Why San Francisco 49ers Must Lean on Frank Gore in Week 3
Call it obvious, call it unoriginal—but the San Francisco 49ers must lean on Frank Gore come Week 3 of this young NFL season.
We apologize in advance if you’re experiencing some football-related déjà vu right now.
After an inexcusable collapse against the Chicago Bears last week, the 49ers find themselves questioning their approach on both sides of the ball.
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San Francisco’s usually stout defense surrendered 21 unanswered points, while quarterback Colin Kaepernick accounted for all of the team’s four turnovers. A 20-7 lead in the third quarter vanished without warning, as did expectations for the seemingly guaranteed win over an inferior Bears squad.
The coverage schemes employed by defensive coordinator Vic Fangio were awful in the second half. He didn’t give any help to rookie cornerback Jimmie Ward when matched up against Brandon Marshall.
Chicago’s dominant 6’4” wideout, despite nursing a bum ankle, easily burned the 49ers’ 5’11” slot corner for three touchdowns. Fangio didn’t ensure that a linebacker checked Marshall underneath, let alone move a safety over top in the red zone.
Yet, as blatant as those mistakes were, the critical onus ultimately falls on Niners offensive coordinator Greg Roman. His neglect of Gore in favor of a pass-heavy game plan proved disastrous against the Bears.
It cannot happen again when the 49ers hit the road for a divisional battle with the Arizona Cardinals.
And here’s why.
Fewer Touches for Gore, Fewer Wins for the Team
The 49ers went 12-4 en route to their berth in the NFC Championship Game last season.
In each of those four losses, Gore carried the ball 16 or fewer times and didn’t record a 100-yard output or touchdown. And in those 12 wins, only twice did San Francisco overcome the opposition without Gore reaching the end zone or totaling 100 yards or 20-plus carries.
The first came against a reeling Washington Redskins club, while the second luckily proved insignificant with help from a dominant effort by wideout Anquan Boldin against his former team.
But by and large, a direct correlation exists between Niners victories and the number of touches for their all-time leading rusher.
Gore sets the tone offensively by establishing rhythm, maintaining ball control and providing Kaepernick with play-action and other favorable passing opportunities. He helps neutralize the opponent’s pass rush and is the irrefutable bread and butter of this 49ers offense.
His first-half touchdown, while certainly significant, was just not enough when compared to his meager total of 13 carries against the Bears (more on that later).
Well, what about Gore only rushing 16 times for 66 yards and zero scores against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1?
Explosive rookie Carlos Hyde notched seven carries for 50 yards and a touchdown, and the Cowboys committed four turnovers to the 49ers’ zero.
Let’s move to point No. 2.
A Less Balanced Offense, A Less Effective Kaepernick
We must first emphasize that Kaepernick can win games with his arm.
He proved it against the Redskins in Week 12 and versus the Cardinals in Week 17 last season. Both were road matchups to boot.
He completed 62.5 percent of his passes with three touchdowns, zero interceptions and a 134.6 passer rating in the Niners' win over Washington. Gore tallied only 13 caries for 31 yards.
Kap did it again when he went 21-for-34 for 310 yards, two scores and zero picks in a season-ending victory over Arizona. Gore ran out of gas on a short week of rest and amassed just 14 yards on 13 carries.
All that said, Kaepernick is a superior passer when his leading back gets into the end zone and, more importantly, approaches 20 touches or 100 yards rushing. He commits fewer turnovers, receives better pass protection and has more openings in the passing game.
Unfortunately, we must go back to the second half against Chicago in Week 2 when the opposite occurred.
The 49ers advanced the ball methodically down the field on their opening series. Gore had three early carries and Kap completed all three of his passes for 53 yards.
Yet, after San Francisco used up seven minutes of an incredible nine-minute drive via a balanced overall approach, Roman called three straight run plays from the 6-yard line.
Instead of piggybacking off Gore (and Hyde) with a play-action pass in the red zone, Roman abandoned any notions of balance. He opted for the run at the inopportune time and settled for a very-much deflating field goal.
As opposed to the above example of Kaepernick not receiving a chance on an advantageous opportunity in the passing game, here is what happens when San Francisco neglects the run.
Following a seven-minute drive that resulted in a touchdown for Chicago early in the fourth quarter, Roman called for a pass on the 49ers' very first play. Instead of establishing a ball-control series, he authorized a dangerous sideline throw to Michael Crabtree at the 21-yard line.
Bears rookie corner Kyle Fuller picked it off and returned it to just outside the end zone, whereby Jay Cutler completed the easy touchdown pass to 6’6” tight end Martellus Bennett.
Now trailing 21-20, Gore actually had his number called, and the 49ers were driving.
But then Roman sent in a third straight pass. Kaepernick went down for a five-yard sack and threw another pick to a Bears defense playing coverage against a predictable fifth straight pass play.
Chicago went up 28-20 on yet another touchdown pass to Marshall four plays later.
Long story short, the Bears sacked Kaepernick twice and pressured him repeatedly when the 49ers had to resort to a one-dimensional attack on their final drive.
The still-jelling offensive line—see: Mike Iupati (offseason surgery), Alex Boone (offseason holdout) and Jonathan Martin (subbing for Anthony Davis)—could not adequately protect Kap without the steady presence of No. 21.
As for why Gore is especially important against the Cardinals, let’s transition to our final point.
Cardinals Strong Versus the Run—So Beat ‘Em at Their Best
Through the first two weeks of this 2014 season, the Cardinals rank No. 3 in run defense.
They’ve allowed only 66.5 yards per game and one rushing score on just 2.6 yards per carry. Throw out Ryan Matthew’s 20-yard touchdown and Arizona has been totally impervious against the run.
So, why would the 49ers then go ahead and attack their division rival’s top strength?
First off, the Cardinals will gear up more so against Kaepernick in the passing game.
To wit, Kap blitzed them twice in 2013 with his arm. He connected with tight end Vernon Davis for 180 yards and two touchdowns in Week 6, followed by one touchdown and 149 of his 310 passing yards to Boldin on Dec. 29.
Davis’ status for Week 3 remains unclear (ankle), according to CSN Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco. But even without the dynamic tight end, Kap still has Crabtree, Boldin, Stevie Johnson and Bruce Ellington, among others, as effective pass-catchers.
The Cardinals certainly won’t forget about Gore when devising their game plan. But the amount of outside weapons in this revitalized Niners offense will merit increased attention from defensive coordinator Todd Bowles.
Yet above all else, running the ball is fundamental to the 49ers’ identity—they simply cannot abandon it any longer. A heavy dose of Gore consistently leads to improved offensive rhythm, blocking, passing, scoring and, of course, winning.
And when the opponent is as formidable in rush defense as Arizona is, the 49ers must impose their will and not back down from what they do best. They must secure the trenches, pound the rock to Gore and run the Cardinals into submission.
Hyde and his explosiveness will also play an integral role out of the backfield. Gore, however, is the No. 1 asset within the winning formula in Week 3.
Expect the 49ers all-timer to rack up 20-plus carries and near triple digits in the yardage department on Sunday.
Joe Levitt is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report, waxing academic, colloquial and statistical eloquence on the San Francisco 49ers. Follow him on Twitter @jlevitt16
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