49ers’ Garoppolo somehow sings praises of Seahawks’ NFL-worst defense
SANTA CLARA — If Jimmy Garoppolo can’t say anything nice about you, well, you must be truly rotten. It’s not his nature to publicly return fire at his critics, or to demean others, at least not off the field.
Garoppolo sprayed compliments at each and every target that came his way Thursday. He even found something nice to say about the Seattle Seahawks’ league-worst defense, which he astutely does not want to rile up ahead of the 49ers’ game Sunday in Seattle.
“There’s some soft spots. They make you work for it, though,” Garoppolo began. “There’s no gimmies against this type of defense. You have to earn it and work your way down the field. They’re very sound.”
Disclaimer: The Seahawks (5-1) have allowed the most yards in NFL history through six games.
Garoppolo is obviously progressing from a Sept. 20 ankle injury, and his positive outlook is vital in a season rife with injuries, setbacks and, yes, relentless critics.
George Kittle gleefully reported that Garoppolo is even returning texts more promptly, or even sending one out of the blue, like he did Wednesday night. When it was time for his media video call, Garoppolo was not short with feel-good comments, such as:
On this up-and-down season’s potential: “It’s not just smooth sailing, like it was last year, win after win. We’ve had the ups and downs, and that’s made us battle tested, just as a team. With guys getting hurt, having to bring guys up from the practice squad or second-stringers, it just makes your team overall that much better and that much more prepared down the road.”
On his rarely seen deep ball, which he noticeably practiced at the start of Thursday’s session: “I’m always confident in that. That’s one thing we do real well. Whether it’s running or passing, with this offense, it’s pick your poison. We’ve done it a number of ways last season and this season.”
On the Seahawks not allowing in their fervid fans: “I’ll miss the atmosphere up there. It’s one of the cooler places to play with the fans and everything. With the cadence and procedure, it’ll make it easier for us, and I’m looking forward to that.”
On Shanahan’s evolving game plans: “You get more and more used to it. It’s what you expect. Each week is little different, some weeks harder than the others. We have a great group of guys willing to learn that stuff. It’s not easy. It takes time. … It makes us more dangerous.”
And just to test Garoppolo’s feel-good day, it was worth testing his reaction to Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa, 76, being named skipper of Garoppolo’s beloved White Sox: “My brothers, we’re all in group text, so they shot that out. I’m happy about it. It’s exciting. I really didn’t get to keep up with them much this year, with the crazy season and everything. But, yeah, White Sox all day, baby.”
BACK END STRENGTH
Safety Jimmie Ward’s return to practice Thursday is especially significant because of the 49ers’ upcoming opponent. Same goes with nickel back K’Waun Williams’ potential emergence off the Injured Reserve list.
Instead of traveling to Seattle to face a run-oriented opponent as in past years, this Sunday’s challenge comes from Russell Wilson’s passes targeting D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett at a NFL-leading level. 49ers cornerbacks Jason Verrett and Emmanuel Moseley won’t be able to stop them alone.
“It’s definitely a different approach to what we’re used to seeing out of Seattle,” defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said. “But Russell is doing it, man. He’s an unbelievable talent and they have unbelievable wide receivers. … With that comes a lot of yards, explosives and points.”
The 49ers secondary will need to match the Seahawks’ speed and play-making prowess, and one way to counter that is enlisting multiple defensive backs. Their dime package should see a lot of action.
“We feel we match up with people on the back end better than anyone in the league,” Saleh said. “So based on week to week game plan, we can utilize every one of them.”
That includes the 49ers linebacker corps, which might welcome back Kwon Alexander back from an ankle injury and two-game absence, but more likely will again call on Dre Greenlaw to line up next to Fred Warner. Greenlaw was last year’s “Big Play Dre” in thwarting the Seahawks, first with an overtime interception at Levi’s Stadium and then a goal-line stop to save the regular-season finale at Seattle.
Ward was out the past week with a quadriceps strain. Tarvarious Moore excelled in his place in Sunday’s 33-6 rout at New England, and Marcell Harris adequately replaced strong safety Jaquiski Tartt, who remains out with a groin injury. Williams also looks poised to return from a three-game absence due to a knee injury.
KITTLE’S TALK SHOW
Tight end George Kittle is always a soundbite dream when he wears a mic during games, and one aspect it reveals are his verbal exchanges with opponents.
“I either get silence, they swear at me or we start having a conversation. It just depends on the guy,” Kittle said. “I throw a feeler out there to see what I’ll deal with all day. It’s fun for me.”
Because Kittle lines up on either side of the formation, he encounters different opponents with different approaches.
“It’s really funny because maybe I’m on the right side and the guy will tell me to shove it, and then I’ll go to the left side and have a conversation the whole game,” Kittle added. “It’s fun for me. I like to have those conversations.”
Speaking of opponents, Kittle said the Seahawks’ last-ranked defense still presents an imposing challenge with linebacker Bobby Wagner, who he compared to the Los Angeles Rams’ Aaron Donald in terms of a play-making stopper.
“Any defense with Bobby Wagner in the middle is a very good defense in my opinion,” Kittle said. “If you don’t account for him, he’s the guy that prevents big plays from happening.”
HEALTH UPDATES
Linebacker Kwon Alexander practiced for the first time since sustaining a high-ankle sprain against Philadelphia.
Not practicing were wide receivers Deebo Samuel (hamstring) and Richie James (ankle), running back Jeff Wilson (ankle) and Tartt (groin).
Running back Tevin Coleman, tight end Jordan Reed and Williams practiced in their quest to come off Injured Reserve.