In the aftermath of their 24-23 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa said he believed the team needs to be able to make more timely adjustments.
After all, Arizona running back James Conner gained just 9 yards on six rushing attempts in the first half. In the second half, Conner rushed for 77 yards on 13 carries.
“They were giving us a different look on the zone read,” Bosa said. “I think in all our losses, the preparation we’ve had has been great. But teams are playing us different and doing things differently, and we need to adjust a little better.
“[They’re] just showing different looks than what we were looking at on tape. So [we] just got to adjust and get him down.”
The bigger issue for the 49ers’ defense appeared to be tackling.
Conner forced eight missed tackles, according to PFF, and 74 of his 86 rushing yards came after initial contact with a 49ers defensive player.
Still, if Bosa expressed concern over the 49ers making adjustments, that is an aspect that must be addressed among defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen and his entire defensive staff.
When asked Monday if making the proper defensive adjustments has been an issue this season, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan answered, “I wouldn’t think so.”
The most explosive play the 49ers surrendered came on the Cardinals’ second play of the game. Quarterback Kyler Murray kept the ball on a zone-read play rather than hand it to Conner. Murray found a sizable hole over the right side and once he reached top speed, it was over.
“When you’re in an eight-man front and you miss the back, you’re one guy short and your middle-third player needs to make the tackle, and he got buried,” Shanahan said.
Safety Talanoa Hufanga, who lined up in the middle of the field, came up in run support with his eyes on Conner. By the time Hufanga recognized that Murray still had the ball, it was too late for him to recover and prevent the long touchdown run.
“That’s the challenge of when you play a system where the quarterback can pull it,” Shanahan said. “You can’t fall asleep on any play the whole game because you never know when he is going to pull it.”
On Murray’s other four carries (minus end-of-game kneel-downs), he gained 36 yards on four rushing attempts.
The 49ers’ issues in run defense against Murray and the Cardinals are not new.
The 49ers surrendered 234 yards on the ground in Week 15 last season, as Arizona averaged 7.8 yards per rushing attempt.
However, the big difference was that the 49ers did well enough in other areas to come away with a 45-29 victory.
