Coming into Week 1’s matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and the Seattle Seahawks, there were a lot of eyes on San Francisco’s defense. With so many young, unproven players out there, the fear was that they would be overmatched.
But that was not the case as defensive coordinator Robert Saleh had the team ready to show up.
San Francisco won the contest 17-13, thanks in large part to the efforts of the defense. The offense struggled throughout much of the game and truly only came up with the goods on the first and last drives, which both resulted in touchdowns with some special teams calamities in between.
That epic final drive with quarterback Brock Purdy marching down the field to find third-string tight end Jake Tonges for the go-ahead score would not have mattered had the defense not kept the Niners in the game, nor would it have held had the defense not forced a turnover as Seattle quickly drove down the field and appeared likely to re-take the lead.
San Francisco limited Seattle to just 230 total yards on offense. The Seahawks, led by quarterback Sam Darnold, had only 146 passing yards as he was sacked once, and Seattle only had 84 rushing yards on the day.
With how young and inexperienced a lot of players on San Francisco’s defensive line are, there was a legitimate fear they could be exposed with Seattle having two solid running backs in Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet. Instead, the D-line held its ground and did not allow Seattle to get much of anything going on the ground, which the 49ers struggled to do last season.
The Niners also recovered two fumbles, which were huge plays. The second forced fumble was caused by edge rusher Nick Bosa, who drove the offensive lineman behind Darnold, who did not see his own guy and went to throw only to realize his lineman’s body had dislodged the ball from his hand, which allowed the Niners to recover it.
That play clinched the victory.
One cannot help but think Saleh’s return played a huge role in the defensive showing San Francisco turned in on Sunday. The defensive unit looked well coached for the most part and did not make many mistakes or allow explosive plays except for a 40-yard pass from Darnold to wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba on Seattle’s final drive.
This does not mean the 49ers are necessarily going to have an elite defensive unit this year. There are still going to be growing pains with so many young players out there, but this first showing reflects very well on Saleh and shows the defense is in very good hands.