Buffalo Bills coach Rex Ryan stated the obvious in the glow of his team’s 45-16 victory over the 49ers on Sunday.
“I think they were 31st in the league against the run, so we thought we were going to have a chance to be successful running the football, obviously, and we did have a great plan,” Ryan said.
Not surprisingly, the 49ers dropped to 32nd and last in the NFL in rush defense with its performance on Sunday. The 49ers have surrendered an average of 174.3 yards rushing per game.
The Bills’ plan was put into place against a 49ers defense that has provided about as much resistance as a worn-down speed bump enabled the Bills to rush for 312 yards on 44 rushing attempts. The New York Jets lead in the league in rush defense, giving up just 342 yards in five games.
Running back LeSean McCoy gained 140 yards, becoming the fifth consecutive opponent to rush for more than 100 yards against a beleaguered 49ers defense.
The 49ers are without their leading tackler NaVorro Bowman for the remainder of the season. He underwent season-ending surgery last week to repair a torn Achilles. Nick Bellore and Michael Wilhoite are the team’s inside linebackers.
The 49ers made a change on their defensive line, as Quinton Dial started at nose tackle in place of Mike Purcell. Glenn Dorsey also saw extended time at nose tackle, as Purcell’s role was diminished. That change did not help, either.
Sports
“We studied them,” Bills guard Richie Incognito said. “We knew we could have some success in the run game, and we went out and executed.
“The whole week leading up to it we knew we were the better team. We knew that we should beat them like that. We lined up and we handled our end of business and we scored a lot of points on them.”
The 49ers’ defense was on the field for 79 snaps. The Bills averaged 7.1 yards per rush attempt.
“They’re an athletic, tall group,” McCoy said of the 49ers’ defensive line. “They tend to get tired and there’s been tons of tape on guys, you know, getting to the open field.
“If you want to give any game balls out, you need to give it to the offensive line. They whooped them up and down the field. I mean, they made my job real easy.”
