All eyes were on Ambry Thomas as he withdrew, turning his hips and keeping pace with Odell Beckham Jr. down the Rams’ sideline.
Thomas’ eyes were on football.
“I just had to do my job: watch the ball, go and get the ball,” said Thomas, a once-forgotten rookie, after the 49ers’ playoff clinching, 27-24 overtime win over host Los Angeles Rams.
While Thomas worked on his coverage to perfection, he had the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ attention as their eyes fixed on a television in the locker room. When Thomas jumped after the 49ers’ biggest interception in years, Tom Brady put his hands on his head with incredible joy (see: 2001 Super Bowl) and high-fived a Bucs teammate.
It secured the NFC’s No. 2 seed to the Bucs, the No. 4 seed to the Rams and the 49ers’ wild-card spot, where they, as the No. 6 seed, will visit the No. 3 Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
“It was amazing how quickly Ambry read the ball in the air,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said in a media call Monday. “He was able to react to it much faster than the receiver to get the choice and end the game.”
What made Thomas an unlikely hero – after a series of offensive heroes, namely Jimmy Garoppolo, Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings – was the humble, hidden beginning of his NFL career.
Thomas played only 20 snaps in victories over Lions (Week 1) and Jaguars (Week 11) before being drafted into the starting lineup, taking steps to Sunday’s fifth start – and first career interception.
“I think his greatest asset is balance in the moment of truth,” general manager John Lynch said on April 30 as he drafted Thomas in the third round.
“Once that ball is in the air, he has an ability to locate it, which is not as easy to find as you might think for DBs,” added Lynch, a Pro Football Hall of Fame Safety. “As they say, there’s a reason they play defense. Ambry has a good ability to be very balanced when the ball is in the air.”
With 1:52 left of overtime, Thomas barely landed in bounds on the 20-yard line with Matthew Stafford’s final lift, which hovered 49 yards in the air.
“Ambry was perfect,” Shanahan added. “He stayed on top all the time. Stafford looked like he just threw it up to give Odell a chance.
Within the final minute of the third quarter, second-starting cornerback Emmanuel Moseley also intercepted Stafford, also a 49-yard bomb. Shanahan did not underestimate things as he called both interceptions “huge” and he praised Moseley’s ability to catch the ball and track it despite being out the previous month with a high ankle sprain.
Such ball-hawking skills have been rare this season among the 49ers’ defensive backs, who pulled 21 pass interference and five holding penalties, with Thomas only responsible for one of the latter. The 49ers totaled nine interceptions in the regular season, including one from Thomas, Moseley, K’Waun Williams and sacked starter Josh Norman.
“After the Green Bay game (week 3), we noticed that a lot of teams just wanted to throw the ball up and hope for PI or the guy to come down with the ball,” Thomas said. “We always work in practice to get the ball.”
He can bet the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott is trying the same strategy while targeting CeeDee Lamb, Amari Cooper and Cedrick Wilson Jr.
Thomas’ mindset: have a short memory – good game, bad game, next game.
“Everyone wants to talk about the corners, but when the ball is in the air, it’s the only guy you see, him on her man,” Thomas said. “It’s a challenge. The hat is off to cornerbacks who really play at a high level.”
Former 49ers cornerback Eric Davis – a hero in the 1994 team’s NFC Championship win over Dallas – was delighted to hear Thomas so humble after Sunday’s game. Earlier this season, Davis called on Thomas to tell him he was on the right track.
“I reached out to him and told him the same thing that Bubba Paris said to me as a rookie: Do not believe anything they write about you unless it’s great and that what you do is difficult,” Davis said in a telephone. interview Monday. “You can go from hero to goat, and you go from goat to hero, in a snap. It’s life as a cornerback.”
On draft day, Lynch credited the 49ers’ pursuit of Thomas to assistant general manager Adam Peters, who gave Thomas a bear hug as he greeted him with Lynch outside the locker room Sunday.
Thomas, the 102nd draft pick, was a COVID opt-out his fourth year in Michigan. He described it as “challenging” to run on the bench most of his rookie year, but is “grateful” for getting him to practice harder. After a recent exercise, he made wiretaps on back-to-back periods and got approval from an apparent Lynch.
After Sunday’s match, Shanahan was blunt, saying he would not have thought Thomas was capable of such heroism in the late season as his rookie year started, adding: “It sounds harsh, but it is not. It is a huge compliment. ”
“I see him grow. He makes mistakes, but he learns,” Davis added. “He makes things that can be trained. He is not devoid of talent. And once you’re in position, it’s about making plays.
“The NFL is not getting too big for him.”
HEALTH UPDATES
Shanahan is hopeful left-winger Trent Williams can return this week because he “took it as far as he could” before being scratched from Sunday’s lineup with an elbow injury.
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (thumb) and running back Elijah Mitchell (knee) had no setbacks and will be limited as last week in practice. Nickelback K’Waun Williams is expected to train on Wednesday. Linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair (knee) and defensive tackle Maurice Hurst (calf) remain in the “maybe” stage.
No long-term injuries were sustained in the win, though it’s worth monitoring safety Jaquiski Tartt (groin) and Talanoa Hufanga (knee irritation) and player Mitch Wishnowsky (concussion).
COACH CAROUSEL
Shanahan is not familiar with any team that has yet requested interviews for coaching and general manager openings, though he praised coordinators DeMeco Ryans and Mike McDaniel as well as staff leaders Adam Peters and Ran Carthon.
RECENT COVID SAGER
Rookie Deommodore Lenoir was activated from the COVID reserve list after spending five days on it according to NFL protocol. Three training players were added to it: defender Josh Hokit, quarterback Tyler Bray and cornerback Luq Barcoo. Bray served as the No. 3 quarterback in training two weeks ago, while Jimmy Garoppolo rested his sprained thumb.
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