Week 17 - Entering Week 10 of the 2019 NFL season a perfect 8-0, the San Francisco 49ers welcomed into town their division foe and arch nemesis Seattle Seahawks who spoiled the party and handed Kyle Shanahan's team their first loss of the season in an overtime thriller. With Seattle getting the better of San Francisco over the last few years, the (12-3) 49ers would get a chance to exact revenge over Pete Carroll's (11-4) Seahawks team with a win that would clinch a first-round BYE and number one seed in the NFC. But as the Niners know as well as anybody, Seattle isn't exactly the easiest place to come out victorious unless you're the home team of course. In what would be an NFC West Championship between two bitter rivals, the game that was flexed into Sunday Night Football, would be a fitting end to what's been one of the most heated rivalries of the last 10 years between the 49ers and Seahawks, putting a bow on the last game of the decade in the NFL's 100th season.
Having not won in Seattle since 2011, Kyle Shanahan's 49ers team would still enter the game as 3-point favorites before kickoff. Through the first half, the 49ers looked like shoo-ins to finally get off the schneid up north as San Francisco dominated through the first two quarters on both sides of the ball. Coming off NFC Special-Teams Player of the Week honors for his game-winning heroics against the Rams the previous week, 49ers kicker Robbie Gould would kick things off with a 47-yard field goal on the team's first offensive possession to put San Francisco ahead early on. No receiver on Sunday night would have a bigger game than 49ers rookie Deebo Samuel who scored the lone touchdown of the first half not through the air, but on the ground. Faking a handoff to the running back, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo tossed the ball in the backfield to Samuel who spun his way down the sideline and into the end zone for the 30-yard touchdown. Leading 10-0 at the start of the second quarter, the 49ers would again add to their lead with a second Robbie Gould field goal. Seattle's best-looking drive of the half would go up in flames when a 4th & 1 attempt was stuffed at the line by Niners rookie sensation Nick Bosa, causing the turnover on downs with less than a minute remaining. Having only allowed 3-points in the final two minutes of the first half all season long, the stout 49er defense once again held their ground before heading to the locker room.
After a quiet first half on offense much like in their first meeting against the Niners on Monday night, the Seahawks opened the second half on another level, scoring touchdowns on each of their first three drives of the second half. Unfortunately for them, San Francisco would answer two of those scores with a pair of touchdowns of their own. Following Seattle's first TD -- a 14-yard strike from QB Russell Wilson to receiver Tyler Lockett, 49ers running back Raheem Mostert responded with a score from 2-yards out. Orchestrating the longest drive of the game for either team, Wilson and the Seattle offense chewed up 8-minutes and 30-seconds while marching 75-yards over a 14-play drive that ended with a leaping touchdown at the goal-line from running back Marshawn Lynch. Playing his first down of NFL football in 441 days, Lynch would suit up in a Seattle uniform for the first time since the 2015 season after spending his previous two seasons with the Raiders before taking a break all of last year. With 5:51 remaining in the 4th quarter, the 49ers would take a 26-14 lead after Mostert's second rushing touchdown in as many drives. Hoping it would be the dagger, the game would be far from over as Russell Wilson continued to show why he's among the top candidates for league MVP.
In what would be a forgetful night in coverage for 49ers cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon, the former third round pick in his third NFL season, was beat constantly in the secondary and allowed both of Seattle's touchdowns thru the air. The second of which, a 14-yard pass to rookie D.K. Metcalf, brought the Seahawks within five points with less than 4 minutes to play. And with San Francisco forced to punt following a three and out, Seattle would get one final chance and would have just under two and a half minutes to pull off the comeback. For San Francisco, the defense which has been among the league's best but has also had its fair share of close calls, would once again be called upon to win them the game. With the division on the line, the two teams would be locked in for one of the more wild final minutes to an NFL game this season. Marching down to the 12 yard-line, the Seattle offense would face a 4th and 10 that they would convert on a clutch reception by rookie receiver John Ursua who's one and only grab of the night gained his team the much needed first down. Out of timeouts and with the clock running, Wilson and company were in panic mode when one of their own linemen was slow to get back to the line to hike and spike the ball to stop the clock.
With the ball at the 1-yard line, the table was set for a story line fit for a Hollywood script when Marshawn Lynch grabbed his helmet and hurried to the line to set up for what figured to be a game-winning touchdown. But the storybook ending never materialized as "Beast Mode" was held in check and making matters worse, the Seahawks failed to snap the ball in time and were flagged for a delay of game penalty. Incomplete passes on the next two downs would set up a do or die 4th and goal from the 5 yard-line. Dropping back to pass, Wilson would fire a strike to tight-end Jacob Hollister who was stopped at the goal-line by 49ers rookie linebacker Dre Greenlaw who kept the receiver out of the end zone for the game-winning tackle. After losing a game to the Atlanta Falcons just two weeks earlier in the same exact fashion, the 49er defense flipped the script and held their ground as the team stormed the field and celebrated the goal-line stand that clinched them both a division championship and a No. 1 seed for the first time since 1997 as San Francisco prevailed, 26-21. It would be a long time coming for the duo of coach Shanahan and general manager John Lynch who were each brought in on six-year contracts at the same time three seasons ago and promised to right the ship and get this proud organization back to their glory days.
