IMO, an unsung hero of that victory was Raekwon Davis. It was such an exhilarating feeling when I heard that he was inactive. I shouted that out loud in our Florida room as the game began.
Raekwon didn't fit that matchup at all, not when the opponent was going to be throwing on every down. I guarantee Buffalo scores more than 19 with Raekwon out there. The Bills' interior linemen wouldn't have been stressed or gassed to nearly the same extent. Raekwon presents nothing on the pass rush except a big stationary predictable target. Jenkins isn't great but at least he's active and not nearly as predictable as Raekwon.
Raekwon will fit some of the phone booth games later in the season, against the lesser teams who will robotically run on first and second downs. But I'll be very surprised if McDaniel is content to live with a starter of Raekwon's limitations in that spot. The 49ers defense features active attacking versatile guys across the front and into the depth chart. It's been that way for years and evident again last night. I was watching that game and couldn't help think that Raekwon wouldn't fit at all.
Gesicki the non-fit is already being phased out. It didn't seem like he was out there even half the time yesterday. The bigger the game the more likely the coach will stick with the schemes and personnel he is most comfortable with. For now Gesicki, like Raekwon, is fine against the opponents we should overmatch anyway.