San Francisco 49ers: 4 Important Numbers from Week 4

42:17 – 49ers Time of Possession

Sep 28, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Carlos Hyde (28) rushes for a few yards during the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at Levi

San Francisco absolutely dominated the Eagles in time of possession, beating them in that category by a more than two-to-one ratio. A lot of this can be contributed to handing the ball to the running backs. When the top two backs carry the ball a combined 34 times, plus seven rushes from Kaepernick, that’s a great way to run the clock and keep the opposing offense on the sideline.

Another reason for the huge discrepancy is the dominating performance from the 49ers defense. The defense didn’t allow any points and completely shut down a great pair of running backs.

LeSean McCoy carried the ball only ten times and picked up a measly 17 yards on those carries. His counterpart, Darren Sproles, was given a single carry all game, picking up four yards.

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Quarterback Nick Foles was forced to throw the ball 43 times, but completed just 21 of his attempts. With the clock stopping that much, it was nearly impossible for the offense to keep the ball for any meaningful amount of time.

When a team is facing a high-powered offense like that of the Eagles, it’s imperative to keep them on the sidelines as much as possible. That is done by running the ball and picking up first downs. The 49ers executed that perfectly on Sunday.