When his career is all said and done, San Francisco's George Kittle will have set the bar pretty high for future 49er tight-ends. Kittle who missed the first meeting between the two teams, made his presence felt early and often in the rematch as he made several key blocks in the run game and hauled in 7 receptions for 86 yards to put him over the 1,000 yard mark for the season. Just a year after becoming the first 49ers tight-end in franchise history to record 1,000 yards receiving during his record-setting season of 1,377 yards, the most ever by a tight-end in NFL history, Kittle becomes the first 49er to do it in back-to-back seasons. But it was receiver Deebo Samuel who stole the show for the San Francisco offense as he caught five passes for 102 yards, while also carrying the ball twice for 33 yards and a touchdown. Raheem Mostert led all Niners with 57 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries, giving him six consecutive games with a rushing TD which ties him for the most in 49er history in a single season. With Seattle's Russell Wilson entering Sunday night with a perfect 8-0 record in his career at home against the Niners, San Francisco finally ended their skid when they needed it most, all thanks to the stellar play by their own QB. Finishing 18 for 22 and throwing for 285 yards in his first ever visit to Seattle, Jimmy Garoppolo once again proved unfazed by the hostile environment on his way to an impressive passer rating of 118.8. And in his first full year at the helm of the Niners, Jimmy G finishes with 3,978 passing yards, the 4th most in franchise history, while joining Hall of Famers Steve Young and Joe Montana as the only 49er QB's to win 13 games and have a 100+ passer rating in a single season.
With the NFC's No. 1 seed clinched, the importance of a first-round BYE cannot be overstated as 26 of 34 teams to make the Super Bowl had a BYE, including teams in the last six Super Bowl's. And in the team's playoff history, San Francisco is 20-9 all-time when hosting a playoff game compared to just 5-10 when playing on the road. Having now played in five straight games decided by one-score, these quasi playoff games, though tiresome, could certainly pay dividends down the stretch for an otherwise inexperienced roster heading into the playoffs as Kyle Shanahan's team looks to take a week off and recover for the first time since their Week 4 BYE, while awaiting their next foe in the NFC as the Eagles host the Seahawks and the Saints host the Vikings.
Honorable mention - During the first meeting between these two teams, 49ers tackle Joe Staley was making a return after coming off a six-game absence following a broken leg suffered in Week 2. In what would go down as one of the worst games of his career as he was constantly beat by Seattle defensive-end Jadeveon Clowney who feasted on the 49ers o-line and had a monster night, Staley had a chance to get even with Clowney in the rematch. Not allowing a single sack all night, Staley would do just that, redeeming himself with arguably his best performance of the season and keeping Clowney at bey as he was virtually a non-factor, finishing the game with only one tackle. Like many of his 49er teammates, Staley is beginning to play his best ball at the best possible time as the playoffs are officially underway.
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Week 16 - A week after dropping a tough one at home to the lowly Atlanta Falcons, the (11-3) San Francisco 49ers who've been banged up on defense and were without five starters in the Week 15 loss, were happy to learn that they'd get both Richard Sherman and K'Waun Williams back at the cornerback position in time for their next match-up. Hosting the (8-6) Los Angeles Rams who've been a disappointment this year after making it to the Super Bowl the previous season, the 49ers knew they'd be in for a dog fight like most division games, not to mention the Rams would be playing for their playoff lives as a loss would result in elimination for Sean McVay's squad. But with the NFC's number one seed still up for grabs if the Niners could win out, the team would receive an extra dose of motivation in the form of a family tragedy.
Playing with heavy hearts, the Niners had much more to play for than just a win as it was learned in the wee hours of the night that 49ers backup quarterback C.J. Beathard lost his younger brother Clayton Beathard who was fatally stabbed in their hometown of Nashville, Tennessee early Saturday morning. With head coach Kyle Shanahan tending to the distraught QB as late as 3 a.m. on the morning of game day, Beathard asked one thing of his coach and 49er teammates and that was a win on Saturday in memory of his late brother of just 22-years old. And like their first meeting back in Week 5 which saw the Rams jump out to an early 7-0 lead before eventually falling, 20-7, L.A. got off to a similar start in this one. Marching down the field with ease, quarterback Jared Goff led his team on a touchdown-scoring opening-drive that saw the former No. 1 overall pick throw for 66-yards on 4-for-4 pass attempts. The 49ers would also waste little time to get on the scoreboard as an 81-yard return by Richie James Jr. on the ensuing kick, helped San Francisco setup shop inside the red zone. However, a fumbled snap and a pair of incompletions would force the Niners to settle for a field goal. Exchanging three and out punts on the next three possessions, the 49ers would once again let good field position go to waste when Jimmy Garoppolo was picked off by Rams mid-season acquisition Jalen Ramsey.
Turning the turnover into points, Todd Gurley II would score his first of two first half touchdowns, setup by a big play from Goff to Robert Woods who had a huge night in the receiving department. Trailing 14-3, the Niners would finally begin to put the pieces together with a busy second quarter. In what would be a relatively quiet first half for Garoppolo, the ground attack began to pick up the slack as Deebo Samuel found the end zone with a 19-yard rushing touchdown to ignite the spark. With Gurley's second touchdown on the Rams' ensuing possession, San Francisco would once again have to answer in order to keep things close. Riding the hot hand, 49ers running back Raheem Mostert would answer the call on the very next drive as he found the end zone with a 16-yard score to become just the fourth player in franchise history to record a rushing touchdown in five consecutive games and the first since Derek Loville in 1995. It would be a remarkable streak for Mostert considering he had only scored two touchdowns in his previous 44 career games and opened the season as the team's third-string running back. The score by Mostert would also mark the 20th rushing touchdown by a 49er this season, the most by a 49ers team since their Super Bowl-winning season in 1994. With things beginning to look up for San Francisco, the Niners would get a huge momentum shift in the form of a pick-six interception by linebacker Fred Warner in the final minute of the second quarter. Stepping in front of a pass from Goff, Warner made the grab to record his first career interception and returned it 46-yards to help his team claim their first lead of the evening just before the half, capping a 21-point second quarter which tied a season-high.
