San Francisco 49ers vs. Kansas City Chiefs Stopping Larry Johnson

The 49ers' defensive gameplan is very simple this week: Stop Larry Johnson.The former first-round pick out of Penn State rushed for an astounding 1,750 yards last season, and he is the Kansas City Chiefs' primary offensive weapon. How much do the Chiefs use him? Of their 117 offensive plays this season, 54 have 36 Bettis White Jersey
featured Johnson, be it through the air or on the ground.Of course, things would likely be different if Trent Green was not still nursing a severe concussion he suffered in the first game. Luckily for the Niners' he will be watching from the sidelines again on Sunday afternoon. Starting in his place is veteran quarterback Damon Huard. (Sorrell's note: the last time Damon Huard started and won an NFL game, Bill Clinton was still in office.) Huard is still adapting to the Chiefs' offense and is very, very shaky in the pocket, having fumbled four times in two games. He prefers to dump the ball off to the shorter routes, as evidenced by the fact that 22 of his 29 completions so far have either been to Larry Johnson or All-Pro tight end Tony Gonzalez. Other than that, no Chiefs receiver has more than three receptions. The Chiefs simply do not trust Huard to throw the ball down the field. Through their first two games, the Chiefs have scored only 16 points...mostly because defenses can load up to stop the run/short passing game.Not that the offensive line has done much to help. After Willie Roaf decided to retire before the season, the Chiefs' line has struggled to adapt. In its first two games, the unit has allowed seven sacks and Johnson is averaging 4.4 yards per carry -- more than half-a-yard less than his career average.The 49ers, like every other team in the NFL, are not scared of Huard's arm...nor should they be. Huard is not the type of player who can beat you by himself. The Niners should play tight against the run and make Huard 4 Brett Favre Purple jersey
prove that he can move the Chiefs up and down the field. Look for them to move strong safety Tony Parrish up into the box on running downs, giving the Niners a quasi-4-4 look. If the 49ers can keep Johnson from breaking off huge gains on first and second down, they have an excellent chance of coming out of Kansas City with a victory.Original San Francisco 49ers coverage