Well, this 49ers game sucked. This was not a fun watch, so I apologize in advance. I always try to stay level-headed, but there are some consistent themes with this Eagles team that I am starting to find a little bit annoying. (Previously: Offense version.)

Defense
Before we get into anything, I just want to point out that I was so impressed by the 49ers’ offense and I think they are outstanding. The talent they have is exceptional, and some of the play designs and sequencing in this game by Kyle Shanahan were so good. I don’t expect the Eagles to stop the 49ers on every drive. But I do think they could have put up more of a fight. The Eagles started well on the 49ers’ early drives and managed to get some pressure on Brock Purdy and stop the runs on 1st down. It all looked so promising early on before it all went wrong. The Eagles came out and stopped the run on 1st down and managed to get the 49ers into obvious passing situations where they could get after the quarterback. It all looked so good! Eagles All22 Defense thread vs. 49ers. 1) Can we go back to the first couple of drives? The Eagles had some success early on a couple of 3rd & long and I really enjoyed this 5-man rush with BG at nose and Sweat getting pressure with the stunt. Can we pretend it ends here? Please? pic.twitter.com/A8lDkFEX4R— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) December 6, 2023 I think the Eagles’ pass rush struggled after the first couple of drives because they just couldn’t get the 49ers into many obvious passing situations. However, I think you also have to consider at this point that the lack of rotation throughout the season, as well as the fact that the Eagles went to overtime last week, is impacting the quality of the pass rush currently. The main guys on the defensive line and consistently playing a lot of snaps. 2) The defense was winning early when they were able to get stops on early downs. The pass rush collapsed later on, but when they just went after the QB on 3rd down, it was clear the Eagles pass rush would have success. pic.twitter.com/MXAifLAMyj— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) December 6, 2023 I am stunned that Nolan Smith and Sydney Brown didn’t get more playing time in this game. They both looked really good when they played. I think people can forget that whilst there are major question marks about Nolan Smith as a pass rusher, he was a fantastic run defender in college. Similarly, Sydney Brown is a fantastic run defender. I would have loved to have seen Sydney Brown get some more reps from the slot when the 49ers were in heavy personnel, or even as a hybrid linebacker/safety in place of Christian Elliss. I found the Eagles’ use of personnel odd in this game. I haven’t even got any clips of Eli Ricks in this one, but what on earth was that all about? He came in a handful of times and was asked to line up and play man coverage in the slot where he got badly beaten nearly every time he was on the field. I’m not a huge fan of the Eagles’ use of personnel this year. 3) One final positive before it all gets bad… I’m stunned Nolan Smith didn’t get more time considering the Eagles struggles in run defense. He can get upfield in a hurry and is a great run defender. I also liked seeing Sydney Brown as the Apex defender against 12 personnel. I’m… pic.twitter.com/TJAPTX0Nik— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) December 6, 2023 Ah, man. This play killed me. It happened at least 3 times. The 49ers would go 4-strong and isolate Brandon Aiyuk as the lone receiver against Darius Slay. Nearly every single time, Slay is playing with at least 10 yards of cushion and Aiyuk just had an easy 10 yards available to him. I understand this is cover 3 and that Roby is supposed to be the flat defender (he gets dragged inside by the motion) but why do the Eagles need 2 defenders over Aiyuk anyway? They should have a 4-strong call check built into the defense where Slay plays MEG coverage (man everywhere he goes) on Aiyuk and gets closer to him. This is just so easy, and the 49ers continued to run this exact same play with similar results throughout. 4) This drove me nuts. And it happened A LOT. The 49ers kept throwing these quick outs opposite 4-strong with Slay as the isolated CB. Slay just gave 8-10 yards of cushion every single time despite having no other vertical threat to deal with. I understand Roby is underneath, but… pic.twitter.com/BIwXXSG3i0— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) December 6, 2023 Since posting this thread, Christian Elliss has been cut by the Eagles and I feel bad for him. I hope he makes it back onto the practice squad (UPDATE: welp, he was claimed by the Patriots) because starting this game just felt unfair on him. Kyle Shanahan is the master of confusing linebackers, and both Elliss and Morrow had no idea what was going on in this game. All season long, the Eagles have struggled with communication in the secondary and this week was no different. It’s an issue they have got to sort out, but I’m becoming increasingly skeptical that they will be able to do it this season. 5) I felt bad for Elliss in this game, but he got torn apart by the 49ers passing game. You can’t really blame him. The 49ers just kept sending players to confuse both linebackers and they kept biting over and over. Elliss has to pass off the first drag route and take Deebo but… pic.twitter.com/n8Ov8XXArP— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) December 6, 2023 I think Nicholas Morrow blows this, but without being in the room I can’t be certain. Either way, it’s another play where the Eagles have a miscommunication and end up not covering someone. This looks like a type of fire zone pressure where Morrow thinks he will be over Christian McCaffrey, but because of George Kittle’s motion, he needs to take him. It’s good use of motion by the 49ers, but this isn’t rocket science or something the 49ers never do. The Eagles, and Morrow, should have been prepared for this. 6) Be really interested to hear people’s thoughts on the coverage here? Does Morrow blow the coverage by ignoring Kittle? It’s so open. It looks to me like cover 1 man where Morrow has to leave CMC to Bradberry but they end up covering the same player? pic.twitter.com/n7MmVVQluA— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) December 6, 2023 So, I know I’m supposed to say this as an Eagles fan. I’m sorry. But I really enjoyed watching the 49ers’ offense in this game. It’s just so good. Compare this play to what you saw from the Eagles’ offense in this game. The Eagles play this well, but Blankenship just decides to stop running with Aiyuk so he’s wide open. This play is awesome though, and having the luxury of using both Deebo Samuel and CMC as a decoy is pretty absurd. 7) Compare this creativity and use of weapons to the Eagles in the red zone. It’s different class. The Eagles actually play this really well, except Blankenship for some reason just stops running so Aiyuk is wide open. This is so tough to stop though. pic.twitter.com/ZOsG9WmAZb— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) December 6, 2023 I feel so bad for Elliss. Cutting him after the game felt pretty harsh, but you can’t say he had a good game. The 49ers had both linebackers for the Eagles all over the place all game. They both had a nightmare and to be honest, I’m not sure Elliss was any worse than Morrow. Every team has a weakness, and the Eagles are clearly at linebacker. Out of every team in the NFL, I’m not sure there’s a worse matchup for the Eagles than the 49ers. Shanahan is the best at making your linebackers confused, and I’m not the Eagles’ linebackers could have played much worse in pass coverage in this game. There were so many reps that were brutal. 8) Poor Elliss. Some of these plays are rough to watch and you know his head was spinning. It just…