Receiving the ball at the half and looking to add to their lead, that idea was shutdown rather quickly as Garoppolo was intercepted for a second time on a tip-drill pass just two plays into the third quarter. However, the Rams would fail to do anything with it as an intentional grounding penalty pushed them back an extra 10-yards which proved to be costly as kicker Greg Zuerlein missed a 52-yard field attempt wide-left. In a much quieter third quarter that saw both teams combine for five punts, the Rams would score the lone touchdown of the quarter by either team when Goff found a wide-open Cooper Kupp for a 26-yard TD. Trailing 28-24 with under 9 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Jimmy Garoppolo and tight-end George Kittle would hook up on their first play of the drive for a 36-yard gain. And five plays later, the two would connect once again on a third and goal from the 7-yard line when Jimmy G extended the play with his legs, rolling out of the pocket and throwing a strike to Kittle to recapture the lead. The Rams would tie the game with a 52-yard field goal with 2:36 remaining, setting up another dramatic ending which 49er fans have grown accustomed to over the second half of the season.
After a pair of quarterback sacks by the Los Angeles defense, Jimmy Garoppolo and the 49er offense rallied on a pair of 3rd & 16 conversions, none greater than the 46-yard bomb to Emmanuel Sanders who raced by two defenders to convert with the big gain. With the clock winding down, Tevin Coleman was able to add a 9-yard run to help setup Robbie Gould for the game-winning walk-off field goal from 33 yards out as San Francisco pulled off the 34-31 victory. Completing their first season sweep of the Rams since 2016, the 49er defense did a good job of clamping down and allowing only 10 second half points compared to the 21 points scored in the first half which set a season-high for Goff and company. Throwing for 248 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, it was a less than stellar game for Garoppolo in the box score, but he made the big plays late in the game when he needed to and helped his team capture the win which was the 20th of his career, helping him tie Hall of Famers Roger Staubach and Kurt Warner for the third most wins through a QB's first 25 careers starts in the Super Bowl era. Playing against the team he grew up rooting for, Jared Goff had an impressive night through the air, compiling 323 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. L.A.'s Robert Woods led all receivers with 8 receptions for 117 yards and George Kittle led the way for the 49ers with 5 catches for 79 yards and a touchdown. Meanwhile, San Francisco's Raheem Mostert (53 yards, 1 touchdown on 11 carries) and L.A.'s Todd Gurley II (48 yards, 2 touchdowns on 15 carries) led their respective teams in rushing. And for the first time in three years under coach McVay, the Rams will miss out on making the playoffs.
Week 17 Preview - Following Week 16, the table is officially set for a heavyweight title fight between the (12-3) 49ers and the (11-4) Seattle Seahawks. The game which has now been flexed into the Sunday Night Football slot, will feature two bitter rivals facing off on primetime television to determine the winner of the NFC Western Division and a potential number one seed. After already eliminating one of their division foes from playoff contention, coach Shanahan's 49ers team will try to deny another rival from clinching a first round BYE while punching their own ticket by closing out the 2019 regular season with a win in Seattle where the 49ers have not reigned victorious since 2011. And with Pete Carroll's team failing to win at home in Week 16 against the last-place Arizona Cardinals, the 49ers have to like their chances a little bit more given that the Seahawks have not quite been the same team at home this season like they have in years past. Having not received any rest since the early Week 4 BYE, the 49ers would love to not only clinch home field advantage and skip having to play an extra playoff game, but would also welcome a first round BYE to rest up and heal some of the banged up bodies on both sides of the ball. Not to mention how sweet it would be to clinch both the division and a number one overall seed up north in enemy territory. With ex-Seahawk and current 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman injured before the meeting between the two teams in Seattle last season, it remains as anyone's guess as to whether or not he receives a warm welcome from the CenturyLink Field faithful. Adding another layer to the big game, the Seahawks who are without three running backs due to injury, announced on Monday that they've agreed to a deal with former Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch who will see his first NFL action since 2018 after serving the last two seasons with the Oakland Raiders... as if there wasn't enough anticipation heading into the game.
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Week 15 - Following their epic last-second win in New Orleans to stun Drew Brees and the Saints, the San Francisco 49ers were riding high in possession of the NFC's number one seed, but were feeling the after effects of the street fight that left them with a depleted defense missing five of its starters. Having to continue without several key players on both the defensive line and in the secondary, the (11-2) Niners would return to action and play host to another NFC South opponent in the (4-9) Atlanta Falcons. With the dirty birds already eliminated from playoff contention and the 49ers needing a win or a Rams loss to clinch a playoff berth of their own, the game would be a battle of ex-employees and former coworkers as Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan spent the 2015-2016 seasons as the offensive coordinator in Atlanta alongside Falcons head coach Dan Quinn, who served four seasons in San Francisco as the defensive quality control coach and defensive line coach from 2001-04.
