49ers' top five players so far in disappointing 2020 season
George Kittle, Nick Bosa and Richard Sherman are not on this list.And when the time came to name the top 49ers players of the 2020 season through 10 games, no cases can be made for Jimmy Garoppolo, Raheem Mostert, Deebo Samuel or Dee Ford, either.The 49ers have not only suffered an uncommon number of injuries this season, but almost all of their top players have also been sidelined for significant parts of the season.The 49ers are 4-6 and in last place in the NFC West during their bye week.And they would be in even worse shape if not for the following five players who have been the team’s best performers up to this point in the season:
The 49ers signed Hyder to an under-the-radar one-year contract at the urging of 49ers defensive line coach Kris Kocurek. It did not take Hyder long to show everybody else why Kocurek is so fond of him.
Hyder was added to be a rotational backup. But in the third game of the season, he was in the starting lineup. And he has remained there, already posting a career-high with eight starts. Hyder started just two of the 40 games in which he appeared in his previous four NFL seasons with Detroit and Dallas.
The pass rush has gone from the strength of the team in 2019 to a weakness this year. But do not blame Hyder. He leads the 49ers with 5.5 sacks and 34 quarterback pressures.
Williams, a seven-time Pro Bowl player, could be on his way to his eighth NFC honor. Pro Football Focus recently listed him as the No. 2 left tackle on its Midseason All-Pro Team.
Williams gets high marks as a run-blocker, as well as for his pass protection on the blind side of the quarterback. PFF has him listed as surrendering 10 quarterback pressures in 10 games with four sacks allowed.
There were times earlier in the season in which it appeared Williams and left guard Laken Tomlinson were not on the same page. Those miscommunications resulted in pressure off the backside.
Like Hyder, Williams is playing this season without a contract for 2021. Both players have to be top priorities for the club to re-sign.
It did not take Aiyuk long to emerge as the team’s top wide receiver. Despite the lack of an offseason program, Aiyuk caught onto the offense quickly. He did not make the kinds of glaring mistakes often seen from rookie wide receivers.
The 49ers’ top receiver was supposed to be Samuel. But Samuel missed all of training camp after surgery to repair a fractured foot. That injury, in addition to a hamstring strain, relegated Samuel to just four games this season.
Aiyuk, whom the 49ers selected with the No. 25 overall pick in the draft, has done his part to compensate for the shortage of available wide receivers.
He leads the 49ers with 35 receptions for 446 yards and three touchdowns. Aiyuk has also scored two touchdowns rushing, as part of his five attempts for 61 yards. He missed the first game of the season with a hamstring injury. He also was forced to sit out Week 9 after being considered a close contact with Kendrick Bourne and going on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
After the 49ers struggled Sunday against the Saints in the return game, the club must decide whether to put Aiyuk deep as a punt returner for the final six games of the season.
The 49ers took a risk with Verrett, and that offseason move has paid off.
Verrett came to the 49ers in 2019 on a one-year contract. But his injury woes continued. He appeared in just one game before the 49ers placed him on injured reserve due to a lingering knee condition.
The 49ers saw enough from him to bring him back this year on another one-year contract. Verrett entered the starting lineup in Week 3 after Sherman was sidelined with a calf injury and Ahkello Witherspoon was out with a hamstring injury.
Verrett has been ultra-consistent, allowing 25 yards or fewer in six of his eight games. In the two other games, he allowed 42 yards in coverage against New England and 50 yards against Green Bay.
Verrett also supplied one of the defensive plays of the season with an end-zone interception of Jared Goff, which enabled the 49ers to pull out a Week 6 victory over the Los Angeles Rams.
The Packers had just pummeled the 49ers in Week 9, and the cameras caught future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers in conversation on the field with Warner.
“The film don’t lie,” Rodgers told Warner. “You should be All-Pro.”
Warner is in his third NFL season, and he has gotten better with each game he plays, it seems. Not only is he productive on the field, he has remained on the field. Warner has not missed a start in his NFL career.
He is outstanding against the run with his instinctive and well-studied play. He is also a lock-down coverage man. His passer rating against is 71.6, which is approximately 30 points lower than the average linebacker in coverage.
And, just as important, Warner has fully emerged as a team leader.
