No journey to the Super Bowl is ever linear. Ever since the Miami Dolphins achieved football perfection in 1972, every team that has climbed the mountain has had to experience some kind of bump in the road, and any team that harbours ambitions of adding their name to the list must show an ability to win in different ways and prevail when one side of the ball misfires.
The 2022 San Francisco 49ers have hit several bumps in the road. From a Week 1 loss to the Chicago Bears in a monsoon, to losing the anointed quarterback of the future, Trey Lance, to a season-ending ankle injury in Week 2 and suffering back-to-back losses to the Atlanta Falcons and the Kansas City Chiefs, the latter of which saw them ship 44 points, there have been plenty of points this season where belief in the 49ers as the Super Bowl contenders has been tested.
But San Francisco's response to the blowout Week 7 loss to the Chiefs has been emphatic and has reaffirmed the 49ers' status as a heavyweight in the NFC.
The 49ers have reeled off four successive victories to surge to 7-4 and, if the season ended today, would win the NFC West and enter the playoffs as an extremely dangerous third seed.
Two of those four wins have been blowouts, San Francisco marrying devastating offense from a group overflowing with playmakers following the October trade for Christian McCaffrey with tremendous defensive fortitude to destroy a pair of NFC West rivals in the Los Angeles Rams and Arizona Cardinals on the road.
Even with the level of star talent they have at their disposal, the 49ers' offense has not been consistent. A continuing theme of their recent dominance has been DeMeco Ryans' defense, which reached its 2022 zenith to this point on Sunday with a shutout 13-0 win over the New Orleans Saints.
It was a performance that served as an encapsulation of why Ryans is likely to be the premier head coaching candidate this offseason and one that should serve to raise the question of whether his defense is one that could be among the select few that carries its team to Super Bowl glory.
The numbers point heavily to the 49er defense being of that standard.
San Francisco's shutout was the Niners' first since they beat Washington 9-0 in the 2019 season, and it was the first suffered by the Saints since Week 17 of the 2001 season. The 49ers were the team to dole out the shutout on that occasion in a 38-0 win.
While it was a 20-year low point for the Saints on offense, for the 49ers it was a continuation of an eye-opening run of defensive obduracy. The Niners have now pitched four consecutive shutouts in the second half, also keeping the Rams, Los Angeles Chargers and Cardinals off the board in the final two quarters. Achieving the feat for four quarters against the Saints, they have now not conceded a point in over 94 minutes of game action.
The 49ers' refusal to let the Saints avoid drawing a blank was made more amazing by the fact New Orleans had six plays from inside San Francisco's five-yard line, and the season-long defensive numbers for the Niners paint the picture of the defiance shown by Ryans' group that could well come to define their season.
San Francisco's defense ranks first in points per game allowed, yards per game allowed, rush yards per game allowed, yards per rush allowed, first downs per game allowed and passing touchdowns allowed.
Simply put, this is a defense that can shut down anything an opposing offense does well, and it has multiple means by which it can do so.
The 49ers have the sixth-highest sack rate in the NFL at 7.9 per cent but have a blitz rate of 28.7 per cent that is below the league average of 30.8 per cent, those numbers speaking to San Francisco's long-established ability to get home by only sending four pass rushers from their exceptionally deep defensive line.
Nick Bosa, the star of that front, recorded the fourth-down sack that essentially ensured the Saints would not score in Week 12, taking his tally for the year to 11.5.
Bosa is the fifth player since 2000 to record at least one sack in nine of his first 10 games of a season, joining Hugh Douglas (2000), Everson Griffen (2017), Robert Mathis (2005) and Demarcus Ware (2008).
Yet the Niners have also made a habit of sending successful blitzes at the right time, with linebacker Fred Warner and safety Talanoa Hufanga – who each forced fumbles on Sunday – proving adept at generating pressure when rushing from the second level of the defense.
Hufanga's physicality jarred a fumble from Alvin Kamara at the one-yard line in the first of two fourth-quarter red zone stops against New Orleans, the former fifth-round pick emerging as a star in a secondary that has duplicity to frustrate teams with precise and disciplined zone coverage and facilitate blitzes by succeeding when it pivots to man coverage, with cornerback Charvarius Ward, the 49ers' headline free agency acquisition, excelling in both areas.
