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Five 49ers to watch in Sunday’s game vs. rebuilding Patriots originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
The 49ers opened last NFL season on fire, winning their first five games before going into a three-game tailspin.
This year, the rough patch has come early.
Now, the 49ers are in desperate need of a victory after back-to-back poor performances in losses to the Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Rams.
The seriousness of the situation is not lost on quarterback Brock Purdy, as the 49ers took to bounce back against the New England Patriots on Sunday at Levi’s Stadium.
“Every game matters, every play matters, every drive matters,” Purdy said.
“All of it matters, and it ties together. But more than anything, we have a standard here, and that’s what we’re focused on every single day. We hold each other to that standard and we’re hard on ourselves, but that’s, I think, why this is a successful organization.”
In order for the 49ers to experience success Sunday, these are five players who must step up to the challenge:
Linebacker De’Vondre Campbell
Coach Kyle Shanahan suggested a change could be in the works at linebacker.
Veteran De’Vondre Campbell, whom the 49ers signed in the offseason to take Dre Greenlaw’s spot while he’s out, has been a liability in pass coverage.
The 49ers started to work Dee Winters into the mix last week, but he aggravated an ankle sprain, and his status for Sunday remains in question.
“We want to keep working to get the best guys out there and Dee has had a good camp and he showed that he deserves the chance to push him (Campbell),” Shanahan said.
Campbell allowed 14 receptions on 16 targets for 149 yards and one touchdown in the first three games, according to PFF. He was also called for a critical pass-interference penalty of 25 yards that moved the Rams into position for the game-winning field goal.
If Campbell is on the field on third downs, the Patriots will make it a point to exploit this area of the 49ers’ third-down…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/five-49ers-watch-sundays-game-182216503.html
Author : NBC Sports BayArea
Publish date : 2024-09-27 23:00:22
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