Biggest Takeaways from San Francisco 49ers' Week 5 Loss

First takeaway from the San Francisco 49ers’ Week 5 loss to the New York Giants: Eric Mangini is no Vic Fangio.

Don’t get me wrong—Mangini is a competent defensive coordinator. During the second half Sunday night, he managed to confuse quarterback Eli Manning before the snap and force him to check down after the snap. That’s something.

Even though the Niners defense gave up 525 yards and 30 points Sunday night and is currently ranked 31st in the NFL, Mangini isn’t doing a terrible job.

The thing is, he replaced Vic Fangio, currently the defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears. And their defense is ranked 4th.

Fangio is the best defensive coordinator in the NFL, and the Niners had him. Hard to fathom how they let him get away.

Here are five more takeaways from the 49ers’ Week 5 loss.

The Starting Cornerbacks Are Decent

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Eli Manning passed for 441 yards Sunday night, but only about a quarter of those yards came at the expense of the Niners starting corners.

According to Pro Football Focus, Manning targeted Tramaine Brock or Kenneth Acker’s coverage 13 times, completing just seven passes for 127 yards and posting a passer rating of 81.3 against them. Against everyone else on the Niners defense, Manning posted a passer rating of 114.8.

Brock gave up a long catch on a play-action pass during the first half but played well for the most part. Acker was flagged for a critical pass interference call in the fourth quarter, but he mostly played well, too.

Acker and Brock are two of the Niners’ best defensive players.

The Starting Inside Linebackers Are Not Good

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According to Pro Football Focus, 49ers starting inside linebackers NaVorro Bowman and Michael Wilhoite were targeted 16 times in pass coverage Sunday night. They allowed 16 catches for 104 yards and two touchdowns.

A couple of seasons ago, the Niners starting inside linebackers were Bowman and Patrick Willis, and they could cover any running back or tight end in the NFL. Now, Willis is retired, and Bowman is coming off a torn ACL and MCL. He can’t seem to cover anyone anymore.

It’s tough to say who is worse in coverage, Bowman or Wilhoite, because they’re both awful. Both should come off the field during passing downs.

RB Reggie Bush Is a Waste of Money

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This offseason, the Niners signed 30-year-old running back Reggie Bush to a one-year, $2.5 million contract, per Spotrac. He was supposed to be an impact player.

According to Pro Football Focus, Bush has played just 25 snaps on offense through five games. Apparently, he has a tight calf. Not a pulled calf. A tight calf.

“That thing was tightening up,” head coach Jim Tomsula informed reporters Monday morning.

With Bush on the sideline Sunday night, Niners starting tailback Carlos Hyde had to carry the load in the second half, even though he was limping and seemed to have an injured leg.

Clearly, Hyde will play through pain. Bush, who is rarely 100-percent healthy, seems to play only when 100-percent healthy. The Niners probably should have given his one-year, $2.5 million contract to someone else.

The Niners Should Use WR Bruce Ellington More on Offense

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Colin Kaepernick threw his first two pass attempts Sunday night to second-year wide receiver Bruce Ellington. Both passes were screens. The first one went for 31 yards; the second one, nine yards.

Ellington is the most explosive player on a Niners offense that lacks explosive players. During the preseason, Ellington caught a short pass in stride and ran away from the opposing defense for a 70-yard touchdown. He seemed on the verge of a big season.

But he has caught just four passes this season—two in Week 1 and two in Week 5. After the first drive against the Giants, offensive coordinator Geep Chryst never called another pass for Ellington.

It’s hard to fault Chryst because the Niners scored 27 points, and he called a good game. But he needs to start using his most explosive player.

QB Colin Kaepernick Is Good When He Faces No Pressure

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In retrospect, we probably should have seen Colin Kaepernick’s bounce-back performance coming.

Despite how poorly he has played this season, he’s still pretty good when he has time to throw. And the Giants have one of the worst pass rushes in the NFL.

So, Kaepernick had time Sunday night. And when he faced no pressure, he completed 21-of-27 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns, and his passer rating was 129.3, according to Pro Football Focus.

On the other hand, when Kaepernick did face pressure, he completed just 2-of-8 passes for 16 yards and posted a passer rating of 39.6.

Here’s what we learned: If the pass protection breaks down, Kaepernick will struggle, like most quarterbacks. And if the pass protection holds up, Kaepernick will play pretty well, like most quarterbacks.

All quotations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

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