In one of the games of the week, if not the entire 2019 season, the red hot Baltimore Ravens take on the San Francisco 49ers at M&T Bank Stadium in Week 13. The Ravens have won their last six games and sit atop the AFC North at 9-2. The 49ers also lead their division and if the season ended today would have the No. 1 seed in the NFC on the back of their 10-1 record. These teams have met five times in the regular season since 1996. Baltimore has a 3-2 advantage. They also met in the Super Bowl following the 2012 season, with John Harbaugh emerging victorious over his brother Jim who was 49ers head coach at the time.
Let’s take a closer look at San Francisco to give us a better look at what we can expect to see from them on offense and defense.
Offense
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan has long been thought of as one of the better offensive coaches in the NFL. His team has certainly lived up to his billing this season as they trail only the Ravens in points scored. They sit at sixth in total yards. The 49ers, in another similarity to the Ravens, have found most of their offensive success on the ground so far this season. Their 1,602 rushing yards are the second-most in the NFL, while they are close to the middle of the pack in terms of passing. The 49ers have 2,603 passing yards this season, which ranks 14th.
From a formation point of view, the 49ers are one of the more versatile in the NFL. They line up in 11 personnel (one back, one tight end, three wide receivers) on 40% of their offensive plays, a long way below the league average and more than only two teams. They predominantly pass out of this formation, doing so on 70% of their plays. San Francisco averages 7.6 yards per passing attempt out of the 11 formation, but also average 5.4 yards per rushing attempt.
The 49ers use 12 personnel (one back, two tight ends, two wide receivers) on a quarter of their plays and tend to run out of this formation despite only averaging 3.4 yards per attempt.
The 49ers use 21 personnel (two backs, one tight end, two wide receivers at the second-highest rate in the league, lining up this way on 22% of their plays. They have a pass:run rate of 42%:58% with two backs on the field, averaging 9 yards per pass attempt and 4.9 yards per rush.
In a shotgun league, the 49ers put their quarterback under center at one of the highest rates in the NFL — 59% of their offensive plays are run with Jimmy Garoppolo under center. They run the ball on 69% of their plays when this happens. When Garoppolo has lined up in the gun, it has been a pass on 77% of the plays. In neutral situations (when the 49ers are up or down by seven points or less), the 49ers have a pass:run rate of 54%:46%. But their overall pass to run ratio of 0.83 is the second-lowest in the NFL this season.
Defense
The 49ers defense has been nothing short of downright nasty in 2019. They’ve allowed the second-fewest points and the fewest total yards thanks in large part to smothering pass defense. San Francisco has allowed only 136 passing yards per game, and lead the league in sacks (44) and tackles for loss (69). They have enjoyed all of this success without having to blitz too many times.
The 49ers’ blitz rate of 19.2% is fourth lowest in the NFL this year. 30 of their 44 sacks have come from their starting defensive lineman, with 10 for Arik Armstead, 8.0 for rookie Nick Bosa, 6.5 for Dee Ford and 5.5 from DeForest Buckner. Bosa and Armstead both have 10 or more tackles for loss.
Lining up against the 49ers defense this season, opposing offenses have lined up in 11 personnel 69% of their time. They have passed on 63% of these plays but averaged only 5.7 yards per attempted whilst throwing 10 interceptions against only 11 touchdowns. 35 of the 49ers sacks have come against 11 personnel. Against 12 personnel which they have seen on 22% of their plays, the 49ers see a slightly more balanced approach. Teams have passed on 47% of their plays against the 49ers, but have not enjoyed much success. They’ve averaged 5.0 yards per attempt, but have enjoyed a 5.4 yards per rush attempt average. The 49ers are middle of the road in terms of the run defense and have allowed 111.1 rushing yards per game. This is the 14th most in the NFL, and their 4.7 yards per attempt allowed is the 8th highest.
