Chase Young helps Nick Bosa feel right at home in Trevor Lawrence's house
The most spectacular plays by the San Francisco 49ers in their 34-3 beatdown of the Jacksonville Jaguars came on offense, but it was a heavily criticised defense that set the tone early. Steve Wilks' group had faced a lot of questions following a three-game losing streak during which the defense was shredded by Kirk Cousins […]
The most spectacular plays by the San Francisco 49ers in their 34-3 beatdown of the Jacksonville Jaguars came on offense, but it was a heavily criticised defense that set the tone early.
Steve Wilks' group had faced a lot of questions following a three-game losing streak during which the defense was shredded by Kirk Cousins and Joe Burrow in back-to-back weeks.
But they were answered emphatically with the 49ers' best defensive performance of the season coming in Wilks' first game from the sideline after moving from the booth, and the signs were there right from kickoff as San Francisco immediately forced a three-and-out on the first series of the game.
That was a series on which Chase Young, acquired in a blockbuster trade to reunite him with former Ohio State teammate Nick Bosa, did not feature.
But it did not take long for Young to make an impact when he got on the field shortly after, the 2020 Defensive Rookie of the Year having a huge influence as the 49ers disrupted Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence throughout with waves of pressure.
Young had promised a "race to the quarterback" with Bosa, and he made good on that in the second quarter as they met at Lawrence and forced a fumble.
The success Young had against the Jaguars' offensive line contributed to only the second five-sack game of Lawrence's career and the 49ers forcing four turnovers, Bosa registering 1.5 sacks and delivering a key pressure of Lawrence that ended in an interception playing in his home state of Florida.
Reigning Defensive Player of the Year Bosa was quick to compliment Young for his performance, telling a press conference: "Having him is such a big threat. I think we played off of each other well. Me and him are really excited to keep going."
On the shared sack-fumble, he added: "I think it was only a touchdown lead at the time, so definitely didn't let up at all. Our back end did an unreal job mixing things up and kind of confusing Trevor, and I think we got more ops (opportunities) than we've had all year, by far."
But beyond the addition of Young, Bosa being back in Florida seemingly had a large role in him getting back to his best.
Asked if he felt the impact of playing in his home state, Bosa replied: "I did. Right when I stepped off the plane, I felt the humidity, and it was just so, so good."
Bosa obviously can't play in Florida every week, however, with Young now across from him, the chances for him to be the spearhead of similarly impressive showings will likely increase down the stretch.
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