Blocking Haason Reddick with non-offensive linemen is a very bad idea

Philadelphia Eagles edge-rusher Haason Reddick came into the NFC Championship game with a career-high 17.5 sacks, including the 1.5 takedowns he had in the Eagles’ 38-7 divisional-round win over the New York Giants. Reddick has been one of the Eagles’ most valuable defenders in the first year of his three-year, $45 million contract, which also makes him one of the NFL’s best bargains.

For whatever reason, early in the championship game, the San Francisco 49ers decided to treat Reddick as some rotational scrub with limited pressure potential. It has not gone well at all. Reddick had two sacks and a forced fumble in the first quarter, and on both of those sacks, San Francisco decided to put either a tight end or wide receiver on Reddick one-on-one.

The first sack, which came with 7:03 left in the first quarter and knocked quarterback Brock Purdy out of the game (at least temporarily) came about in part because Reddick was blocked by tight end Tyler Kroft, who had absolutely no chance.

That should have been a touchdown for defensive tackle Linval Joseph, who recovered what was changed from an incomplete pass to a fumble upon review.

Then, with Josh Johnson in place or Purdy and 4:11 left in the first quarter, the 49ers tried putting receiver Jauan Jennings on Reddick. You can guess how THAT went.

We do not know what 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and his staff were thinking with these particular protections, but if the 49ers have any chance of heading to Super Bowl LVII, San Francisco should endeavor to try and stop Reddick with more conventional methods.

Story originally appeared on Touchdown Wire