The only thing holding Jennings back is the 49ers, according to Shanahan
Following the 49ers’ huge victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, Kyle Shanahan spoke glowingly about his team and their performance. Shanahan gave out injury updates, his thoughts on Dre Greenlaw’s incident with “Big Dom,” Logan Ryan’s addition, Christian McCaffrey’s effect on the offense, and Jauan Jennings’s ability to fight for extra yards after the catch.
Shanahan was asked specifically about Deebo Samuel’s touchdown on a tunnel screen:
On the Deebo tunnel screen, when I watched it again I saw that RB Christian McCaffrey really sold the halfback toss and I don’t think Deebo scores without that play fake on the backside. Did you show that to the team this week and is that your guys’ culture or is that all CMC?
“That’s our culture, but when we point that all out and when someone doesn’t do it, we point that out also. So, guys have pressure on each other to not let the other guy down. But, I will say Christian is the best player I’ve ever been around without the ball in his hand. Just the little things he does that are so obsessive. Like, yeah, everybody can carry out fakes, but he goes to the extreme and it’s unbelievable.”
Today we published an article about Samuel and his effect on the offense, Shanahan believes McCaffrey has the same gravity on offense. Also, Shanahan went out of his way to state that McCaffrey is the best player he’s been around with the ball in his hands. That’s high praise considering Samuel put on a masterclass on Sunday.
The best portion of his answer is about how players play for each other, and everyone has the same mindset. The 49er culture is as strong as ever.
Shanahan’s final question was about Jennings and his two big catches against Seattle and Philadelphia.
WR Jauan Jennings, the last couple games has had two pretty big plays he’s really had to fight for. What is it about his personality and work ethic that makes him so reliable in that situation?
“Jauan, he’s one of a kind, as you guys probably know just talking to him. Just watch him on run plays. He does those run plays like he does that third-and-seven when there’s three guys trying to tackle him. I mean, Jauan’s on another level of confidence, energy. The only person who holds Jauan back is us. Jauan is ready to take over at all times is his mindset. And that’s why when we come to him, whether it’s every few games or a bunch in one game he always seems like he’s going to rise to the occasion and make one of the most important plays in the game.”
Jennings fighting for extra yards on third down is symbolic of the team’s culture. Every player fights through tackles and for every yard. The 49ers are rolling, and the entire locker room is bought in on the team’s physical nature.