What to watch for as Christian McCaffrey makes his return for the 49ers in Week 10 clash with the Buccaneers
The San Francisco 49ers are back in action following their bye week, and have a significant reinforcement for their Week 10 clash with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. San Francisco has won its last three meetings with the Buccaneers and will have star running back Christian McCaffrey on the field for its bid to make it […]
The San Francisco 49ers are back in action following their bye week, and have a significant reinforcement for their Week 10 clash with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
San Francisco has won its last three meetings with the Buccaneers and will have star running back Christian McCaffrey on the field for its bid to make it four.
McCaffrey is finally set to return from Achilles tendinitis, which had kept him out for the first eight games of the season.
His comeback and how it changes the offense is naturally the main thing to watch for as the 49ers look to improve to 5-4.
CMC's usage
Coming off an extremely tricky injury, the 49ers would be wise to carefully manage McCaffrey's workload to minimize the risk of him reaggravating it.
Per NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, McCaffrey will have a "normal-ish" workload on his return.
Last year, a normal workload for McCaffrey saw him rack up the most touches in the NFL with 339. With Jordan Mason and Isaac Guerendo impressing this season, it would, on the surface at least, seem foolish for the 49ers to immediately return to relying on McCaffrey to such a degree.
But the matchup is one the 49ers will be eager not to waste. McCaffrey has scored 10 touchdowns in his career against Tampa Bay, tied for his most against any opponent, and will likely be confident of adding to that tally against a Bucs defense that struggles to defend running backs in the passing game and will give up explosive runs.
Indeed, the Bucs are 18th in Expected Points Added per play allowed against opposing rushers and rank 23rd in the NFL in DVOA against opposing running backs in the passing game, per FTN Fantasy.
The 49ers will be keen to capitalize significantly on the latter and might look to create conflict among the Bucs' second-level defenders to allow them to do so by using the dual gravity of both McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel, set to play despite rib and oblique injuries, out of the backfield at the same time.
It will be interesting to watch how McCaffrey is used and how often he is used, but there's no doubt the 49ers will have a much expanded menu to make life easier for Brock Purdy with the reigning Offensive Player of the Year back on the field.
Stopping the scrambles
The 49ers will be facing an undermanned Buccaneers offense shorn of star talents Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
But Tampa Bay retains a significant threat on offense, as evidenced by its performance against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 9, a game that saw the Bucs push Kansas City to overtime.
Tampa Bay's game-tying drive featured a second-down scramble from quarterback Baker Mayfield that put the Bucs in the red zone.
Mayfield's stat line of four carries for 20 yards was hardly spectacular, but he has the ability to extend plays and sporadically make an impact with his legs.
Scrambles and broken plays have the potential to be an equalizer in a game where the talent advantage is with the 49er defense.
San Francisco has allowed 1.6 Expected Points Added per attempt on quarterback scrambles, per Sports Info Solutions. Heading into Week 10, no other defense had allowed 1.0 EPA per attempt.
If the 49ers can get consistent pressure on Mayfield, then their ability to stop him from escaping will have a huge bearing on the outcome of this contest.
Filling the Bosa void
Nick Bosa was listed as questionable for the game, the 49ers' star edge rusher having suffered a hip pointer in Wednesday's practice.
Even if Bosa is deemed healthy enough to play, he likely will need more assistance from his teammates up front, the 49er defensive line having been swelled by a move at the deadline to boost the interior with the acquisition of Khalil Davis.
But the pass rush emphasis is primarily on the edge defenders, with veteran Leonard Floyd and surprise standout Sam Okuayinonu expected to provide the most support to Bosa.
Okuayinonu has emerged as an outstanding find for the 49ers having been signed to the practice squad late last year. He has three sacks to his name and has proven he can excel rushing from the inside as well as off the edge.
And defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen believes Okuayinonu still has plenty of untapped potential.
"Yeah, I think so. Of course," Sorensen said on Thursday when asked about Okuayinonu having unrealized potential. "Especially since he’d never really worked inside and how he picks stuff up quick.
"But [defensive line coach Kris] Kocurek coaches him hard and he likes that, most of our guys do. They’re receptive to it and those are the guys that can accelerate when they take all the coaching and then they apply it. That’s something that he’s done a good job with and that he can handle is when he gets coached he applies it and then plays fast. He’s a smart guy, so he’s picked it up quick. That’s the good thing about it. It makes sense to him.”
If Bosa is limited in any way by his injury, Okuayinonu might need to start realizing that potential sooner rather than later to ensure the pass rush is able to consistently disrupt Mayfield.