As with many defenses around the NFL, the 49ers rely heavily on two-high safety zone coverages; however, they have used Cover 1 man on 13.35 per cent of defensive snaps, well above the league average of 10.64 per cent. When using that coverage, they have given up 5.22 yards per play, over a yard fewer than the league average of 6.58.
In essence, the personnel Ryans has at his disposal allows him to easily switch between the staple of a four-man rush with zone coverage behind it and a more aggressive approach at any point and still have complete confidence his defense will deliver.
Though blitzes are not an overly common feature of the game plan, San Francisco's underpinning defensive philosophy is all about aggression, which is evident throughout when Ryans' players are on the field, their relentless pursuit of the football critical to the 49ers' incredible success against the run – opponents have gained only 3.1 yards per play on the ground versus San Francisco – and game-sealing turnovers such as Kamara's goal-line fumble.
That defensive violence ensured San Francisco did not follow the 49ers' offensive fireshow against the Cardinals in Mexico City with a letdown even as that attack sputtered in comparison to its efforts at Estadio Azteca.
Fast, physical, disciplined and diverse with the players at every level to consistently dominate, the 2022 49ers defense has all the ingredients of a championship unit and proved it can carry the load in ensuring San Francisco won in a very different way in Week 12 following the blowout of Week 11.
With Jimmy Garoppolo playing some of the best football of his career, after sticking around to back up Lance in a prescient move by both player and franchise, and blessed with a skill-position group that features McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle, the hope will be the defense will not have to shoulder the burden on a regular basis. But this four-game stretch has proven unequivocally that it can do so, and that is an excellent insurance policy for the 49ers as they plot a path to a second Super Bowl appearance in four seasons.
McKenna fired up for 'biggest game in world football' against Man United
Kieran McKenna believes Ipswich Town's Premier League clash with Manchester United will be the "biggest game in world football" this weekend.
United are in action under new manager Ruben Amorim for the first time since the Portuguese officially replaced Arne Slot as head coach.
While plenty of focus is on the visitors at Portman Road, Ipswich are fired up after beating Tottenham 2-1 before the international break.
That was Ipswich's first league win of the season – and their first in the Premier League in 22 years – and now attention turns to facing United.
McKenna, who previously coached United, said at a fan event this week: "Sunday, what a game. It's one we're really, really looking forward to.
"Not for the personal connection, but as manager of Ipswich Town, to be on that stage, it's what we've worked so hard for.
"It's the biggest game in world football anywhere this weekend, the biggest game in the world in the biggest sport in the world and it's at Portman Road."
Ipswich's surprise win at Tottenham last time out moved them up to 17th, while United are 13th after beating Leicester City 3-0 in Ruud van Nistelrooy's final game in caretaker charge.
Amorim took his first training session on Monday, albeit with many first-team stars away on international duty, and the former Sporting CP boss believes his style of play will be clear to see from the off.
"I think you will see an idea," he told the club's website. "You could like it or not, I don't know, but you will see an idea.
"You will see a positioning. You will see something that we want to reach that kind of level. You will feel that.
"We have to know it's [only] two trainings before the first match. This is the best league in the world. But if I have to say something to you, [it's that] you will see an idea. This I can guarantee."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Ipswich Town - Liam Delap
Delap scored what proved to be Ipswich's winner against Tottenham and has now netted six of his side's 12 Premier League goals this term.
That makes the Manchester City academy product one of only three players to have scored at least half of his side's goals in the competition this season, along with Erling Haaland at City (55%) and Chris Wood at Nottingham Forest (53%).
Manchester United - Alejandro Garnacho
Garnacho was among the scorers against Leicester two weeks ago and has now been directly involved in 20 Premier League goals for United (13 goals and seven assists).
The Argentina international is one of only two non-British players to reach that figure for United before turning 21, along with Cristiano Ronaldo (25 goals).
MATCH PREDICTION: MANCHESTER UNITED WIN
Ipswich are seeking back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time since February 2022, with that run also beginning with a 2-1 victory against Tottenham.
The Tractor Boys are the only side in the competition without a home win this season. Only five newly promoted clubs have failed to win any of their first six home matches, all of whom went back down.
