The San Francisco 49ers Just Unleashed Their Secret Weapon..

The San Francisco 49ers Just Unleashed Their Secret Weapon..

If there’s a story I’m a sucker for, it’s a comeback story. And right now, that’s what we’re watching with San Francisco’s wide receiver in Kendrick Bourne. The 30-year-old wide receiver is two years removed from an ACL that’s really hampered his last two seasons. This led to the Patriots cutting him headed into the season, but with San Francisco in desperate need of wide receiver help, they signed him a month ago. And in just four games, he’s amassed 229 yards, putting him on pace for just above 900 yards receiving. That would be a career best for Borne. And honestly, I don’t think it’s that far of a reach in Kyle Shanahan’s offense, especially if players like Brandon Na continue to miss time. But to truly understand what Kendrick Bourne will offer San Francisco moving forward, I didn’t want to break down his most recent game against the Rams to see what he does well as well as what he struggles with to see if he can be San Francisco’s next dynamic wide receiver this year. Initially to start out, what always stands out on Borne’s film to me is just how great he fits Kyle Shanahan’s offense. He may not be the fastest wide receiver, but he has polished droughts, can work underneath, and has the ability to turn a short throw into a massive gain. To really illustrate this point on this play, Kendrick Bourne is running a drag pattern with the Rams defense running cover two, meaning he needs to be pretty aggressive in the way he runs this so he is able to catch underneath on these defenders lurking in zone coverage. To really illustrate this point here with Kendrick Bourne coming out of his break, you can see how he’s not trying to fool this defense back since he’s able to read that zone coverage and is coming fast across this line to create separation for M. Jones to work with. Then with Jones targeting him, he’s able to use his soft hands to bring this in. And I love his Yakab ability. He was the Debo before Debo for this team. And here you get to see even though he’s not the fastest, he breaks this tackle and then outruns all of these Rams defenders. And I’ve heard the argument that he’s just going to fall off a cliff when players like George KD return, but I don’t really see that as he’s going to have less pressure put on him and more open hopefully in San Francisco’s offense at that point. When you think about, for example, the other team won’t be putting their best quarterback on Bourne because they’re worried about other players like Ricky Puraw, meaning he’s going to be lined up against a subpar quarterback, especially if they’re running man coverage. To really exemplify this point here, the Rams are manning up 37 on Bourne, and Bourne is able to read it. So, he gets him to open up his hips here, and then without any hesitation, he’s breaking hard across this line, which creates plenty of separation for Mac. Jones to work with. And once again, he’s going outside of his frame with his soft hands. Spring this in to further highlight just how solid Borne is against man coverage on this play. Once again, the Rams are lining up 37 on Bourne with Bourne running a post pattern. But rather than running straight to his post so this defensive back can read it. He’s trying to set up this defensive back by getting him to open up his hips to the outside by attacking his outside shoulder. And you can see how 37 starts to allow him to have that outside release. And as soon as Bourne sees this, he knows he’s won the rep because 37’s momentum is going the opposite direction of his route. So, he cuts back hard and then once again is able to haul this reception in. Another big reason I believe Borne is such a perfect fit for Kyle Shanahan’s offense is the versatility he offers as a wide receiver. Like we’ve seen so far throughout this video, he’s primarily been a slot wide receiver, but here lined up on the outside, he’s going to be running a corner pattern. And recognizing this DB trying to press him, he dips his shoulder to get around it. And then noticing the zone coverage and soft zone coverage at that, he aggressively attacks his corner, hauls in on the sideline, and picks up a massive game for San Francisco’s offense. In a similar way on this play, Bourne once again is showcasing his versatility as a wide receiver lining up on the outside with the cornerback on this play pressing him this entire time. Meanwhile, Bourne on this play will be running a curl route. And like last play, I want to focus how he alters his route based on this defensive back’s coverage because he is running aggressive press in zone coverage. Borne throughout this rep does an excellent job of fighting off this defensive back’s hands. And then because this defensive back stays glued to Bourne, well past the legal contact area, Bourne