The Jimmie Ward injury is a massive blow to the San Francisco 49ers’ defense if he ends up on injured reserve. He went down with a hamstring injury on Aug. 14, which may force the veteran safety to miss the season’s first month. The eight-year veteran has been arguably the most important individual piece in the 49ers’ secondary over the past half-decade. The free safety has done a lot during his eight seasons, including spending most of his first three seasons at cornerback.
And it’s that versatility that makes him so valuable to the 49ers’ defense. Well, his versatility and a slew of other defensive back traits. When general manager John Lynch said, “he allows us to do what we do,” he wasn’t lying.
“He’s a safety who plays like a safety but also covers like a corner. He’s oftentimes our best cover man, so it’s a big loss. But we got to find a way to step up.”
But what exactly will the Niner’s defense be missing without Ward, and how could it jeopardize their efficiency to start the season?
Jimmie Ward injury: Does it affect the team’s record early on?
No safety will make a significant difference in a game’s betting line. The 49ers got a bit lucky in the season’s first few weeks. During Weeks 1 and 2, they face the Chicago Bears and Seattle Seahawks. While Justin Fields has a mass of talent, his offensive line is horrific, which should play right into the strength of the 49ers team — their pass rush.
The Seahawks’ offense will be a more difficult matchup, but overall their offense should still ultimately fall below league average by the end of the season. This gives the San Francisco defense two weeks to sort through things before stumbling upon a truly talented offense in Denver. Week 4 is against the Los Angeles Rams, so the 49ers will have to sharpen their communication and execution by then.
Jimmie Ward injury: Losing their best coverage player
This is arguable now that the 49ers signed Charvarius Ward in free agency, but Ward is their second-best coverage defender at minimum.
Ward is patient in man coverage, something we don’t often see from safeties. His time playing cornerback in his younger years has turned into him being able to slide down into the slot and survive against some of the best receivers in the league. He possesses the foot speed of a slot cornerback but with the processing ability of a seasoned veteran.
But coverage is so much more than just being able to line up across from a man and mirror them in man coverage, especially for a safety.
Spending years as a free safety means seeing almost everything an offense can throw at you. The 49ers’ defense isn’t necessarily complex compared to other NFL defenses, but it’s also not an old-school spot-drop-zone -coverage scheme all the time, either.
San Francisco will rotate safeties down quite often to play Cover 3 against trips looks, where they mix things up by running weak buzz and sky, meaning the safety to the weak side plays in the hole or the flat, respectively.
In the above video, the Rams try to run a scissors concept to influence the outside cornerback inside on the post, which would open up the sail to Cooper Kupp. K’Waun Williams does an excellent job mid-pointing the sail and flat routes to dissuade Matthew Stafford from taking the downfield shot.
However, you can also see Ward pleading with Josh Norman to stay outside of the numbers and not follow the post toward the hash. With Jaquiski Tartt and Ward together, the 49ers could disguise their man and zone coverages against pre-snap motion by rotating the safeties when their man went on the move.
They played man coverage here but would “spin” into Cover 3 looks against the motion as well. That seamless communication is built up through time and repetitions together. While DeMeco Ryan’s defense isn’t necessarily complex, the communication between the safeties is the key to disguising their pre-snap looks.
Losing a plus run defender
For a safety failing to tip the 200-pound scale, Ward is an excellent run defender. He’s made a career out of being a sure tackler, which is pretty astounding, considering his stature. The patience he displays in coverage is the same patience he shows coming downhill and squaring up ball carriers.
His experience and intelligence also allow him to pick his spots. He understands when the opportunity presents itself to fly downhill to make a play.
He’ll never be mistaken for a big hitter, but in 2021, no safety missed a tackle less often than Ward.
Final thoughts on Ward’s injury
Nick Bosa and Fred Warner are far more talented players than Ward. However, the 49ers possess a ton of depth on the defensive line, and we’ve already established the importance of defending the pass.
2022 will mark the first time San Francisco has spent significant time without either Tartt or Ward on the field together. Luckily for them, Talanoa Hufanga played 400 snaps last season and played well, which is partly why Tartt is gone. There shouldn’t be any communication issues between Hufanga and Ward upon Ward’s return.
George Odum comes from Indianapolis, where he played most of the defensive snaps last season after Julian Blackmon’s season-ending injury. Odum is a special-teams ace but must take on a much more significant role early on in the 49ers’ defense.
They’ll need their pass rush to consistently create pressure, but if they can, there’s no reason why the 49ers couldn’t be 3-1 by the time Ward returns in Week 5 if he’s able to return but then.