Only two blue chip players says ESPN" San Francisco 49ers NewsRoster Projections49ers rank No. 19 in under-25 talent, per ESPNNew,7commentsOnly two blue chip players, says ESPNPDTShare this storyShare this on FacebookShare this on TwitterShareAll sharing optionsShareAll sharing options for:49ers rank No. 19 in under-25 talent, per ESPNTwitterFacebookRedditPocketFlipboardEmailPhoto by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty ImagesWe have football finally. The San Francisco 49ers will face the Dallas Cowboys Saturday night, but before that, there are still some lists circulating. This one from ESPN is ranking the 32 teams based on their talent under the age of 25. These lists have been hit or miss for the Niners. They’re either in the top ten or near the bottom. They come in at No. 19 here:Before we get into thoughts on the Niners ranking, here’s where the rest of the NFC West ranked:10. Arizona Cardinals24. Los Angeles Rams30. Seattle SeahawksThoughts on the rankingThe 49ers were ranked No. 12 on this list a season ago. The two blue-chip players are Nick Bosa and Fred Warner. The loss of Mike McGlinchey, DeForest Buckner, George Kittle, and Reuben Foster certainly hurt.I agree that the variance of the younger prospects on the team is high, but I’m not so sure their success is 100% tied to Jimmy Garoppolo. Deebo Samuel will need someone to throw him the ball, but it’s clear that he is going to be good. He’s already improved on his route running, which I believe kept him out of the first round.There are younger names on the roster that have an opportunity to make a name for themselves. Ahkhello Witherspoon should benefit from his surroundings. I’m telling you Dre Greenlaw has a shot to be pretty dang good. Then there is Tarvarius Moore, and the untapped potential seems like it’s growing on Saleh. When asked if Jimmie Ward would return to the starting lineup, Saleh wouldn’t commit.These are all prospects at this time, though. 2019 will be their time to showcase their abilities. If they all play like they’re capable of, the Niners will be significantly higher on the list next season. Aaron Donald and a dominant defense kept taking the ball away for Los Angeles and Todd Gurley turned those turnovers into touchdowns to keep the Rams unbeaten after seven games.Todd Gurley scored three touchdowns and Jared Goff threw two TD passes as the Rams took advantage of four takeaways and a blocked punt to beat the San Francisco 49ers 39-10 on Sunday for their first 7-0 start since 1985.“With the offense we have to just keep feeding and feeding them ball,” Donald said. “If we do that, they are going to put points on the board. Our offense is so explosive. We know that if we give them the ball good things are going to happen.”Donald and the defense made things easy for the Rams high-powered offense with seven sacks, two interceptions against C.J. Beathard and two fumble recoveries, including one that Donald just ripped out of Matt Breida’s hands.That was perhaps Donald’s best play on a day full of great ones as he had four sacks, six tackles for loss, five quarterback hits, the forced fumble and fumble recovery.“One of the best defensive performances I’ve been around,” Goff said. “It seemed like every time we sat down we got back up and went on the field. … It was just a lot of fun to watch.”The Rams started 6-0 for three straight seasons from 1999-2001 only to lose game seven. The 49ers (1-6) made sure that wouldn’t happen this year by repeatedly giving the ball away, justifying the decision the NFL made to flex this game out of prime time following the season-ending knee injury to San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.“It’s always embarrassing when you lose like that ” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “We’ve got pride and we’re also confident in what we do. We’re not proud of our record right now. We’re definitely not proud of today. When we played better, we still feel the same way. We’re not into any moral victories here. We’re as far away from one as we could have today. We have to fix the turnovers. Once we fix the turnovers, then we have a chance to start playing football.”Beathard has thrown seven interceptions and lost three fumbles in four starts as the 49ers have committed 14 straight turnovers since their last takeaway on Sept. 30 against the Chargers.The Rams dominated defensively even beyond Donald’s performance. Cory Littleton having two sacks and a blocked punt for a safety ; and Troy Hill and John Johnson III also intercepted passes.The turnovers set up 24 points for the Rams, who put up the big scoring day despite gaining a season-low 331 yards of offense.GOOD GURLEYGurley scored on a 7-yard run in the second quarter after a fumble by Breida and 1-yard run after Johnson’s interception in the third. He capped his fifth three-touchdown game of the past two seasons with a 12-yard catch after JoJo Natson had a 36-yard punt return to the 13.Gurley’s 14 TDs this season tie Priest Holmes (2002, ’04) for the most through seven games in the Super Bowl era.GIVE IT AWAYThe Niners had a minus-1 turnover margin through the first 14 quarters of the season and are minus-14 over the last 14 quarters, matching a franchise worst with a minus-15 turnover margin through seven games set by the 1980 team. During one particularly rough stretch in the first half, the 49ers had a five-play sequence of lost fumble, fumbled snap, incomplete pass, sack and blocked punt.“You can always work on protecting it better,” Beathard said. “I think it comes down to a mindset and just not letting it happen.”INJURIESRams DB Troy Hill left in the first half to be evaluated for a possible concussion but was able to return. … The 49ers lost S Adrian Colbert (sprained right ankle), LB Reuben Foster (sprained shoulder) and Breida (ankle) during the game.STATUESThe 49ers unveiled statues of Joe Montana and Dwight Clark before the game commemorating “The Catch” that launched a dynasty in the 1980s. The statues are 23 yards apart — the same distance that was between Montana and Clark on the game-winning play during the NFC title game win over Dallas on Jan. 10, 1982.UP NEXTRams: Host Green Bay on Sunday.49ers: Visit Arizona on Sunday.