uses his body to create separation, come back and settle down in the soft spot of this zone, then elevates, turns up the field, and picks up the first down on second. Outside of Bourne’s ability to alter his routes based on what the defense is trying to do to stop him, I also think he did a phenomenal job of rising to the occasion routinely in this Rams game. Not only did he put up 142 yards, but in big time moments like here on third down, he comes down with it even with this defensive back draped all over him. To further illustrate just how clutch of a player Bourne is here on second and six, he’s running a quick out with M. Jones actually throwing this ball pretty behind him here. But Bourne does a phenomenal job of identifying this, stopping his route, and then coming back to this ball, attacking it, and even picks up the first down on this play. despite this defensive back being draped all over him. This is a clutch performance. The final part of Borne’s receiving game that I think is pretty hard to ignore is how he’s a true tone setter on the offensive side of the ball. He brings the spark to the team and is always fighting for additional yards, which I think really pumps up the entire team as the game goes. To really illustrate this point with the Rams once again playing man coverage on Bourne, but this time offman coverage and him running a slant, he almost instantly creates separation with the hard break across the middle. And then like we’ve seen throughout this game, he catches it, but doesn’t stop there. Breaking two’s tackle, seeing the first down though, he attacks this defensive back, starts driving up the field, and really is doing everything in his entire power to pick up the first down. I can’t tell you how demoralizing this is for a defense and how uplifting it is for the offense. It seems like if you get Borne the ball, he’s going to be getting that first down in a similar way Jennings does. As great as Borne’s receiving ability has been for San Francisco’s offense, to stay on the field long-term this year, he needs to show the ability to block. And because he was drafted by San Francisco, he is a willing blocker. So, that is a benefit to him headed forward. To really illustrate just how willing he is here on this play, he’s responsible for blocking the safety. So without any hesitation, he’s making his way up to the second level, attacking it like he would route and then cuts off the safety using a hook block. As great as Borne looks this year though for San Francisco, there are some areas of concern that will hamper him headed forward in this offense, especially if other players return like Ricky Paw and Brandon Aayuk with one of the most notable in my opinion just being his untimely drops. Right now, for instance, when you’re looking at Bourne, despite coming back from that ACL tear, he’s doing a great job of creating separation that looks explosive both in and out of his breaks. So, I think the only thing that will stop him from seeing the field is if he continues to drop it like he did against the Jaguars. I mean, he had three drops in that game. And I guess directly tied to that is Bourne needs to prove he can remain healthy for the remainder of the season. not only because San Francisco’s other wide receivers haven’t remained healthy, but he’s a 30-year-old wide receiver only a couple years removed from an ACL. Even with these concerns to Kendrick Bourne’s game, though, when you look at him this season, he looks as explosive as he has in his NFL career, suggesting he’s finally healthy from that ACL tear. And I wouldn’t be surprised to see him put together a career year here in San Francisco. Not only will he be vital in continuing to replace players like Brandon Iayuk, Ricky Persaw, and Jawan Jinings as they continue to rehab from injuries, but once those players come back, I truly believe he has a role in this offense and can be highly effective in that role. But ultimately, these are just some of my thoughts on Kendrick Bourne’s career performance against the Rams, and I want to hear your thoughts about him so far as a player. Do you think he’s finally rebounded from his ACL tear like I do, or do you think he’s going to struggle once other players come back like Ricky Paw? It would also mean a ton to me if you did enjoy this video if you could go ahead and like and subscribe. It truly helps out the channel a ton. And as always, I hope you guys have a great rest of your

With The San Francisco 49ers wrapping up their fifth game against the Los Angeles Rams, arguably the most DOMINANT player on the field was the Wide Receiver Out of Easter Washington, Kendrick Bourne. In this video we breakdown Kendrick Bourne’s performance and why he changes everything for the San Francisco 49ers and can potentially be their next dominant Receiver .

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