The San Francisco 49ers suffered another heartbreaking loss to the Green Bay Packers to the tune of 33-30. There was questionable officiating, but there was also 33 points allowed. There was some stupid turnovers, but there was also 33 points allowed. There were points where the defense was dominant and Aaron Rodgers had no idea what to do.
But. 33 points. Allowed.
Whether it’s Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady, allowing 20+ points isn’t going to get you wins. 20+ points is common, but if you are consistent with it, you get burned.
Is it a problem with 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh? 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman says this is not a Saleh problem. Neither does Kyle Shanahan. Both were vocally supportive of the 49ers defensive coordinator after the game. Kyle Shanahan has his utmost confidence in Saleh’s scheme:
“Saleh is very good at what he does and I have a ton of confidence in him and I have ton of confidence in our scheme. They made the plays to win at the end that we didn’t.”
Sherman went into a bit more detail with his praise of Saleh:
“It doesn’t really matter if you call the perfect call and they don’t run the play the way you called it. What else can you do? You call the play, guy has man and you don’t take the man it’s going to lead to the big play. Aaron will find him if he was covered...
...People don’t know ball. this is one of the most sound schemes in football, that’s why you see so many people executing it. When you don’t play sound it can lead to bust, but any scheme you don’t play sound can lead to big plays. We gotta find a way to play disciplined.”
The questions got a bit more on Saleh in particular which cued this response:
“He’s called great games, and he continues to call great games We got to find a way to reward him and finish.”
So again: 33 points. Could the fact the defense is so intricate and complicated be a detriment? Is the fact Saleh’s players are not executing laying on the coaches?
It’s time to bring back the heat-o-meter:
Poll
How hot is Robert Saleh’s seat after 49ers-Packers?
This poll is closed
-
14%
Nuclear
(291 votes) -
31%
Feeling hot, hot, hot!
(642 votes) -
35%
Nice and warm
(705 votes) -
14%
Just sat down
(282 votes) -
4%
It’s got icicles hanging from it.
(89 votes)