5 Adjustments San Francisco 49ers Must Make in Week 2 Matchup with Steelers

The San Francisco 49ers should bench Jarryd Hayne and make Bruce Ellington the punt returner.

Hayne may become a fine punt returner one day, but right now he’s a rookie who seems to make rookie mistakes. He dove for the ball during his first punt return of the regular season. The ball bounced off of him, and the Minnesota Vikings recovered.

If Hayne had experience, he would know never to dive for a punt. But he has no experience—he played Rugby League until this year. He should not return punts until he understands the nuances of the position.

Let second-year wide receiver Bruce Ellington return the punts while Hayne develops during practice. At least Ellington has experience.

That’s one adjustment the 49ers must make in their Week 2 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Here are five more adjustments they must make.

Call More Pass Plays for WR Bruce Ellington

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Bruce Ellington is the 49ers’ third-best receiver, but he played just three snaps against the Vikings. He made two catches for five yards.

Both catches came on “Smoke” routes, where the receiver takes a step and then immediately turns to the quarterback to receive a quick pass. The idea is to get the receiver in space on the perimeter of the field—like a punt return. Ellington is a good punt returner.

But he’s more than that. He’s a good receiver as well. The Niners should throw the ball to him downfield, not just parallel to the line of scrimmage. Ellington could make the 49ers’ passing game much more dangerous, especially on third downs now that running back Reggie Bush has a strained calf, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Double-Cover the Opponent’s No. 1 Receiver

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The 49ers have faith in their No. 1 cornerback, Tramaine Brock, to shut down the other team’s No. 1 receiver and for good reason. Monday night he shut down Vikings No. 1 wide receiver Mike Wallace, who made just one catch for nine yards while covered by Brock, according to Pro Football Focus.

Brock rewarded the coaches’ trust in Week 1, but they must be realistic about him Week 2. Don’t blindly trust Brock against Pittsburgh. He isn’t good enough to cover Steelers No. 1 wide receiver Antonio Brown one-on-one. Brown is one of the best receivers in the NFL, if not the best.

And he’s the only legitimate threat on Pittsburgh’s offense while running back Le’Veon Bell serves his two-game suspension and wide receiver Martavis Bryant serves his four-game suspension.

Double-covering Brown is a no-brainer.

Don’t Play DB Jimmie Ward

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On passing downs Week 1, sometimes Tramaine Brock would line up in the slot, and Dontae Johnson would be the nickelback covering one of the outside receivers.

Other times on passing downs Week 1, Brock would line up on the outside, and Jimmie Ward would be the nickelback covering the slot receiver.

Steelers No.1 receiver Antonio Brown mostly lines up in the slot. Week 1, he was on the field for 43 pass plays and lined up in the slot 40 times, according to Pro Football Focus.

The Steelers probably wish they could get Brown matched up against Ward just once on Sunday. Ward cannot cover him. And Ward can’t cover outside receivers either—he’s just a slot cornerback. So he’s useless in this matchup. Johnson should take all of his snaps on defense.

Play RB Mike Davis

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49ers rookie running back Mike Davis didn’t suit up Week 1 against the Vikings. The Niners' three active running backs were Carlos Hyde, Reggie Bush and Jarryd Hayne.

Bush strained his calf during his second carry of the game then got carted to the locker room. He did not return.

So Hayne became the backup running back, and he was no good, averaging just 3.3 yards per carry when the rest of the offense averaged 6.2 yards per carry. Yikes.

The Niners need an upgrade over Hayne at backup running back. And they have one: Mike Davis, who averaged 4.3 yards per attempt during the preseason. He was solid. San Francisco should give him at least five carries Sunday against the Steelers.

Get TE Vernon Davis the Ball Earlier

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

Tight end Vernon Davis didn’t make his first catch against the Vikings until two minutes before halftime.

Colin Kaepernick targeted him twice in the first quarter—both passes were long ones, and both fell incomplete. Kaepernick finally threw Davis a short pass in the second quarter, but the 31-year-old dropped it. He turned his head upfield before he caught the ball.

Sometimes Davis seems to lose confidence if he isn’t involved in the passing game early. But when he’s involved and on a roll, he can be one of the most dangerous offensive players in the NFL.

A good way to get him involved is to call a stick route for him early in the game. On this play, Davis would take a couple of aggressive strides as if running deep and then slam on the breaks, turn around and catch the ball for an easy six-yard gain.

That simple play will boost his morale and set up the deep pass for later in the game.

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