What absolute freaking warriors. They showed so much grit and resilience today that I feel like my expectations are immediately raised for the rest of the season. It was good to see what it looks like when the 49ers offense faces a serious defense. It won’t always be fireworks and big runs. But when the going gets tough, these guys come through. I can’t wait to read all the analysis / film breakdowns that’ll get posted today and tomorrow.
After terrorizing old team, 49ers’ Dre Greenlaw said he was
fueled by Sean Payton’s ‘disrespect’ (paywall) “Greenlaw was blacking out and seeing red Sunday because Payton, he said, ignored him last year, starting around late November. After he signed a three-year, $31.5 million contract in March 2025, Greenlaw missed Denver’s first six games with a torn quadriceps. He missed the final two games with a hamstring strain. The Broncos released him in March after Greenlaw had made 43 tackles in eight games.
Greenlaw said Payton began ignoring him – he said he hadn’t spoken to him since Week 12 — because he was frustrated by the return the Broncos were receiving on their investment.
“He definitely was, for sure,” Greenlaw said. “He would walk by – I would walk by – and he wouldn’t even look at me because of my injury. So I just knew what it was (with him) there.”
Greenlaw, a longtime enforcer and energizer who spent his first six seasons with the 49ers before his lone season in Denver, said his relationship with Payton is why he was “1,000 percent” more amped than usual for Sunday’s game.
Greenlaw said his agent was the one who informed him the Broncos were parting ways with him.
“The disrespect,” Greenlaw said of Sunday’s motivation. “He couldn’t be man to man and call my phone and say, ‘We’re going to cut you.’”
…..“I told him after the game, ‘I could tell you were about 98% blacked out,’” Williams said. “But he kept his cool with that other 2%.”
Defensive end Romello Height added, “Every time he came to the sideline, he was tweaking out. It was good to see that, and it was good to see him kind of get revenge on an old team.”
Dre Greenlaw had ‘a little extra’ vs. the Broncos, his ex-team
“I was half blacked out, but I just know my teammates just had my back, and they just told me to be smart,” Greenlaw said. “I’m thankful to have the teammates that just have my back and just understand me. … They helped a lot.”
Asked what happened in the moment, Warner, with a smile creeping across his face, said the moment was “blurry” in his mind.
“There was definitely something a little extra for him this week,” Warner said. “He had extra emotion going in this game. I told him just to use it wisely, which he did. I was proud of him and played a heck of a game. He’s played great all year, continuing to play great for us. I’m glad he’s on our side now.”
8 Winners, 3 losers, and 1 IDK from the 49ers win over the Broncos
“Sumer Sports has a “pressure to pocket attempt” stat, and the 49ers had 57.9%, 6.6% above league average. They moved Nix off his spot. Credit Nix for making plays off schedule, but the lack of sacks doesn’t mean the 49ers gave Nix all day to throw.
Nix’s 40.5% passing success rate (34.5% before the final drive) was 21st among all quarterbacks in Week 4. He was pressured 43.2% of the time, despite a 29.5% blitz rate. That pressure rate was the 11th-best this week.
My takeaway from this game was that Morris went out of his way to take away anything over 10 yards. He forced Nix to dink and dunk down the field, hoping the offense would either get impatient or Denver would shoot itself in the foot. The latter proved to be true multiple times.
Osa Odighizuwa had four pressures. Gracen Halton and Sebastian Valdez had one apiece. Keion White had four. Ogbo Okoronkwo and Romello Height also had two. In fact, Height had a team-high 22.2% pass-rush win rate. White was at 18.2%. They didn’t turn them into sacks, but it felt like Nix was flustered enough during the game that it impacted his decision-making to throw the ball downfield.”
Kyle Juszczyk (knee), two more 49ers injured in win over Broncos
“Juice … they’re thinking it was probably a knee sprain,” Shanahan said. “[The] ACL and stuff looked intact, but we’ll have to find out tomorrow. Stout, they’re guessing an AC [sprain], but we won’t know for sure until tomorrow. And Sigle, they’re not sure. They just thought an ankle.”
What Kyle Shanahan and others said after 49ers’ 24-14 win vs. Broncos
“Yeah, I grabbed [Brock] and said, ‘Don’t throw any more incompletions.’ And he listened. I should have told him at the beginning (laughter). No, I think he had some better looks. Didn’t get any tipped balls. I think he had better looks and was awesome there.”
Kawakami: The Kyle Shanahan era keeps going and going — stronger than ever (paywall)
“But right now, Shanahan and general manager John Lynch are the two unquestioned power sources in this franchise. Underline that 10 more times now that Paraag Marathe has left to run the 49ers’ European soccer interests and Jed York has been suspended and moved to Ohio before that.
Who’s going to overrule Shanahan and Lynch now? Who would want to? The whole rational point of the Shanahan era is that nobody ever has to pull him from doing crazy things.”
What we learned as huge second half fuels 49ers’ win over Broncos, 4-0 start
“The 49ers entered the game with a 63-percent success rate on third downs, but their short-yardage offense was a problem on Sunday.”
Grades for Brock Purdy, 49ers’ gutsy Week 4 win over Broncos to stay undefeated
“The 49ers’ run defense had been one of the areas of concern through the first three games. But they did a good job on Sunday against J.K. Dobbins and R.J. Harvey.
Dobbins had 11 carries for 40 yards (3.6 average), and Harvey managed just 25 yards on seven carries (3.6 average). The 49ers also did a good job of limiting Bo Nix on his scrambles. He gained just 10 yards on two rushing attempts.”
49ers’ Upton Stout reminds Raheem Morris of a Hall of Fame cornerback (paywall)
“The 49ers grade each college prospect on what they call “Game WIT,” an assessment of their on-field demeanor, aggressiveness, mentality and strain. Area scout Warren Ball gave Stout the highest “Game WIT” grade he ever has assigned a prospect, saying he had a “heart of a lion.”
Head coach Kyle Shanahan shows his players highlights from the previous week in a team meeting the night before games. The greatest hits from the victory over the Dolphins? Tight end George Kittle said, “It was mostly an Upton highlight film.”
….Stout has never lacked confidence. At Western Kentucky, he sometimes acted like a coach, barking at his teammates for missed assignments or effort that didn’t meet his standards. His position coach, Da’Von Brown, raved about Stout last year, but also conceded: “Every day wasn’t cream and cookies.”
The 49ers did their homework and felt comfortable that Stout’s rough edges reflected his passion, not bad character. Eighteen months after Stout was drafted, it appears they came to the correct conclusion.”
