The San Francisco 49ers lost 34-31 to the Baltimore Ravens for Super Bowl XLVII. Here are the grades for the defense and special teams:
Defensive line: C
The defensive line had minimal pressure on Joe Flacco for majority of the game. Outside of two sacks by Ahmad Brooks and Ray McDonald, there weren't many times the pocket collapsed or the pass rush looked effective. Justin Smith and Isaac Sopoaga were able to eat up the blocks for the running game to be shut down.
Linebackers: C
NaVorro Bowman and Patrick Willis had outstanding games in stopping Ray Rice and Bernard Pierce. Both RBs had their good moments, but they only averaged less than three yards per carry. Bowman in particular had pressure on Flacco with a few knockdowns. Ahmad Brooks and Aldon Smith both had rough games. Dennis Pitta and Ed Dickson both had receptions off of them. Brooks and Smith made crucial errors in jumping offsides when both of them were blitzing. Brooks jumped offsides during the opening drive on third down and the Ravens eventually scored a touchdown on the next play.
Secondary: D-
Joe Flacco had his ways with the 49ers secondary. They were forced to play in nickel coverage with Baltimore lined up with multiple wide receivers. Chris Culliver and Donte Whitner were the two liabilities for this game. Culliver will be most remembered for allowing the 56-yard touchdown pass to Jacoby Jones. He was also flagged for a pass interference on third down which kept a Ravens' drive alive. Whitner was beaten five times and two of them ended up being the touchdowns to Pitta and Anquan Boldin.
Tarell Brown played well for the most part, not allowing much on his side. Goldson also didn't allow any receptions, but ended up being forced to make mop up tackles down the field.
Carlos Rogers' only mistake was giving up the 15-yard reception to Boldin in the fourth quarter on third and one.
The Ravens had 21 first downs in the game and 13 of them were threw the air.
Special Teams: D+
One critical mistake lowers this grade in the worst possible way. The kicking coverage allowed a 108-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to start the second half. With 11 seconds remaining in the game, the punt coverage unit didn't play for the block but rather the return. It ended up wasting extra seconds before the Ravens punter Sam Koch ran out of the end zone for a safety. There could have been one outside shot at a hail mary if he was rushed. David Akers was perfect making three of his three field goal attempts. He was fortunate to get a second chance when the Ravens jumped offsides after a missed 39-yard attempt. Andy Lee punted the ball three times and still averaged 53 yards per punt, which prevents this grade from being a "D-" or an "F".
Coaching: D-
Vic Fangio was beaten throughout the first half. It didn't matter who Flacco threw to, he had his ways in moving the chains and throwing three touchdowns. The defense adjusted well in the second half after the 34-minute power outage delay. Flacco did not throw another touchdown and held them to two field goals, but the damage was already done. Despite the offense not scoring much in the first half, the defense was mostly responsible for this loss.
Comments