The 49ers on Sunday will visit the Steelers aiming to snag a Week 1 win for only the third time under head coach Kyle Shanahan.
While San Francisco is among the Super Bowl favorites and Pittsburgh comes in with more question marks, the showdown in the Steel City won’t be an easy one for the 49ers.
Buy 49ers TicketsPittsburgh is at home, well-coached and extremely talented at a handful of key spots.
If the 49ers are going to visit Acrisure Stadium and exit with a victory, they’ll need big games from these six players:
RT Colton McKivitz
Steelers outside linebacker TJ Watt is one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. It’s hard to imagine he’s going to voluntarily go head-to-head with 49ers left tackle Trent Williams. Watt will likely spend a lot of time on the side of McKivitz, who is entering his first year as a starter. McKivitz is going to lose some reps to Watt and the 49ers will throw plenty of help his way, but he has to at least hold his own when on an island against the former DPOY. If McKivitz doesn’t hold up it could be a long day for QB Brock Purdy and San Francisco’s offense.
CB Deommodore Lenoir
There’s two ways Lenoir could matter Sunday, although San Francisco may not have a choice if CB Charvarius Ward is out. If Lenoir plays outside, the Steelers will try and get WR George Pickens matched up against him. Lenoir struggled down the field with bigger receivers last season and Pickens is one of the most talented deep ball receivers in the NFL. If he’s better on deep balls and can keep Pickens from blowing the game open, Pittsburgh may have trouble generating explosive plays.
If Ward does play and the 49ers want to avoid a Lenoir-Pickens matchup, they could slide Lenoir to the slot and put Ambry Thomas on the outside. Thomas-Pickens will certainly matter, but if Lenoir can hold up in the slot and take away some of the easy throws for Steelers QB Kenny Pickett it’ll allow San Francisco’s pass rush more time to affect the young signal caller.
WR Deebo Samuel
Nobody sets the tone for the 49ers’ offense more than Samuel. He doesn’t need 150 yards and two touchdowns, but he does need to look explosive and elusive the way he did in the preseason. Forcing the Steelers to account for him with multiple defenders will only make life easier on the rest of San Francisco’s playmakers and might make them nigh impossible to stop even if TE George Kittle (groin) doesn’t play.
DE Nick Bosa
Whether he plays five percent or 85 percent of the snaps in Pittsburgh the 49ers need Bosa to be effective. He may not be in peak form right away given his lack of football during the offseason, but he’s the straw that stirs their defensive drink so making the Steelers account for him will free up the rest of San Francisco’s pass rush. If Bosa isn’t effective where Pittsburgh can run at him or not commit other resources to slowing him down, the 49ers might not be able to generate much pass rush of the edge.
C Jake Brendel
While Watt gets most of the headlines on the Steelers’ defense, defensive tackle Cameron Heyward is also a nightmare for opposing offensive fronts. He isn’t likely to line heads up over Brendel, but the 49ers’ center will see plenty of action either against Heyward or helping out San Francisco’s guards with him. Brendel had a nice year last year in his first as a full-time starter. He might need his best game as a pro to help slow down Heyward and the Steelers’ interior pass rush.
SS Talanoa Hufanga
Hufanga had an outstanding year last year in his first as a starter. His penchant for creating turnovers and making plays behind the line of scrimmage helped earn him a First-Team All-Pro nod. However, part of the reason the 49ers had trouble giving up long completions was because of Hufanga’s aggressiveness leading him to vacate the deep area of the field. With a receiver like Pickens lined up out wide and a tight end like Pat Freiermuth lurking in the middle of the field, Hufanga has to have a good game in coverage to help limit explosive plays.