For Niner fans, any hopes of an offensive explosion similar to the one that played out a week earlier in New Orleans which saw a season-high 55 combined points scored in the first half, went out the window rather early as neither team scored in the first quarter. Entering the half in a 10-10 tie, the 49ers would open the scoring with an NFL season-long 21-play touchdown-scoring drive that marked the most offensive plays on a drive since Week 17 of the 2011 season (Miami Dolphins). Running back Raheem Mostert would do the honors, helping the 49ers draw first blood as he darted up the middle for the 2-yard score. The Falcons would answer on their ensuing possession as quarterback Matt Ryan connected with Julio Jones in the end zone for the first time in 10 games, helping Jones snap the longest scoring drought of his career and tie the game at 7. With the Niners maintaining a 13-10 lead, both teams would struggle holding onto the ball and were bit by the fumble bug. Already across midfield and threatening to add to their lead, 49ers running back Matt Breida was stripped of the ball on the Atlanta 38 yard-line. Though the turnover would halt what appeared to be a promising drive for the 49er offense, the Falcons were unable to cash in as they were forced to punt. The Niners would also have to punt on their ensuing drive, but would benefit from a fumble on special-teams.
With Falcons return man Kenjon Barner pinned deep to return, tight-end Ross Dwelley was able to get a helmet on the ball when making the tackle which led to a fumble picked up and taken to the 1-yard line by 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk. Rewarding him for his efforts, Shanahan would dial up consecutive plays for Juszczyk who caught a touchdown pass from San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo on 2nd and goal as the 49ers turned their NFL-leading 20th fumble into six points. Coming off NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors for his performance against the Saints, it would be the lone touchdown pass on the day for Garoppolo who saw his fair share of pressures, despite only being sacked once. Following a rare missed extra-point by 49ers kicker Robbie Gould who had made 43 consecutive PAT's before kicking one wide-left, San Francisco led 19-10 with just over 10 minutes remaining in the 4th quarter. However, the challenge would be a welcomed one for an Atlanta team that entered the game with the highest-scoring offense in the fourth quarter this year, having scored 121-points entering Sunday. With a 1-yard touchdown run by Qadree Ollison on his one and only carry of the game, the Falcons were once again on their way to adding to their league-leading mark. And with only a field goal to show for on San Francisco's ensuing drive, the Atlanta offense would be given the chance of going for the win.
What would take place in the final 1:52 of regulation would be some of the most bizarre football witnessed by Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers this season. Clinging onto a 22-17 lead, the San Francisco defense would allow a pair of big plays to the most dangerous player on the field in Julio Jones. Making it to the red zone and setting up shop at the 5 yard line, the Falcons thought they had the game-winner on a pass from Matt Ryan to tight-end Austin Hooper who was believed to make a miraculous grab between his legs. But upon further review, the call that was initially ruled a touchdown, was reversed after replay showed that the ball had made contact with the ground before the receiver was able to cradle it with his legs. As if things weren't wild enough, it would turn into a game of inches as Atlanta flipped the script on the very next play when Julio Jones scored the game-winning touchdown by barely crossing the goal-line that was initially ruled short. Both teams began to celebrate and had thought they won, the Niners on a stop at the goal-line and the Falcons on a close but successful touchdown. But after further review, there could only be one and the officials would reverse the call as replays showed that Jones did in fact break the plain ever so slightly to make it a 23-22 Falcons lead. With 0:02 remaining and the Niners in need of a last ditch effort on the ensuing kickoff, San Francisco tried their luck at a miracle by lateraling the ball, but would instead lateral into a fumble that was scooped up at the 3-yard line and returned for an Atlanta touchdown as time expired. Handing the Niners the 29-22 loss, the Falcons scored 19 of their 29 points in the 4th quarter, including 12 in the final five seconds.
Coincidentally, 49ers tight-end George Kittle and Falcons receiver Julio Jones each finished with 13 receptions for 134 yards on the day to lead their respective teams. While Jones scored two of his team's three touchdowns on offense, Kittle was held out of the end zone, but did manage to make some history as he passed Hall of Fame tight-end Mike Ditka for the most receiving yards by a tight-end in his first three seasons in NFL history. Having proved to be one of if not the best tight-end in the league today and a key component in Kyle Shanahan's offense, Kittle also made a number of key blocks that has helped his team along the way. Neither team's quarterback stacked the box score as Matt Ryan narrowly topped Jimmy Garoppolo in passing yards: 210 to 200, and threw two touchdowns to Jimmy G's one.
Week 16 Preview - Despite the loss, the 49ers did manage to clinch their first playoff berth since 2013 with the L.A. Rams suffering a blowout loss on the road to the Dallas Cowboys. Hoping to get back into the win column in preparation of the playoffs and big Week 17 showdown that could determine the fate of the NFC's No. 1 seed as well as the NFC Western Division crown, the (11-3) 49ers will host the (8-6) Rams in what will be the Niners' final home game of the regular season. After handing the Rams a 20-7 loss at the L.A. Coliseum back in Week 6, San Francisco will try to replicate a similar outcome and hopes to return to form on defense as they're expected to get both Richard Sherman and K'Waun Williams back on defense to help reinforce a 49er secondary that proved to be costly in the loss to Atlanta. But after having their way with Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks just two weeks earlier, the Rams are not to be taken lightly and are always a dangerous foe whenever the 2-time reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year is on the field. The 49ers will have to account for him and plenty of others if they plan on proving that the upset loss to the Falcons was just a fluke and that they're still the team to beat in the NFC when they have all their key pieces on defense.
