared to change, as I'm remembering a play in the 2nd Half where Wilson rolls out to the right and runs away from Smith for a sizeable gain. BUT, that's something that the good ones all have -- a clock in their heads. They know (in general) One Thousand One ... One Thousand Two ... And get Rid of the the Ball on One Thousand Three because that's all I've got. I don't know if that kind of awareness is something that Wilson can truly develop or not but I DO know this -- he's going to get himself killed if he doesn't have his head on more of a swivel.


Regarding the internal clock bit for Wilson. It may have been somewhat affected by the loss of Okung. It took a little time for him to change that clock, as his available time decreased rapidly after Okung was out. As the game wore on, he acknowledged the impact and made more of an effort to avoid that pressure.
 

themunn

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I was very unimpressed by Coleman last night, and think he looks a little undersized to be a fullback.
There was a play right after the half (2nd and 8 run by Lynch, the play directly after the one the announcers highlighted him running up to Wilson to "read" the audible) - a quick toss to the left, Coleman runs into the Ahmad Brooks and if he gets a good block, frees Lynch for for a gain of 5+, instead he's just bounced backwards into the path of Lynch, who then has to run further to the sideline to get around him - where there's no room, he cuts back, gets tackled and instead of a gain of 5+ it's a loss of 4 and a 3rd and long.
Fortunately Wilson connected on a 51 yard bomb to Baldwin one play later, but at that point I was thinking "I don't ever remember seeing MRob get overwhelmed like that"
 

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themunn":evsbp4ee said:
kearly":evsbp4ee said:
I'd love to hear Wilson explain that interception. Did the ball slip out of his hand? Did he misread Tate's intentions? Did Tate run the wrong route? Was it just stupendously bad deep accuracy? It could have been a lot of things. It was ugly.

It looked like one where he threw it up and trusted Tate to grab it in a one-on-one situation, but then Tate stumbles when he catches the corner and it's an easy grab

I agree. It looked like a jump ball to me, too, because Tate has inside position and is very powerful with those pull down grabs. (See, GB, taterception.)
 

HawkFan72

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Why is no one talking about the pass to Miller in the 1st Quarter?

It would have been a first down, and it looked very clearly to be an early hit by the defender.

I was screaming at the TV because there was no flag. It looked like the defender got a very hard shot on Miller clearly before the ball was there. I thought that was a huge swing against Seattle since they had to punt rather than have a fresh set of downs.
 

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Scottemojo":3naxc4th said:
I found it interesting that Wilson went in during the weather break and washed the start off of him. Took a shower and started over.

I'm just glad our robot didn't get "rusty" after that shower...whew! :sarcasm_off:
 

Zebulon Dak

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Sarlacc83":3nnzp6xg said:
themunn":3nnzp6xg said:
kearly":3nnzp6xg said:
I'd love to hear Wilson explain that interception. Did the ball slip out of his hand? Did he misread Tate's intentions? Did Tate run the wrong route? Was it just stupendously bad deep accuracy? It could have been a lot of things. It was ugly.

It looked like one where he threw it up and trusted Tate to grab it in a one-on-one situation, but then Tate stumbles when he catches the corner and it's an easy grab

I agree. It looked like a jump ball to me, too, because Tate has inside position and is very powerful with those pull down grabs. (See, GB, taterception.)

Pretty clearly the case, from my perspective. Tate keeps his feet and that's at least a 50/50 chance at a catch and very unlikely to be an interception.
 

Zebulon Dak

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Scottemojo":29bl5q84 said:
I found it interesting that Wilson went in during the weather break and washed the start off of him. Took a shower and started over.

Yeah, seems like he played that perfectly. I love Michelle Tafoya's lightening-time report of how the Seahawks were in the locker room working, game planning in positional groups and such while most of the 49ers were in the locker room quiet, listening to music and such. Speaks volumes, IMO.

Thanks for the breakdown, kearly... super appreciated, as always.
 

brimsalabim

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Thanks kearly. You mention the sweaze in your break down a few times. Can you shed any light on to the accusations as to him being a dirty player? I mean other than the "cut block" jibber jabber. It seems to me like he is just plays hard but I don't have your particular eye for this.
 

Jazzhawk

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kearly":2uuhzm30 said:
Lots of Seahawks pass rushers lunging at Kaepernick and missing in this game.
I was perplexed while watching the game live from field level, but when watching the replay, it seems to me there were many times our guys took bad angles to Kaep, maybe thinking they were fast enough to catch him, but falling just short. Hopefully that won't be an issue with slower QB's in the future. But when we meet them in SF later this year, I hope they remember this game well.
 

hawksfansinceday1

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Hawkscanner":2956j3g5 said:
...........I believe that we're seeing that time and time again with Coleman. He's more getting in the way of his man rather than really hitting him with true force and knocking him back (like MRob did.) The result, as you say, is more of Coleman merely being another body to step over, rather than creating a hole for the runner to go through. OK, I know that this 49ers Front 7 is one of the best in the NFL (and that the Panthers Front 7 is one of the best in its own right) ... but honestly, how long can this be allowed to go on? Carroll and those guys undoubtedly are seeing the same thing on the game tape and see what's going on back there. Besides Michael Robinson, I honestly have no idea who else is out there on the street, but I do know this -- something's got to change........

Well then, two respected and obviously football savvy posters have said this about Coleman now, Scanner and Kearly. So no doubt your right Scanner that Pete and Co. can see it too. I remember the play Kearly talked about in his description where Coleman literally just bounced off a guy he was attempting to block like a pinball hitting a bumper.

So outside of bringing MRob back, which I said on another thread I don't believe they will do, what are the other options here? A TE as a lead blocker? I kind of doubt this because the Hawks are going to likely have to use a TE as help for whomever is at LT with Okung out. One back sets with more trapping thus using an o-lineman as a lead blocker? Thoughts folks?



Thanks as always Kearly.
 

drdiags

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I think as far as Coleman, the Seahawks will just soldier on. I vaguely remember posters panning MRob's 1st year here at the FB position. The team hung in there and look how MRob is valued now by fans. Now that I have posted this, expect the Seahawks to sign MRob in 3..2..1..
 
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kearly

kearly

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themunn":33xex4te said:
kearly":33xex4te said:
I'd love to hear Wilson explain that interception. Did the ball slip out of his hand? Did he misread Tate's intentions? Did Tate run the wrong route? Was it just stupendously bad deep accuracy? It could have been a lot of things. It was ugly.

It looked like one where he threw it up and trusted Tate to grab it in a one-on-one situation, but then Tate stumbles when he catches the corner and it's an easy grab

Tate was inside, the ball went WAY outside. Something went wrong there.
 

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