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FOXBOROUGH- It is no secret that the Patriots will have their hands full on Sunday when they take on the San Francisco 49ers. The Shanahan, McVay version of the west coast offense is taking over football. Heck, even the Patriots are running it now.
The biggest challenge with the offense is defending all of the movement and motion which makes it hard on a defense to get a beat on where the ball is going. San Francisco motions and moves better than any team in the league and despite all the injuries they currently have on offense, the Patriots fully expect Kyle Shanahan to run his entire offense on Sunday.
Patriots Coach Jerod Mayo says San Francisco throws a lot at a defense.
“It’s a lot of window dressing, but the core concepts are pretty much still the same. Every single play, you’re going to see motion, and you’re going to see exotic types of motions. They’re trying to get you to adjust a certain way, and just – here you go, here’s another football tip just in general for the Pop Warner coaches. As they start to build formations, either you move the defensive line in front of you, or the linebackers have to move. Some of that stuff is pre-snap, but don’t forget about the post-snap movement as well. So, you have to be able to see the surfaces that they’re trying to create.”
The 49ers will once again be without Christian McCaffery and Deebo Samuel but they have plenty of depth. Running back Jordan Mason and wide receiver Juwan Jennings have stepped and filled the void. The emergence of both players has allowed Shanahan to run the offense without skipping a beat.
Mayo says that despite being 1-2, and banged up, the Patriots fully expect San Francisco to do what they do.
“Look, obviously, their record’s not really reflective of the team that they are and can be going forward. They’re dealing with injuries as well. What I will say is the challenge for us is just in the front: offensive line and defensive line. I don’t want to sound repetitive, but they are a do-what-they-do type of team, and we know what they’re going to do, the fans know what they’re going to do, but you still have to stop them.” Mayo continued: “They have a lot of good players on that team, offensively and defensively, All-Pro-caliber players almost at every level if you really look at the roster. So, it’s definitely a challenge, and I think the guys – I tell them all the time, look at it as an opportunity to go out there and perform.”
Defending a depleted skill group certainly makes things easier but the Patriots will still have to play well to win. Not only that, but the offense will have to do their part by sustaining drives and keeping the defense all off the field. The defense was on the field way too long against the Jets.
The Patriots will once again see the Shanahan/McVay West Coast offense next week as well when former 49ers assistant Mike McDaniel brings his Miami Dolphins to Foxboro. The offense has taken the league by storm and more and more teams are running it.
Despite that, the 49ers run it the best. The Patriots will have their hands full on Sunday defensively. They will need to play well in all three phases if they want to pull off the upset. Especially on defense.