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Week 14 - Continuing their quest thru the gauntlet of the toughest three-game stretch in NFL history, the (10-2) San Francisco 49ers headed into the Big Easy to take on the (10-2) New Orleans Saints in a back and forth melee that would be anything but easy. The first meeting between two teams with identical 10-2 records since 2007, the game was expected to be a tough, grind it out battle featuring two of the league's top defenses, but would quickly materialize into a shootout between quarterbacks as Jimmy Garoppolo and Drew Brees came out guns blazing and went blow for blow in a heavyweight match-up with the NFC's No. 1 seed on the line. It would also be a duel of the minds as offensive guru's Kyle Shanahan and Sean Payton squared off in a game that once things were underway, were destined to come down to the wire and likely be decided by whoever had the ball last.
With coach Shanahan keeping his 49er team on the east coast following Week 13 in Baltimore and spending the week in Florida in preparation of their second straight 10 a.m. eastern start on the road, San Francisco seemed ill-prepared for Brees' quick passes as he broke down the defense with precision before finding his tight-end Jared Cook for a 38-yard touchdown reception. Not to be outdone, Jimmy G connected on passes of 19, 31 and 25 yards to Emmanuel Sanders and Deebo Samuel, respectively, before hooking up in the end zone with Kendrick Bourne. While it would be the first of many touchdowns scored on the day, San Francisco's game-tying touchdown would be the first opening-drive TD allowed by the Saints defense all year. Drive No. 2 for New Orleans would look a lot similar to their first as Brees again found Cook for the score. Hurt on the play, Cook would have to leave the game after sustaining a concussion, but not before his controversial touchdown as replay showed the ball come loose as Cook went to the ground while in the end zone. With the call standing and 49ers cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon penalized for unnecessary roughness, Payton would decide to go for the two-point conversion but was unsuccessful.
After a 49ers three and out and one of only four punts in the game combined, the Saints continued to take advantage of their stellar field position with a drive that ended in another Drew Brees touchdown pass, this time to Josh Hill. Trailing 20-7 at the start of the 2nd quarter in a game where most teams would roll over, Jimmy G and company refused to give in as they needed only one play to answer with a touchdown of their own when Garoppolo threw a bomb to Emmanuel Sanders who returned to his feet after falling and sprinted for a career-long 75-yard score. But while the 49er offense had little trouble scoring, the defense continued to struggle finding an answer for the Saints offense which showed no signs of slowing. Just when San Francisco appeared to finally stand their ground by keeping New Orleans out of the end zone as a 1st and goal from the 4 eventually turned into a 4th and goal from the 1, Payton kept the offense on the field and allowed for Brees to handle the scoring himself as the future Hall of Fame quarterback kept the ball and leaped over the goal-line. With the score 27-14 and the defense in need of a breather after the tiring 7-minute and 14-second drive by New Orleans, it wasn't long before the San Francisco defense was right back out there as the 49er offense again answered with a quick response. Gaining 40-yards in two plays, Shanahan went to his bag of tricks to dial up a play that started with a handoff from Garoppolo to Samuel and ended with a lateral to Sanders who fired a strike down the field to a wide-open Raheem Mostert for the touchdown. Having already caught a touchdown earlier, Sanders became the first 49er in franchise history to record a receiving touchdown and a passing touchdown in the same game.
Still seeking their first stop on defense, the 49ers would get just that as a nice play by rookie defensive-end Nick Bosa stopped the Saints in their tracks on a 3rd and 1 attempt that led to a 6-yard loss and resulted in a three and out. With a chance to steal the momentum heading into the half, San Francisco would take their first lead of the game as a nine-play drive ended with a 10-yard run up the gut by Mostert, entering halftime with a 28-27 advantage. With eight touchdowns in ten drives and both teams combining for 55 first half points, the most points scored in an opening half this season, Garoppolo entered the locker room nearly perfect with 206 yards and a pair of TD passes on 11 of 12 completions. But their first drive of the second half would result in their one and only turnover when a pass intended for Sanders was tipped and intercepted. Holding New Orleans to a field goal after the turnover, the 49ers would force a takeaway of their own when Saints running back Alvin Kamara was stripped by D.J. Jones on only the second lost fumble by the Saints this season. Looking to cash-in on the rare mishap and within striking distance, Garoppolo needed only two plays to capitalize as George Kittle caught a pass and sprawled over the pylon for the 5-yard score.
With the score 35-33 SF after a Saints field goal, Payton would try to get cute on a fake-punt on 4th and 18, but a heads-up play in coverage by the 49ers special-teams led to an incompletion and the turnover on downs. Beginning the frenzied fourth quarter with a 14-play touchdown-scoring drive, Garoppolo capped things off with his second connection in the end zone with receiver Kendrick Bourne. Taking their largest lead of the game at 42-33, the 9-minutes remaining in regulation would seem to last an eternity as the game was still far from over. A pair of big plays by Saints receiver Michael Thomas would have his team right back in the thick of things as he followed up a 49-yard reception two plays later with a 21-yard touchdown. With the first field goal on the day for 49ers kicker Robbie Gould making it a 45-40 lead with just under 2:30 remaining, Drew Brees would lead his team down the field with the game on the line once again. Cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon had a chance to seal the win for the Niners when Saints receiver Michael Thomas slipped, but the ball went thru the hands of Witherspoon and wound up being an incomplete pass. Given a second chance, Brees would take advantage of the opportunity two plays later, connecting with Tre'Quan Smith for the go-ahead touchdown. With 53 career game-winning drives under his belt in the 4th quarter or overtime for Brees, it appeared that we had witnessed No. 54, but Jimmy G would have other plans as another 2-point conversion attempt by the Saints went awry.
