Colts Opponent Scouting Report: 49ers Defensive Line
By Andrew Ites
The 49ers’ defensive line will present a huge matchup problem for the Colts when they meet up at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The 49ers have invested heavily in building a dominant defensive line over the past few offseasons, and it’s beginning to pay off.
San Francisco drafted defensive tackle DeForest Buckner with the seventh overall pick in 2016, defensive end Arik Armstead was the 17th overall pick in 2015, and they picked up defensive end Solomon Thomas with the third overall pick in the most recent NFL Draft.
DeForest Buckner has begun to live up to his high draft pedigree this season becoming a disruptive force on the interior of the 49ers’ defense. He got his first sack of the season last week, but he’s made a living in opposing teams’ backfields and will give the Colts’ offensive line some trouble on Sunday.
Arik Armstead is a similar player to Buckner with both of them listed at 6′ 7″ giving them incredible length.
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Armstead is another player whose sack numbers don’t do him justice, but offensive coordinators stay up late at night trying to scheme up ways to protect their quarterbacks from him.
Rookie Solomon Thomas adds yet another physical freak to this defensive line as he’s beginning to show the NFL why he was selected so high in this year’s NFL Draft.
Pass rusher Aaron Lynch has had trouble with suspensions during his NFL career, but he’s extremely effective when he’s on the field. He put up 12.5 sacks in limited snaps during his first two seasons, and he’s been giving offensive tackles trouble through four games this year.