Sam Howell scored on two consecutive drives following a three-and-out. Washington punted on their first drive of the third quarter after Clelin Ferrell forced Howell out of bounds for a sack and a six-point loss due to a botched play on 3rd & 1.
But on their next drive, Washington converted a second and twenty. Then they gave Antonio Gibson consecutive carries of 15 and 16 yards. By now the Commanders knew they would score points from another excursion inside the red zone, and the score was 20 to 10.
Eric Bienemy, the offensive coordinator for the Commanders, did not keep the positioning of wide receiver Terry McLaurin a secret during the first half. McLaurin’s snap percentage against the 49ers was 87% wide at receiver. However, Steve Wilks, the defensive coordinator, was hesitant to assign Ward to shadow McLaurin.
Early on, McLaurin caught a 42-yard pass against Deommodore Lenoir, and the 49ers paid for it. For yet another first down, he defeated Lenoir. McLaurin scored a touchdown on a back shoulder fade against Ambry Thomas on the three-yard line.
Wilks was compelled by those outcomes to order Mooney to follow McLaurin. Furthermore, Ward appeared on his one real target against him just when his team needed him to
The best outcome is to intercept a pass on third and 8, which gives your opponent a chance to score on the drive. That play serves as a prime example of how well Ward’s skill set fits into the 49ers’ culture.
A few weeks prior, we witnessed Ward sprinting at excess to 20 miles per hour after snaring Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray. That was one of the quickest defensive player ball-handling times Next Gen Stats has recorded for this season.
It is by no means a speed issue. One of Ward’s best assets is his stature. 200 pounds, six feet one inch. Among cornerbacks, that places him in the 90th percentile. With his arm length of 32 1/4″, which places him in the 80th percentile, Ward possesses exceptional size and quickness for a cornerback.
When it comes to defense, mindset matters. When I consider the players the Niners want to play with, the first players who come to mind are Nick Bosa and Dre Greenlaw. The defensive back Ward follows closely behind.
Ward hung onto the ball after fighting through contact during his amazing interception. He hasn’t avoided contact at all this season. Among all cornerbacks, Ward is among the top 15 in terms of tackles and run stops, which is a tackle that results in a loss for the offense.
On defense, versatility is essential. Following Week 17, Ward informed reporters that Wilks had changed his defensive strategy to confuse Howell, saying, “We ran a lot of man early in the game.” We played a lot of zone defense after Coach Wilks made some changes, but I believe that was a major shift in how the game was played.
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