On Sunday in Arizona, the 49ers have a chance to make their first big statement in the NFC West.
The 49ers, 1-1, take on the 2-0 Arizona Cardinals (1:05 p.m. kickoff), and could move into a tie for first in the division with a victory.
The key to coming up with a win in the desert will likely come from the San Francisco defense. If the 49ers can put pressure on Arizona passer Carson Palmer (who has yet to be sacked) and keep the Cardinals’ 10th-ranked offense in check, they’ll give themselves a chance. But if the defense again falls flat the way it did a week ago in Pittsburgh – when it couldn’t get a single sack on Ben Roethlisberger and allowed wideout Antonio Brown to catch nine balls for 195 yards – the 49ers will be in trouble.
This week in practice, defensive coordinator Eric Mangini and his unit have focused on fixing mistakes and trying to eliminate the breakdowns that allowed the Steelers six plays of 20 or more yards. Four plays went for 40 or more yards.
“I’ve really respected the way that they came back and approached it and then came out yesterday in practice,” Mangini told reporters Thursday. “I expect another good practice here today. That’s really what you look for is, OK, how are we going to respond now in light of this?”
Look for the 49ers to have a blitz-heavy package against Arizona to try to get to Palmer. Mangini’s blitzes were productive in Game 1, with five sacks on Minnesota’s Teddy Bridgewater, two by safeties Antoine Bethea and Jaquiski Tartt. He’ll need to dial up that pressure again, especially against Palmer, who isn’t nearly as adept as Roethlisberger at sidestepping pressure and buying extra time. Outside linebackers Aaron Lynch, Ahmad Brooks and rookie Eli Harold also could play a big role. Rookie defensive end Arik Armstead, too, has shown some burst in the first two games and could be getting closer to getting a sack.
Palmer, who’s gone against Mangini-coached defenses many times in his career, expects to see some new wrinkles from the 49ers defense, especially in the pass rush.
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“You’ve got to expect something that you haven’t seen on film,” he told reporters in Arizona this week. “Coach Mangini, one of the greatest things he does is just focuses on your protections and finds way to get two guys on one guy, where you either got to get hot (read) or you’re going to get sacked and you should have gotten rid of the ball.
“They do a ton of disguising, They line up one way and they finish another and you’ve really got to see the field and really understand that anything can be coming from anywhere. … He’s going to find a weakness.”
With the 49ers needing a win to regain momentum – after running into a wall in Game 2 – they will at least feel at home in Arizona, where they’ve won five of the last six games against the Cardinals. Still, oddsmakers have made the Cardinals 5-point favorites.
