It’s backs against the wall for the San Francisco 49ers following their abject 13-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Saturday’s peculiar prime-time matchup.

It’s hard to know what to focus on: the supine nature of the defense (despite the lack of points given up, that was mostly down to Sam Darnold’s incompetence), the brick-wall level of stupidity from the offense (taking away all the good it had done in prior weeks), or the casualty list that now seems to include every linebacker on the 49ers roster, but all of it’s a thoroughly depressing thought, and read. Let’s try and find some things to uplift us going into Sunday’s do-or-die clash with the Philadelphia Eagles.

My Hottest Take: Now’s not the time for ifs, buts and maybes

Yep, he's going to complain about the defense again. In truth, I’ve been embroiling myself in controversy since as early as last May, when I was stupid enough (or optimistic enough) to defend the 49ers attempts to go younger (and at least temporarily, cheaper) with their defense. In my mind, cutting a bunch of talent that had not performed anywhere near their level throughout the entirety of 2024 wasn’t something to cry about, and certainly no reason to call the owners cheap, which turned out to be the usual load of rubbish anyway, since a) the team were already paying or had already paid these cut "veteran stars" and b) the team promptly handed out big deals to George Kittle and Brock Purdy.

That drew the ire of one particular 49ers beat writer:

In all honesty, though, I think I was right. Ask yourself if the 49ers really miss Maliek Collins, or Leonard Floyd, or Javon Hargrave–and not just their reputations, but actual play. At best, Floyd might have been a rotation option a la Cle Ferrell.

Sure, it’s been a tough year at times, and the loss of Nick Bosa and Fred Warner was awful, but there’s been some young players who stepped up and made the most of their chances.

Which is why it infuriates me when the consistent bad play of the defense for the last month is handwaved away by ‘oh, they’re without Bosa and Warner’. So what? We’ve been without them longer than we’ve been with them at this point, and somehow still managed to produce game-winning performances against teams that were better on paper, leading to a shocking 12-5 record. Why is it only now, as defensive coordinator Robert Saleh seems to be struggling to find any sort of formula for stopping teams, that the mentions of injuries have come back again?

Perhaps the most infuriating part about it is that the units that are most affected by injury are rarely the ones that let the team down. While the 49ers pass-rush is much maligned, it actually made a little noise on Saturday, while the linebacking corps does lack some coverage skills but is generally not all that bad. Rather, the poorest play is coming from those that would be playing regardless–namely, the defensive backs and safeties. Ji’Ayir Brown and Malik Mustapha are frequent targets of my ire in this column, and very little has changed recently. Meanwhile, Deommodore Lenoir has rarely shown the coverage ability his $92 million extension would suggest he has, and Renardo Green is a pretty underrated defensive back, but has still had some issues against top-of-the-line guys.

Moreover, the 49ers’ biggest issue on Saturday was simple: missed tackles, and the ability to tackle is not an All-Pro skill. The run defense was dreadful throughout, and giving up a conversion to an outside run on 3rd-and-17 would be a fireable offense for some coaches in the league. Talent deficiencies are understandable. Effort and fundamental deficiencies are not, and that was the most maddening aspect of yet another defensive struggle.

The nice part about this season has been the lack of expectations, which has allowed us all to enjoy an incredible ride of ups and downs with a young-ish team loaded with potential. Unfortunately, it’s now January, and the ride’s ended. It’s time for the best version of the 49ers to show itself. There can be no half-measures, no ifs, buts, maybes, or therefores–Robert Saleh is paid like the top defensive coordinator in the NFL, and, no matter what he has to work with, he needs to produce a unit capable of helping to win playoff games.

That’s got harder, as every single 49ers linebacker who made the 53-man roster is currently injured (with Warner, Bethune, and Nick Martin all on IR), but perhaps veteran Eric Kendricks can build on a solid showing versus Seattle in Philadelphia this weekend.

What you need to know: Young building blocks show potential

Part of the reason I was glad to see some of those veteran bloated contracts depart was that the team really did need an infusion of youth and energy, across the defense in particular. That’s arrived in spades, in all fairness, as while the play of several players has been up and down, most of the draft picks have at least shown the ability to be potential building blocks for a strong 49ers future. First-rounder Mykel Williams was coming into his own prior to his torn ACL, but its second and third rounders Alfred Collins and Upton Stout respectively that provide the most excitement.

Collins is a huge athlete with dominant potential, and he’s increasingly found ways to make big-time plays throughout the year, with some eye-catching quarterback pressures, uncompromising run stops, and one huge punch-out on the goal-line inthatThursday Night Football epic with the Rams. While some would suggest the 49ers need a bookend opposite Nick Bosa, I happen to believe a dominant defensive tackle, a la Bryant Young, would push this defensive unit further. Collins has some of the raw materials to become one.

The rookie outside of Williams that has seen the most field time this year though is nickel back Upton Stout, and he’s grabbed the opportunity to impress (and occasionally, unfortunately, opposing receivers) with both hands.

While he’s had some up-and-down moments in coverage, he’s a sure tackler, a hitter way above his 5’9, 181lb size, and has the feel of a tone-setter on a defense badly in need of one. While all those around him crumbled on Saturday, Stout was the feistiest tackler, certainly the best tackler, and never quite gave up on the game. He set a great example, and he’s wonderfully positioned to be a solid starter for this team in the upcoming years.

Before You Go: A Rallying Cry

Sometimes writing these columns isn’t easy. I love what I do, but having to string out some positives from some very poor 49ers work, or even find talking points when there’s not much to say besides "the 49ers were terrible," can occasionally be akin to getting blood from a stone. I’ve done my best this week, and I hope you like it. I’ve been a pretty consistent critic of Robert Saleh all year, but I hope my reasons why are at least articulately explained, and positioned in such a way that they make sense and don’t come across as negativity for the sake of it.

Because as of this next sentence, I’m ditching it for this week.

The 49ers have their backs against the wall. We’re hurting, we’re inconsistent, we’re young, and no one thought we’d be here. We’re going into a cauldron in Philadelphia with the season on the line, and let’s face it, we owe them one.Brockowes them one. Sure, we got some revenge in the regular season in 2023, but that isn’t a playoff game. That isn’t ramming the words of those ever-crowing birds back down their throat.

We know they’re Super Bowl champions, but lets face it, they’re not the unit they were. Their fanbase is ready to run the offensive coordinator out of town on a rail, and their defense can–and has been–got at by teams we’ve beaten and bested, like the Chicago Bears.

The 49ers have nothing to fear. Yeah, injuries, yeah, inexperience, so what? We’re the underdogs, just like always, and it suits us. We can beat the Eagles. Let’s go do it. GO NINERS!