The San Francisco 49ers put together an overall poor effort on Sunday, and the defense did not do a whole lot to impress. They contained the passing game most of the day, before Tavon Austin's big touchdown. On the other hand, Todd Gurley had little trouble finding and creating running lanes, en route to a 133-yard performance, averaging 6.7 yards per carry. Ahmad Brooks almost made a game-changing fumble recovery returned for a touchdown, but he only got to the fumble because of a face-mask penalty. Par for the course.
The snap count reflects some odd decisions on defense. The most bizarre is that Arik Armstead only played 14 snaps. The 49ers rolled out their nickel plenty, with Jimmie Ward getting 42 snaps. I suppose if the 49ers only want to play Armstead in sub-packages, that's not the worst decision in the world. But how do you not give him more time even in just those sub-packages? his 14 snaps was his lowest since playing 11 snaps in Week 4.
Jaquiski Tartt had a career high 69 snaps, starting in place of the injured Antoine Bethea. He is looking like a nice piece to build around. It's great to see that, but I go back to Armstead and why we do not see more of him. He is not a monster playmaker at this point, but he has shown more than some of the older veterans. And given that this team is going nowhere fast, why not give the younger players that much more playing time?
Defensive Line
Quinton Dial - 45
Glenn Dorsey - 44
Ian Williams - 37
Tony Jerod-Eddie - 20
Arik Armstead - 14
Tank Carradine - 9
Outside Linebackers
Aaron Lynch - 49
Ahmad Brooks - 47
Eli Harold - 24
Inside Linebackers
NaVorro Bowman - 61
Michael Wilhoite - 60
Gerald Hodges - 11
Corey Lemonier - 18
Cornerbacks
Kenneth Acker - 66
Tramaine Brock - 66
Jimmie Ward - 42
Dontae Johnson - 10
Keith Reaser - 2
Safeties
Jaquiski Tartt - 69
Eric Reid - 65