The San Francisco 49ers have a difficult task ahead of them on Monday night. Superstar New York Jets running back Breece Hall is fully healthy, and he'll be a handful.
49ers linebacker Fred Warner explained how the defense can contain the two-time All-American, via Heavy's Paul Andrew Esden Jr.
“Yeah, I mean huge test. I think he's one of the best backs in the league,” Warner admitted. “I haven't played him yet, but so dynamic, the ability to hit the home run with the speed, his cuts in and out inside the box I think is at the top of the league. It's gonna be a huge test for us, we gotta swarm him. It can't be a one-man show, we gotta swarm the football. I know they're excited about the rookie [Braelon Allen] that they brought in as well, so we gotta make sure we're on our assignments and playing relentless football in order to have a chance of stopping him.”
In his first full NFL season after tearing his ACL in 2022, Hall rushed for 994 yards on 223 carries (4.5 yards-a-tote) with five touchdowns, as well as 76 catches for 591 yards and four scores through the air. The Iowa State alum is widely regarded as one of the league's best running backs.
Will San Francisco contain Hall?
Christian McCaffrey and Breece Hall hold the keys to 49ers-Jets
At this point, there's only one NFL tailback who is considered superior to Hall, and that's San Francisco's Christian McCaffrey. The 2023 Offensive Player of the Year is one of Hall's main inspirations, via The New York Post's Ethan Sears.
“[McCaffrey] has no wasted movement and when he’s running the ball or he’s running his routes, reading between zone and man, he always makes the right read, it seems like,” Hall said. “He pretty much does everything right, so just seeing how he plays with minimal mistakes and great attention to detail.”
Whichever defense does a better job containing the opposing back will likely determine who wins the game. While Brock Purdy and Aaron Rodgers will also greatly influence the outcome, both offenses run through the tailbacks.
The return of 49ers left tackle Trent Williams should help McCaffrey find room against an imposing Jets front seven. However, New York has an upgraded offensive line of its own, with Tyron Smith, Morgan Moses, and John Simpson all joining the squad this year to fortify the protection. Both Hall and McCaffrey will likely turn in solid performances, but each defense must make clutch plays in crunch time.