The 49ers got some bad news about their starting safety
Less than a month from playing the Chicago Bears in Week One, the San Francisco 49ers received some concerning news about their starting safety. The backup situation is especially concerning for the 49ers. Reports came out Monday that safety Jimmie Ward sustained a hamstring injury.
It appears to be bad enough that Ward might be out for the game against the Bears. That’s not good news for the 49ers to lose the former first-round pick. Ward had 2 interceptions, 6 passes defended, and 77 combined tackles last season.
The Chicago Bears will have to take advantage of the secondary
Bears quarterback Justin Fields will need to take advantage of Ward being out. The Chicago Bears are going to have to use any edge they can to win and keep the Green Bay Packers from stealing the winningest NFL team record the next week.
George Odum might take Ward’s place. He was listed on the 49ers’ first unofficial depth chart as the number two free safety. Odum is in his fifth year in the NFL. Odum has only started 10 games in his entire NFL career.
All of which were with the Indianapolis Colts, where Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus was his defensive coordinator. This should give the Bears’ offense a major advantage at that part of the secondary, as Eberflus would know secrets about Odum’s strengths and weaknesses.
When Fields has the chance to attack that part of the defense, he has to execute. The Bears don’t have a lot of strength at wide receiver, so these matchups are ones the Bears can use to execute their passing offense. Although, for FIelds to hit that open target, he’ll have to rely on his pass protection to neutralize the fierce pass rush of Nick Bosa.
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