Even before they lost Nick Bosa to a season-ending injury, the San Francisco 49ers always found a way to rotate their defensive line to ensure players are fresh for the duration of the game.

I’ve been keeping track of the rotations, just to see how they are tweaked and who earns more playing time throughout the game. On the play where Fred Warner dislocated his ankle, the 49ers only had ten players on the field. Before the ball was snapped, it didn’t take somebody with NFL coaching experience to know there was something off with the play:

Everybody is so fixated on their pre-snap keys that they don’t notice there isn’t an edge rusher lined up in front of Dee Winters. Warner is pointing in that direction, but due to his recognizing Tampa Bay’s formation and what was happening next.

Kyle

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