Five 49ers to watch in Week 1 showdown vs. Rodgers, Jets

Five 49ers to watch in Week 1 showdown vs. Rodgers, Jets originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The storylines are aplenty as the 49ers open the 2024 NFL regular season against the New York Jets on Monday night at Levi’s Stadium.

Although the teams are scheduled to play only once every four seasons, there is plenty of overlap between the organizations.

The Jets have coaches and players who have been in San Francisco, and their defensive systems are practically identical.

Moreover, the 49ers are very familiar with Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers. And vice versa.

Rodgers, the native of Chico who played at Cal many moons ago, faced the 49ers 13 times over his 18 seasons with the Green Bay Packers. Four seasons ended for Rodgers with postseason losses to the 49ers.

The 49ers open the season confronting the challenges of returning to work after a heartbreaking Super Bowl loss. The Jets have the longest current playoff drought in the NFL after last qualifying for the postseason in 2010.

Here are five 49ers to watch during this prime-time matchup in Week 1:

It looks as if the 49ers found themselves a good one with their third-round selection of Dominick Puni, an offensive lineman who has the versatility to play each of the team’s five spots on the offensive line.

For now, he’s locked in at right guard, where he takes over for Spencer Burford and Jon Feliciano, who shared the position a year ago.

Puni saw it as an advantage to practice daily during the summer against the 49ers’ defense. The Jets run a very similar defensive system under coach Robert Saleh, the former 49ers defensive coordinator.

It certainly will not be an easy opener for Puni. His hands will be full against All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, whom the Jets selected in the 2019 NFL Draft one spot at the 49ers chose Nick Bosa. Williams registered 12 sacks in 2022 but dropped off to 5.5 sacks last year.

Puni will also be matched up against former 49ers defensive tackles Javon Kinlaw and Solomon…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/five-49ers-watch-week-1-180425116.html

Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2024-09-07 18:12:55

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