{"id":3322,"date":"2016-10-04T12:31:10","date_gmt":"2016-10-04T16:31:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprofootball.com\/?p=3322"},"modified":"2016-10-04T15:36:00","modified_gmt":"2016-10-04T19:36:00","slug":"49ers-week-five-keys-victory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2016\/10\/04\/49ers-week-five-keys-victory\/","title":{"rendered":"San Francisco 49ers Week Five Keys to Victory"},"content":{"rendered":"

The San Francisco 49ers<\/strong> seemed to\u00a0get off to a good start last week against the Dallas Cowboys<\/strong>.\u00a0However, the game did not play out in the Niners\u00a0favor.\u00a0 In Week five the 49ers will face another difficult test in divisional opponent Arizona Cardinals<\/strong>.\u00a0 Arizona has also had a rough start to the season\u00a0and they will come\u00a0into Thursday night’s game\u00a0Levi\u2019s Stadium<\/strong> at 1-3.\u00a0 That is not how a team with Super Bowl<\/strong> aspirations wants to start its run.\u00a0 Both the 49ers and Cardinals are sitting at the bottom of the NFC West<\/strong>.\u00a0 If either hopes to keep their playoff hopes alive they must win this game.\u00a0 Below are the 49ers Week five keys to victory.<\/p>\n

San Francisco 49ers Week\u00a0Five Keys to Victory<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Pressure Drew Stanton<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Carson Palmer<\/a><\/strong> suffered an unfortunate concussion last week in a loss to the Los Angeles Rams<\/strong>.\u00a0 Palmer’s status for Thursday Night Football<\/strong> is uncertain, but as of now it looks as though Drew Stanton<\/strong> will get the start<\/a>.\u00a0 Stanton is no slouch at quarterback, and is a quality backup for Arizona.\u00a0 Stanton is tall and has a strong arm.\u00a0 Despite his size, Stanton has good feet and moves well in the pocket.\u00a0 San Francisco must try and bring pressure to force Stanton into mistakes.<\/p>\n

The Cardinals offensive line has under achieved so far\u00a0this year.\u00a0 The 49ers need to take advantage of this and get to Stanton early.\u00a0 If the 49ers can force Stanton into errant throws and interceptions he will get down on himself.\u00a0 One knock on Stanton coming out of college<\/a> was his mentality.\u00a0 Stanton tends to get down on himself after he makes a critical mistake and he\u00a0has trouble recovering.\u00a0 The best thing San Francisco can do is get into Stanton\u2019s head in the first quarter. \u00a0If they can, it is likely to be a long day for Stanton.<\/p>\n

Double Cover Larry Fitzgerald<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Larry Fitzgerald<\/strong> <\/a>is by far the biggest receiving threat the Cardinals have.\u00a0 In fact, it has been that way in Arizona since 2004 when\u00a0the former Pittsburgh<\/strong>\u00a0wideout\u00a0entered the league.\u00a0 Stopping Fitzgerald will be a must for San Francisco.\u00a0 The 49ers secondary has been lackluster, at best,\u00a0this season.\u00a0Fitzgerald has over one thousand receptions and over 13,600 yards in his NFL career.\u00a0 The 49ers will likely play a zone defense against Arizona as they would not match up well man-to-man.<\/p>\n

Safeties Eric Reid<\/a><\/strong> and Antoine Bethea<\/a><\/strong> must not allow Fitzgerald to get behind them.\u00a0 It will be important for San Francisco to roll or disguise coverage to Fitzgerald\u2019s side of the field.\u00a0 The goal will be to limit or take away Fitzgerald as an option for Stanton.\u00a0 Michael Floyd<\/a><\/strong> is a good receiver but he does not have the ability to carry a game like Fitzgerald does.\u00a0 Eventually, Stanton may become frustrated and try to force some throws to Fitzgerald.\u00a0 This is when the 49ers need to be ready and come away with an interception.<\/p>\n

Blaine Gabbert Must Protect the Football\u00a0 <\/strong><\/h3>\n

Blaine Gabbert<\/strong> <\/a>has thrown\u00a0four interceptions already this season.\u00a0 That is\u00a0one interception for each game played.\u00a0 If Gabbert and the 49ers hope to have\u00a0any chance of coming away with a victory on Thursday\u00a0the former Missouri<\/strong> Tiger\u00a0cannot turn the ball over.\u00a0 This will be a tough test for Gabbert considering the opposition’s defensive strength is their secondary.<\/p>\n

Corner back Patrick Peterson<\/a><\/strong> and safety Tyrann Mathieu<\/a><\/strong> are among some of the best in the league at forcing interceptions.\u00a0 Chip Kelly<\/strong> and the 49ers coaching staff can help Gabbert protect the ball by calling plays that have Gabbert getting it out of his hands quickly, with quick drops because short routes that are hard to intercept.\u00a0 The more time Gabbert has to think the more likely he is to make an error.\u00a0 He needs to play off his instincts and\u00a0focus on ball security\u00a0if San Francisco is to have any chance against Arizona.<\/p>\n

If the 49ers can follow these keys they could come away with a victory Thursday night.<\/p>\n

Main Photo<\/p>\n

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Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n