United have won 17 of their past 19 Premier League games against newly promoted opponents, meanwhile, including nine wins in a row in away fixtures.
The Red Devils were 1-0 winners on their most recent league trip to Portman Road in April 2022, but only once have they won successive league games away to Ipswich.
However, the Tractor Boys have lost four of their past five league matches against Man United, failing to score in each of those losses.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Ipswich Town - 22.2%
Draw - 23%
Manchester United - 54.8%
Slot deserves praise for modest approach to Liverpool job – Mills
Arne Slot deserves praise for not being "arrogant" with his approach to succeeding Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool boss, according to Danny Mills.
The Dutchman has made a hugely positive start to life at Anfield since replacing long-serving Klopp ahead of the 2024-25 season.
The 28 points Slot has collected is the joint-most of any manager in their opening 11 Premier League games along with Guus Hiddink at Chelsea.
Liverpool's only blemish on an otherwise perfect start to the top-flight campaign was a 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest in September.
Indeed, only in 2019-20 (31 points) have Liverpool collected more points after 11 games of a Premier League season than their 28 this campaign.
Former Leeds United and Manchester City defender Mills has been particularly impressed by Slot's approach to a new era at Anfield.
"Arne Slot has surprised me," Mills told Stats Perform. "They did have a difficult defeat against Nottingham Forest at home. That was a defeat not many people saw that coming, but the start he's had is unbelievable. It's incredible.
"Training might be slightly different, but the style of play is very similar. The players are comfortable with it. They've been high-energy, closing people down, and playing at 100 miles an hour when they win the ball back.
"It shows managerial intelligence to understand the players' qualities and build on what they had when they were successful. He hasn't overthought it or tinkered too much.
"He hasn’t been arrogant and said, 'I'm going to rip it up and start fresh'. It wasn't broken; it was already successful. He's just added to it."
Liverpool won a first ever Premier League title during Klopp's eight-and-a-half years in charge, as well the Champions League in 2018-19.
Klopp also lifted the FA Cup, two EFL Cups, the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup, setting a high benchmark to follow.
"Liverpool identified the man they wanted, brought him in, and he's been very clever," Mills added. "He looked at the squad and thought, 'these are good players. I don't need to change too much'.
"That's smart because Liverpool were very successful under Klopp. If you come in and rip up the playbook and it doesn't work, players will question why they're not doing what worked under Klopp."
Liverpool have conceded just six goals in the Premier League this season – four fewer than next-best Nottingham Forest.
They are conceding at a rate of around 0.5 goals per game, compared to around 1.1 in Klopp's final season in charge (41 goals in 38 matches).
"Slot has tweaked things slightly, maybe made them more defensively solid, which they needed to really challenge," Mills said. "Championship-winning or Champions League-winning teams are built on solid defences.
"You don't win without that. He's shored up the defence and allowed the players to continue doing what they were doing before."
Barca weren't going to sign Williams if they could not register him, says Laporta's advisor
Barcelona were not going to sign Nico Williams if his registration with LaLiga could not be guaranteed, according to Blaugrana president Joan Laporta's advisor, Enric Masip.
The Spain international was a top target for Hansi Flick's side after playing a starring role during La Roja's Euro 2024 triumph.
Williams netted a fine solo goal in the 4-1 win over Georgia in the round of 16, becoming the first player on record at the Euros (since 1980) to score, assist and complete 100% of his passes (46 from 46) in a game he started.
The Athletic Bilbao forward was then named Player of the Match after finding the net in Spain's 2-1 victory over England in the final.
Williams was expected to reunite with international team-mate Lamine Yamal at Camp Nou.
It was reported he chose to remain with Bilbao after Barca were unable to guarantee his registration with LaLiga due to complying with the salary cap, but Masip - advisor to Laporta - has refuted those claims.
"If a player who is of your interest doesn't want to move, you don't have much leeway," he told El Chiringuito. "There was not much you could do.
"It's hard for me to think that if you were going to sign Nico Williams, you wouldn't be able to register him.
"Barca weren't going to pay €50 million or €60 million for a player if they weren't going to be able to register him. So, well, it surely would have been done."
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