The San Francisco 49ers are back home at Levi’s Stadium for their home opener, undefeated and ready to build on that Week 1 performance. Remember how everyone kinda overlooked them, even after that Australian performance? Yeah, good times. Now the Miami Dolphins are in town, and there’s a serious question about how their offense holds up, especially with Malik Willis facing some brutal pressure.
The Under Center Wild Ride Continues
Okay, so the 49ers dropped a new wrinkle on us: using under center in the drop-back passing game. And it’s working! They’re hitting the fourth-highest rate in the entire NFL for going under center, in a league that’s seeing a huge bump in that percentage overall. The best part? They finished with the third-highest EPA per play under center, clocking in at a sweet 0.20. It’s a revolution, man. On the flip side, the Dolphins have already faced the second-highest rate, with the Raiders going under center a wild 63.5% of the time. Miami actually did pretty well against it, posting a defensive EPA of -0.04. You just know the 49ers are gonna keep this coming, using that winding motion to create angles and keep defenses guessing, a second too late.
Miami’s Base Defense Has a Target on its Back
Last week, the 49ers absolutely feasted on the Rams’ lighter personnel, just running the ball right at their nickel and dime packages. The Rams were in base defense for only 28.1% of their snaps. But here’s the kicker: Miami led the NFL with a whopping 68.3% base defense percentage. They were in nickel at the lowest mark in the league, only 31.7%. If the Dolphins stick to this trend, the 49ers are absolutely gonna attack those base looks, but with more passing on early downs. Seriously, you gotta expect a big game from Mike Evans if Miami wants to stay in base all game. It’s a chess match, and the 49ers have moves.
Willis and the Pressure Cooker
This is where it gets spicy. The 49ers didn’t even need to blitz much last week, hitting the second-lowest rate in the NFL at just 10.3%. Yet, they still generated pressure on a ridiculous 37.9% of plays. Now, think about this: Miami allowed the highest pressure percentage last week. Malik Willis was feeling the heat on a staggering 56.8% of his dropbacks! And even with all that, the Dolphins offense was still taking a ton of shots downfield, with the highest deep throw percentage at 29.6%. The key for the 49ers? Shutting down those deep routes, keeping Willis locked in the pocket, and just keep that pressure coming. It’s how you slow down a mobile quarterback who loves to launch it.
The 49ers are looking to remain undefeated as they host the Dolphins. After a solid Week 1 and that performance in Australia, they’ve got momentum. Can they keep up the innovative offense and put Malik Willis under enough pressure to secure another win? This one’s gonna be a showdown.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Niners Nation.
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