The San Francisco 49ers will go into their Week 8 showdown with the Dallas Cowboys in desperate need of a win.
San Francisco’s schedule gives them an opportunity to make a playoff run if they can enter their Week 9 Bye with a 4-4 record. If they lose Sunday night and fall to 3-5, their path to the postseason becomes even more difficult.
Dallas has struggled through their first six games on both sides of the ball, but special teams is where things could really get sideways for the 49ers.
While the Cowboys’ offense and defense haven’t been great, their punt and kick returner KaVontae Turpin has been perhaps the best player at those two positions in the NFL. That’s particularly problematic for a 49ers coverage unit that’s surrendered a whopping 18.4 yards per punt return and 33.2 yards per kick return.
Turpin this season is averaging 19.2 yards per punt return and 43.0 yards per kick return. He also returned a punt for a touchdown in Week 1 against the Browns this season.
The 49ers have already had multiple games swing because of special teams mishaps, including long punt returns against the Rams and Chiefs, and a kick return touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks.
San Francisco is favored to win, but there may not be a player more capable of turning the game toward Dallas than Turpin against a shoddy 49ers special teams group.
