The San Francisco 49ers improved to 6-0 with a 23-17 Monday night win over the Washington Commanders at Levi's Stadium. While the team's veteran leaders have played a significant role in the undefeated start, several young players, including rookies, have also made key contributions.
Tight end George Kittle believes the team's veteran core has helped establish a standard that younger players have embraced.
"We have this great core group of guys who have been here for a long time that set the standard of how we practice, how we prepare, and how we do everything," Kittle said Monday night on ESPN's SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt. "And these last couple of classes of guys have just come in and been like, 'You know what, it's really fun when Coach Shanahan shouts out [DE] Nick Bosa and [LB] Fred Warner in the meetings. I want to get shouted out like that. I want people to hype me up.'
"And you can just see, whether it's [DE] Romello [Height], [DT] Gracen [Halton], [LB Jaden] Dugger, we have three rookies that are making plays for us. [DT Sebastian Valdez], he was a practice squad player, and now he's making plays for us out there. It's like, these guys, they just want to win so bad, and they've been preparing at a really, really high level. So I'm just proud of all the young guys for making plays."
Veteran left tackle Trent Williams also praised San Francisco's young contributors after Monday night's game, crediting the team's draft class for helping fuel its success.
"We can't get where we want to go without the young guys," Williams said. "They make up a great deal of our success. I'm super happy with what they did in the draft. Those guys, we got a bunch of steals in the draft.
"Like, a guy like [Height] falling to the [third] round, I think, to me, is absurd, how polished of a pass rusher he is. Gracen in the fourth round—the front office did their job, and I think we can't get where we want to go without those young guys playing as hard as they are."
Defensive end Mykel Williams played in his second game since returning from the ACL injury that cut short his rookie season. He finished Monday night's win with three tackles, a tackle for loss, and a sack.
"It's so fun seeing Mykel out there because he is such a young, talented player," Kittle said, adding that he was impressed that Trent Williams knew which rounds several rookies were drafted in.
Running back Christian McCaffrey said he identified several young players during training camp who looked like they could contribute right away. However, you never know until the real action begins.
"I think, when you go through training camp, there's always guys that you're excited about and dudes that you have your eye on," McCaffrey said. "'Hey, I think that guy can play.' But you never know until the games start happening. And those guys have not just proved us right, but they up the standard and up the bar of what I thought they could do.
"So, it's been so cool to see them step into their role with elite energy, confidence, and playing great football for us."
Head coach Kyle Shanahan has also been impressed with the young players on defense, crediting them with helping maintain the unit's speed and energy.
"I think we've been running around all year pretty good," Shanahan said. "I love how we fly to the ball. I love how our defense hits. I love that the older guys have kind of set that standard, and I think the younger guys have really bought into it and play the same way."
Shanahan also praised Height, the 49ers' top defensive draft pick this year, after his performance against Washington. Height recorded three tackles, four quarterback hits, and was credited with half a sack.
"From the stuff I got to see, it seemed like he was all over the place," Shanahan said. "I thought he made a number of plays ... I'm not sure of the stats from the game, but with what I saw out there, he looked like he had a big impact."
With the 49ers off to a 6-0 start despite a growing list of injuries, young players' contributions have become increasingly important. If San Francisco's rookies and other emerging contributors keep delivering, they could play a significant role in sustaining the team's winning streak while several injured players work toward returning.
More info on: Nick Bosa, Jaden Dugger, Gracen Halton, Romello Height, George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey, Sebastian Valdez, Fred Warner, Mykel Williams, Trent Williams
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