{"id":4475,"date":"2016-10-20T21:51:55","date_gmt":"2016-10-21T01:51:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprofootball.com\/?p=4475"},"modified":"2016-10-21T03:43:18","modified_gmt":"2016-10-21T07:43:18","slug":"49ers-week-seven-keys-victory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2016\/10\/20\/49ers-week-seven-keys-victory\/","title":{"rendered":"San Francisco 49ers Week Seven Keys to Victory"},"content":{"rendered":"

The San Francisco 49ers<\/strong> suffered another tough loss last week to the Buffalo Bills<\/strong>.\u00a0 Colin Kaepernick<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s debut at quarterback yielded poor results as the team once again struggled to find an offensive rhythm.\u00a0 Week seven of the NFL<\/strong> season offers up the Tampa Bay Buccaneers<\/strong>.\u00a0 The Buccaneers are off to a rough start to their season at 2-5 and need a win, as do the 49ers.<\/p>\n

This battle of the bottom feeders is a must win situation for both teams.\u00a0 Talk has already begun to surface about what collegiate team Chip Kelly<\/strong> will be leaving for at the end of this season.\u00a0 There are many attractive jobs opening up after this season at that level, such as LSU<\/strong>, and possibly even Oregon<\/strong>.\u00a0 To keep the focus of this season alive the 49ers have to pull out a win.\u00a0 There are three key things the 49ers must achieve against Tampa Bay in order to obtain this win.<\/p>\n

San Francisco 49ers Week Seven Keys to Victory<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Force Turnovers on Defense<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The best way that San Francisco can demoralize and therefore slow down Tampa Bay\u2019s offense is to force turnovers.\u00a0 Jameis Winston<\/a><\/strong> has eight interceptions this season and has fumbled twice.\u00a0 One knock on Winston throughout his career is that he try\u2019s too hard, or seems to press the ball down field trying to force big plays.\u00a0 This temperament leaves him vulnerable to wild throws and interceptions.\u00a0 Yet, the last few weeks Winston has seemed to settle a bit in the pocket and came away with decent performances.\u00a0 Early game pressure and blitz\u2019s however will make Winston regress mentally and keeping him pushing.\u00a0 Keeping Winston on edge will lead to turnovers for the 49ers.<\/p>\n

Stifle Tampa\u2019s Rushing Attack<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Shutting down Doug Martin<\/a><\/strong> and Jacquizz Rodgers<\/a><\/strong> is going to be a monumental task for San Francisco\u2019s defense.\u00a0 After giving up over 300 yards last week to Buffalo, the 49ers are now ranked last in the league in rushing defense<\/a>.\u00a0 Unfortunately for the 49ers, this key could be the one that does them in.\u00a0 Rodgers is averaging four yards per carry this season, and Martin is a bruising compliment to Rodgers elusiveness.<\/p>\n

The best hope San Francisco has of stopping Tampa\u2019s run game is to load the box and be gap disciplined.\u00a0 Put eight men at the line of scrimmage.\u00a0 It will be important for the 49ers defensive line to hold their positions and shed blocks quickly.\u00a0 The goal is to be standing at the point of attack waiting for the running back or lead blocker.\u00a0 This effectively will blow up the run in the back field before it gets going.\u00a0 The\u00a0 49ers defense cannot allow the Buccaneers to control the tempo and clock with Rodgers and Martin.\u00a0 This happening will lead to a long day for San Francisco.<\/p>\n

Let Kaepernick Run!<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Colin Kaepernick has proved enough times in his career that his biggest asset as a quarterback is not his arm, it\u2019s his legs.\u00a0 Kaepernick\u2019s biggest successes of his career have come while he was a constant threat to run.\u00a0 This threat at times kept the linebackers eyes pinned to the backfield, and in fact helped open up receivers on crossing routes and over the middle.\u00a0 In turn, once the opposing defense was scorned by a few short completions they would again switch focus to the pass.\u00a0 This is when Kaepernick could run a draw or play action fake and burn teams.<\/p>\n

Though the read option is considered a fad in the league that was figured out years ago, it is what Kaepernicks does best.\u00a0 The team needs to stop trying force Kaepernick to show he can win from the pocket and be that player.\u00a0 He can\u2019t.\u00a0 Kaepernick\u2019s biggest strength on the football field is his athletic ability, not his arm.\u00a0 If the team is forced to play him at this point they might as well use him properly.\u00a0 Play to Kaepernick\u2019s strengths, not his weaknesses.<\/p>\n

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