With 53-seconds remaining and all three timeouts to work with, George Kittle would take us and a trio of Saints defenders along for a ride. Facing 4th and 2 at the San Francisco 33 yard-line, Kittle would grab a pass from Garoppolo and take it 39-yards as he stiff-armed a defender and had another draped all over him before a third Saint joined in to help take down the Pro Bowl tight-end who also benefited from a pivotal face-mask penalty that tacked on the extra yardage. In what many are calling the play of the year or at the very least the play of the 49ers' season, Kittle helped setup what would ultimately be the game-winning field goal by kicker Robbie Gould who connected on the 30-yarder as time expired. Giving Drew Brees and the Saints a taste of their own medicine, Jimmy G and the 49ers came back from the 20-7 deficit and completed the comeback with Gould's 16th career game-winning field goal marking the first 48-46 final score in NFL history.
Despite trailing 20-7 at one point, San Francisco's never say die mentality and sheer will allowed them to rally in what could very well go down as a season-defining moment for this 49er team that managed to still find a way to win. With both Brees and Garoppolo finishing with 349 yards passing, Jimmy G joins Steve Young and Jeff Garcia as the only 49er QB's with at least three games of 4 passing TD's in a single season after rallying his team to victory with his sixth career game-winning drive. Meanwhile, the Saints' 46-points are their most points scored in a loss in franchise history. 49ers running back Raheem Mostert and Saints running back Latavius Murray each finished with 69 yards rushing, and Emmanuel Sanders led all receivers with 157 receiving yards. However, it wasn't all roses and butterflies following the Niners' victory as the team learned that they'd be without center Weston Richburg for the season after he suffered a torn patellar tendon. Corner Richard Sherman and defensive-end Dee Ford would also leave Sunday's game after suffering hamstring injuries that will likely cause them to miss multiple weeks.
Week 15 Preview - The 49ers will be happy to return home to the state of California and their home field of Levi's Stadium when they host Matt Ryan and the (4-9) Atlanta Falcons. Facing his former team in head coach Dan Quinn and the Falcons, 49ers signal-caller Kyle Shanahan will try putting a stop to what was once among the most dangerous offenses in the league when he was still with them calling the plays led by Matt Ryan and Julio Jones. In what's been a down season for Atlanta, the Falcons are coming off a 40-20 drubbing of division rival Carolina where Matt Ryan became the second fastest QB in NFL history to reach the 50,000 yard mark (186 games). And though Atlanta isn't quite the same team they once were since Shanahan's departure, they'll still need to be taken serious as the 49ers can ill-afford losing to a inferior team if they want to maintain the NFC's No. 1 spot since jumping from the No. 5 seed following their win on Sunday @ New Orleans and a loss by Seattle to the Rams.
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Week 13 - Entering Week 13's heavyweight match-up between the 10-1 San Francisco 49ers and the 9-2 Baltimore Ravens, the narrative all week long was how badly Ravens QB and MVP-candidate Lamar Jackson was going to roll over one of the best defenses in the league. Coming off a 45-6 shellacking of the L.A. Rams a week earlier and riding the NFL's longest active winning streak at seven games, Jackson and the league's best offense did anything but against a stout 49er squad as the two teams went toe to toe and delivered in a potential Super Bowl preview that came down to the final seconds. Playing in less than ideal conditions as the rain wouldn't let up until late in the second half, the damp field conditions and inclement weather played a slight factor but would not take away from what would ultimately be a classic up to this point of the 2019 NFL season and a game most football fans are hoping to see again on a neutral field in Miami come February.
Opening the game on offense, the 49ers would waste little time to score, electing to gamble on an early fourth down attempt that would pay off as quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo heaved the ball 33-yards to rookie receiver Deebo Samuel who freed himself from two Baltimore defenders and found the end zone. The early gamble on fourth down would spark a theme all game long by both teams due to the poor conditions as the Ravens suddenly found themselves in unfamiliar territory, failing to score first for the first time in a game since October 13. The early score by San Francisco would also mark the first opening-drive touchdown allowed in 17 games by the Baltimore defense, snapping the longest active streak in the league. Having handled some of the league's best teams with double-digit victories over the Patriots, Texans and Seahawks, the 49ers let it be known from the onset that they wouldn't go down without a fight. With only two punts in the last three games for the Baltimore offense, things would continue to go in the 49ers' favor early on as the defense forced the Ravens to punt on their first drive. But a costly mistake on a fumble by Garoppolo, would result in the Ravens' first touchdown as Lamar Jackson capitalized on the early miscue just two plays later with a 20-yard touchdown pass to his tight-end -- Mark Andrews.
