The stats tell us a story of dominance. Tape gives us the same visual. The San Francisco 49ers have been an absolute juggernaut during their 13-game regular-season winning streak.
Recently extended head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch have built a bully in Northern California. It’s a bully that will take your lunch money and not think twice about it.
San Francisco also finds itself in a vulnerable situation heading into Sunday’s game against the division-rival Arizona Cardinals. It is a whopping 14-point favorite in this game. It’s also taking on a young and hungry Cardinals team that pulled off an upset over the Dallas Cowboys last week. First-year Jonathan Gannon earned his first win against a squad that was near two-touchdown road favorites.
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He’s led a team that hasn’t backed down from a fight. It’s a hungry group with a lot to prove and nothing to really be concerned about given the preseason expectations.
In short, the 49ers are ripe for the picking come Sunday afternoon inside Levi’s Stadium. Here’s how they can avoid a letdown and move their winning streak to 14 games.
San Francisco 49ers can’t read the press clippings
The numbers from San Francisco’s 13-game winning streak are about as eye-opening as it gets. They are outscoring their opponents by an average of 30-14. At home, that difference increases to 33-12 per game.
San Francisco’s defense has yielded 15 touchdown passes against 16 interceptions. It is forcing 26 turnovers during this span compared to a mere six giveaways. That plus-20 margin is just absurd.
The stats can continue. But the point is rather obvious here. We can point out the 49ers’ dominance all we want. The minute they read these clippings, is the minute that Arizona will be ready to pounce. Remember, the Cardinals went into last week’s game taking on a Cowboys team that had outscored its first two opponents this season by a combined margin of 70-10. How’d that work out for Dallas?
“Y’all put us on top of the world. We know who we are, and in that same sense I’m sure the media got what they wanted,” Cowboys QB Dak Prescott said after Week 3 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
Media loves a dominating football team. Just look at how we reacted to the Miami Dolphins after they dropped 70 on the Denver Broncos last week.
On the other hand, seemingly good teams struggling also catches the attention of the media. The Minnesota Vikings’ current 0-3 record and related trade rumors are a prime example of that. Just ask star wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
The easiest way to avoid any of this is to actually avoid media narrative. Don’t read the press clippings. Tune things out. Do your thing. Study the opponent.
“(The Cardinals game) was one I definitely watched,” San Francisco 49ers cornerback Isaiah Oliver said. “They came out, and they fought hard. They played really well. We understand that will be a big matchup, a divisional game. It’s always tough playing a division rival.
Related: San Francisco 49ers standing in Sportsnaut’s NFL defense rankings
San Francisco 49ers must use their strengths to take advantage of Cardinals’ weaknesses
Despite the Cardinals’ surprising start, they rank 18th in total offense (329.7 yards per game). Led by veteran journeyman quarterback Joshua Dobbs, Arizona also ranks 27th in passing offense (165.3 per game). This is an area San Francisco’s top-level defense should be able to exploit.
The 49ers’ pass defense ranks 14th in the NFL in yards against (205.3 per game). But that’s primarily because opposing teams have been playing from behind. San Francisco is outscoring its opponents by a margin of 54-30 in the first half this season.
Opposing quarterbacks have posted just two passing touchdowns against five interceptions for a 66.6 QB rating against the 49ers this season. They have also been hit 22 times in three games. Getting pressure on Dobbs while playing lockdown defense in the secondary is going to be key here.
Related: San Francisco 49ers standing in Sportsnaut’s Week 4 NFL power rankings
Take away the Arizona Cardinals one strength on offense
On the other hand, Arizona heads to Santa Clara with the NFL’s sixth-best rushing offense. Veteran James Conner has led things with 266 yards at a clip of 5.2 yards per rush.
“I told you guys the run game’s going to go through him and with knowing that it’s a 17-game season we’ve got be smart with that and things like that,” Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon said of Conner. “We want to see those other guys play as well, but I like how it’s being deployed right now.”
The good news for San Francisco is that it boasts the third-best run defense in the NFL at a mere 52 yards per game. Opposing teams are averaging just 3.7 yards per rush. The 49ers have yielded just 100-plus rushing yards once in the regular season since Week 7 of the 2022 season.
Brock Purdy and Co. must avoid the turnovers
As noted above, San Francisco continues to avoid turnovers. Including the postseason, Brock Purdy has thrown 190 consecutive passes without an interception.
Despite this, he’s gotten lucky at times. In fact, Purdy threw two interceptable passes on the 49ers’ opening drive last week against the New York Giants. At some point, this will come back to haunt him. For now, San Francisco has committed all of six turnovers during this 13-game winning streak.
Giveaways tend to help big underdogs keep games close. It’s the great equalizer. With a plus-three turnover margin through three games, Gannon’s defense is going to do everything possible to create takeaways. If the 49ers can avoid that, they should be able to come out on top and move to 4-0 on the season with a 14th consecutive win.