As is customary on Monday’s, NFL Films Executive Producer Greg Cosell joined Tolbert and Lund on KNBR 680.
First things first: This 49ers defense is trying every combination to get more production.
“Well the thing you can tell is Jimmy O’Neil is searching,” Cosell said. “Because all of a sudden after three games we see Wilhoite become a major part of this game. So he’s searching. Not only did Wilhoite play inside linebacker next to Bowman, but there were snaps where he played outside linebacker. There are base snaps where Eric Reid has been playing outside linebacker. So they are searching a little bit to try and figure out how they can make this work. I thought even though (La’el) Collins was out at left guard for the Cowboys, I thought their interior three as the game progressed, I thought they started to really take control of the game.”
Cosell thought Blaine Gabbert had his best game of the season, but it still wasn’t good enough for a win. The 49ers went 16-for-23, 198 yards, one touchdown and one critical interception. He’s now 9-30 as an NFL starter.
“Gabbert threw the ball really, really well for awhile in this game. He made some of his best throws of the season. The throw he made to (Garrett) Celek for 29 yards, on the second play of the third quarter, that was an unbelievable throw. Big-time throw.
“But then, the problem is, there’s just too much inconsistency. Because the (Morris) Claiborne interception should’ve been a walk-in touchdown. And he threw it in exactly the wrong place. So that’s what you’re getting. He threw the ball better overall, but there’s still too much inconsistency in his game. When you’re on a team where there’s not a lot of margin for error, just because you’re not that good, those kind of plays really come back and hurt you.”
How was the 49ers offense so successful early on? Chip Kelly forced the read-option game down Dallas’ throat.
“I mean, it was clear, that’s what he wanted to be a foundation for their offense in this game,” Cosell said. “Then the Cowboys started to make some adjustments to that. Then the 49ers adjusted to that by bringing a lead blocker to account for the clean scraper. Because Sean Lee was just scraping clean. Gabbert would read the defensive end who would crash, but Lee was scraping so he would tackle Gabbert.”
Outside of the read-option element, the 49ers play-calling did not resemble a Chip Kelly tempo. San Francisco ran just 53 plays on the day and only punted four times, suggesting Kelly dialed back the throttle.
“They did not play at a very fast tempo at all this game,” Cosell said. “They didn’t run very many plays in this game. Some of that is their defense obviously not getting off the field. But in this particular offense, if you are not playing at a fast tempo, then you only have a certain number of core plays you are running. This offense isn’t built on a voluminous number of plays in terms of a phone book. It’s based on doing things fast. They are averaging about 62 plays per game through four games, and they are only getting 4.7 yards per play. Which is near the bottom of the NFL. So the offense, overall, is just not doing well enough.”
And how about that Jaquiski Tartt penalty in the second quarter?
“When you’re not a great team, one play becomes what everyone wants to talk about,” Cosell said with a laugh. “When you’re a good team, single individual plays are usually not what you end up talking about.”