The 49ers have the #1 rushing defense in the NFL

Here’s how….

As the old adage goes, you earn the right to rush the passer by stopping the run. The 49ers and their league-leading 21 sacks can be directly attributed to the work that they have done against opposing rushing attacks on early downs.

Through five weeks of the NFL season, the 49ers rank first in yards per rushing attempt allowed at just three yards per carry. They also rank first in rushing yards allowed per game at 71.4 yards per game.

That dominance was on display in Carolina, where the 49ers allowed 64 yards on 17 carries for an average of 3.8 yards per attempt. What’s astounding is that the 3.8 yards per carry the Panther recorded was the highest yards per attempt any team has had against the 49ers’ defense this season.

Through five weeks of the NFL season, the 49ers rank first in yards per rushing attempt allowed at just three yards per carry. They also rank first in rushing yards allowed per game at 71.4 yards per game.

The 49ers’ defense has only allowed one team to eclipse 100 yards on the ground over their last 16 games, dating back to week 10 of the 2021 season. The only team to do so was the Denver Broncos in week 3, who barely cracked the century mark with 101 rushing yards.

To illustrate just how dominant this unit has been, in the lone game over that span where they allowed over 100 yards, Denver’s offense was still held to just 3.1 yards per carry.

What makes this the most impressive is the way this unit has been able to stonewall opponents rushing attacks despite the absence of Javon Kinlaw and Arik Armstead for a large portion of this season.

It has been a group effort at all three levels, with players like Talanoa Hufanga and Mooney Ward punishing opposing ball carries from the secondary. Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw continue to fill run fits as good as any linebacker tandem in the league.

However, what I really wanted to take a moment to highlight is the dirty work being done in the trenches and showing some love to the players eating double teams, and doing all of the little things that might not show up in a traditional box score.

The job that the interior defensive line has done this season has been heroic, to say the least. They have been without two of the best run defenders in the entire league, and they have not missed a beat in their absence.

Every single week Kevin Givens has a handful of plays that jump off the screen. If there was any kind of silver lining to losing a player like DJ Jones in free agency, it was the door opening for a player like Givens to get an increased role with this defense. Givens has been absolutely phenomenal this season and has made plays like this over and over.

Another player on the interior who has seen an increased workload is Hassan Ridgeway, who signed with the 49ers on an extremely team-friendly deal this past season. Ridgeway has been worth every penny and then some thus far, giving the 49ers a dominant presence at the defensive tackle position.

The most noteworthy performance came from Akeem Spence, who was permanently elevated to the 53-man roster from the practice squad just one day before the 49ers took the field in Carolina.

Spence flashed on numerous occasions, including this perfect example of how the battles fought in the trenches often get overshadowed by the end result of a given play.

Watch how Spence is able to open up the A gap for Warner to get into the backfield to make this play.

The 49ers’ dominant run defense has a challenging test awaiting in their Week 6 matchup in Atlanta, where the Falcons offense has the third-ranked rushing attack at 164.6 yards per game on the ground this season.

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