PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Sure QB Brock Purdy is back, but there is one man who has transformed the San Francisco offense. It’s what Christian McCaffery does at tailback that produced a new Mike Tomlin saying.
“He’s a one-on-one space winner,” Tomlin said of McCaffrey.
It’s his ability to get into open areas and then make you miss when you attempt to bring him down. In 10 starts with the Niners in 2022, the 27-year-old rushed for 746 yards (4.7 per attempt) and caught 65 passes for 464 yards combining for 10 touchdowns. In three postseason games last season, 54 touches for 299 combined yards and three touchdowns.
Tomlin said they have to respect how dynamic of a player he is. He noted that prior to his addition (coming over in a trade with Carolina) they were averaging 20 points a game and then 30 points a game after he joined the team.
McCaffrey is not the only one-on-one space winner on their team. Tomlin said George Kittle might be the best in the NFL at tight end and Deebo Samuel might be the best wide receiver in space.
“Their run after ability with their offensive eligibles is really impressive,” Tomlin said at his weekly news conference. “They can throw short and run long and produce big plays without absorbing a significant amount of risk. What does that mean for us?”
“We better tackle well. We better be sound schematically in terms of some matchup related things and not put people in bad circumstances athletically. It’s a coach’s challenge. It’s a fundamental technical player’s challenge from a tackling standpoint.”
The Steelers head coach didn’t stop there in his praise of the Niners offense.
“They got a really sound, solid mode of operation offensively,” Tomlin said. “A diverse attack, an awesome running back, a supporting mis-direction and play-action passing game. They are thoughtfully aggressive in terms of how they go down the field and they do it in a variety of ways. They play really good and prudent situational football offensively. It allows them to take care of the ball and minimize negativity. They stay on schedule very well.”
In various jobs, Tomlin said he’s been exposed to San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan a few times. Now it’s about not being exposed by him Sunday afternoon in the season opener.