With the game tied at 7, Jackson would begin to go to work with his legs, helping march the offense into the red zone before taking it in himself for a 1-yard touchdown, giving his team their first lead of the day and setting the pace for another 100-yard rushing performance. The touchdown run by Jackson would be the 49th touchdown scored by the Baltimore offense this season, setting a franchise record for the most TD's in a single season. Looking to add to that mark with their 50th, the 49er defense would make sure the milestone wouldn't come on their watch as the Ravens were held out of the end zone the rest of the way. Trailing for the first time of the afternoon, the Niners would answer with a big score of their own from one of the most unlikeliest of heroes in third-string running back Raheem Mostert. With Matt Breida heading into Sunday morning as a game-time decision, team staff decided to scratch Breida from Sunday's game in hopes of having him at full strength and ready for Week 14 with another week's rest. In place of Breida, Mostert would not disappoint as he darted down the sideline for a game-tying 40-yard touchdown that would ignite a career day for a guy that until Sunday had been better known for being a standout player on special-teams.
With a second consecutive 13-play drive ending in only a field goal for Baltimore, the 49ers had a chance to either tie the game or take the lead heading into the half. But poor clock management by coach Kyle Shanahan and improper usage of his timeouts would cost his team valuable yards as they took their time before the half. Showing no signs of urgency, the 49er offense which took over with just under two minutes remaining, lollygagged after making it across midfield, letting precious time tick away while all three timeouts still remained as late as the 30-second mark. Making their way to the Baltimore 33-yard line, kicker Robbie Gould who missed the last three games with a quad injury, would be asked to attempt a 51-yard field goal in the rain. Instead of using those timeouts to try and gain more yards to make things easier for his rusty kicker, Shanahan, with a timeout remaining in his pocket, would watch Gould's kick sail offline and fall well short of the goalposts as his team entered the half trailing, 17-14. The miss by Gould would be his 8th of the season, setting a career-high for misses in a single season.
Having reached the end zone in each of their last four games to open the second half, the Ravens offense appeared to be heading in that direction once again until a promising drive came to a screeching halt thanks to another one of San Francisco's unsung heroes. Threatening to score with the ball at the San Francisco 33 yard-line and facing a 3rd and 1, Jackson faked a handoff and bootlegged to his left for a 14-yard gain before having the ball stripped by backup safety Marcell Harris. Entering the game just four plays earlier following an injury to Jaquiski Tartt, Harris' spectacular play would mark the first lost fumble on the year by Jackson and would give his team another opportunity to tie or take a lead. Orchestrating the longest drive of the game by either team as the 49er offense ran 14-plays that ate up 8:26 of game clock, San Francisco would make it to the red zone before settling for a field goal to tie the game at 17-all. After exchanging punts to take things into the fourth quarter, both teams would embark on six-play drives that would end on a turnover on downs. However, only San Francisco's choice of play-call would result in criticism when Shanahan raised eyebrows after dialing up a passing play on 4th and 1 from the Baltimore 35 at a time when Mostert was chewing up chunks of yardage each and every time he carried the ball.
Given a chance to milk the clock and put his team into position to win the game while keeping the ball out of the oppositions hands, the league's front-runner for MVP would do just that, spearheading a 12-play drive that included eight rushing plays, three of which by Jackson himself. And with 0:03 seconds remaining on the clock, Ravens kicker Justin Tucker who entered the game with the NFL's longest active streak of 37 consecutive made field goals in the 4th quarter, split the uprights once more as his 49-yard field goal try was never in doubt and gave his team the 20-17 walk-off victory. As his Baltimore teammates rushed the field to congratulate the Pro Bowl kicker and celebrate their franchise record-tying 8th straight win, San Francisco fell on the road for the first time this season. Falling to 10-2 on the year and having now lost two games this season by a combined six-points, the Niners once again showed why they belong in the conversation among the top teams in the league. And if the 3-point loss isn't enough to back that claim, perhaps the defense's ability to hold the league's best offense to their fewest point total and second fewest yards will do it for them.
Held to only 105 yards passing, it was Jackson's rushing ability that made him most dangerous on Sunday as he finished with a team-high 101 rushing yards on 16 carries, while scoring a touchdown both on the ground and thru the air. Garoppolo threw for 165 yards and one touchdown on 15 of 21 pass attempts, but it was backup running back Raheem Mostert who stole the show for the 49er offense, enjoying a career-high 146 yards rushing on 19 carries.
Week 14 Preview - Adding insult to injury, the Niners (10-2) would once again fail to receive any favors from the rest of the league as Minnesota, winners of 6 of their last 7 games, failed to continue their hot streak on the road against Seattle who managed to leapfrog ahead of the Niners for sole possession of first place in the NFC West. Even worse, San Francisco fell from the NFC's no. 1 seed to the no. 5 seed. But like the saying goes: If you want things done right, do them yourself. Kyle Shanahan's 49ers will be able to do just that this week when they pay a visit to New Orleans to take on Drew Brees and the Saints (10-2) in the Big Easy. With another heavyweight match-up in line for San Francisco, the two teams will clash with the chance to separate themselves from one another as the 2019 season enters its homestretch. Coming off a Thanksgiving win on the road and avenging their Week 10 loss against the division-rival Falcons, the Saints who have already clinched the NFC South division and a playoff berth, are looking to finish strong and maintain the top seed in the conference. As for the 49ers who will be happy that they won't have another rushing quarterback to face this week, will still need to bring their A-game against a Hall of Fame-bound quarterback that can still make you pay thru the air. And with one of the best play-making receivers in the business in Michael Thomas, San Francisco's banged up secondary will surely be tested in a game with playoff implications.
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Week 12 - All season long, the San Francisco 49ers who are sitting atop the NFC standings at 9-wins and 1-loss, have been beaten like a pinata by the mainstream media for having an "easy schedule" and having not played anyone of note. But a Sunday night meeting against the 8-2 Green Bay Packers would provide Kyle Shanahan's 49ers team with yet another chance to silence the critics and put those claims to rest. With the Seattle Seahawks and New Orleans Saints both breathing down the Niners' neck in the race for the NFC's top seed, San Francisco would not receive any favors on Sunday in their hopes for home field advantage as both teams were in close games but walked away with wins as their opponents shot themselves in the foot, leaving the 49ers to fend for themselves if they wanted to maintain the NFC's no. 1 spot.
And though the game between the Packers and 49ers would go on to register the highest average total television audience delivery for a Week 12 Sunday Night Football game since 2015 (Denver vs New England), the game would turn into a one-sided affair that got ugly from the onset. Having gone four straight games without committing a turnover, Aaron Rodgers and the Packers would be in for a rude awakening as the stout San Francisco defense put an end to that mark rather quickly. On Green Bay's opening-drive, the 49ers would force a strip-sack fumble on Rodgers, snapping a streak of 39 consecutive drives without a turnover, the longest active streak in the NFL. Needing only one play to capitalize on the Packers' rare turnover would be running back Tevin Coleman who turned it into an early touchdown by reaching over the goal-line. Forcing and recovering the fumble would be the tandem of linebacker Fred Warner and defensive-end Nick Bosa who would each have a monster game for a 49er defense that shined in their only Sunday Night game of the year and one that had to be flexed into the Sunday Night slot.
Trailing 10-0, Packers first-year head coach Matt LaFleur who served alongside Kyle Shanahan during stints with the Texans, Redskins and Falcons, would elect to gamble early on in the second quarter with a 4th & 1 attempt that the 49er defense stuffed. Following a second Chase McLaughlin field goal, rookie receiver Deebo Samuel hauled in one of his two receptions on the evening and took it 42-yards to the house. Forcing their fifth three and out of the half on defense, the Niners, needing only 24-seconds, would have even more opportunity to widen their lead as QB Jimmy Garoppolo hooked up with tight-end George Kittle for a 22-yard completion that allowed them to settle for yet another field goal. By halftime, Aaron Rodgers and the Packers had only accumulated 60-yards of total offense and were held scoreless while staring at a 23-point deficit. And though they would open the second half with a touchdown on their first possession of the third quarter after a 13-play drive that chewed up over eight and a half minutes, the Niners would answer back in a fraction of the time with a two-play, touchdown-scoring drive that needed only 57-seconds. After getting on the board with a 2-yard touchdown pass from Rodgers to receiver Davante Adams, the Packer defense gave it right back as Garoppolo found a wide-open Kittle who in his first game back after missing the last two weeks with broken bones in his ankle, caught the ball and ran 61-yards for the score.
It would be a welcoming sight for Niner players and fans alike who had feared the injury to Kittle was much more serious than the team initially led on as he finished his first game back with a game-high 129 yards on 6 receptions. LaFleur would pull the plug in the 4th quarter after electing to sit his starting quarterback who finished the game with a season-low in virtually every statistical category on offense. Trailing 30-8 and in full-on desperation mode, the Packers would again go for it on 4th down, but were left disappointed as they turned the ball over on downs. Niners running back Raheem Mostert would cap off the scoring with a 15-yard score up the middle as San Francisco increased their lead to 37-8, a score they would go on to win by in route to their first 10-1 record since 1997. Holding their opponent to 8 points or fewer for the fourth time this season, the 49er defense proved to be a thorn in the side of Rodgers who grew up a Niner fan and attended nearby Cal Berkeley. Finishing with only 104 yards passing on 20 of 33 attempts, the San Francisco defense would limit Rodgers to the fewest passing yards of his career in a game in which he completed 20+ passes, as the Packers' future Hall of Fame quarterback failed to complete a single pass beyond 10-yards. 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo finished with a clean 253 yards passing on 14 of 20 attempts, 2 TD's and 0 turnovers.
Both teams struggled mightily on third down and entered the fourth quarter without a single third down conversion. It wasn't until San Francisco's final drive where they converted their first third down conversion when they converted on three in a row. Green Bay on the other hand entered the fourth quarter 0-for-10 on third down with Rodgers under center and converted their one and only third down conversion on their final drive of the game with backup Tim Boyle at quarterback. With the 29-point win, the 49ers have now outscored opponents by 169 points this season, their largest point differential through 11 games since 1948 (+210). However, it came with a loss as defensive-end Demontre' Moore was lost for the season after suffering a fractured forearm in the win and will be placed on injured-reserve. The loss of Moore who was signed just two weeks earlier, is unfortunate news for a defensive-line that was without Dee Ford on Sunday with an injured hamstring and has already lost Ronald Blair for the season.
Week 13 Preview - After holding Green Bay to under 200 yards in total offense (198), San Francisco currently leads the league in total defense (248.0 opponent yards per game), something they have not done since 1997. That's a number they hope to duplicate in Week 12 as they prepare to face the Baltimore Ravens (9-2) and their MVP candidate at quarterback in Lamar Jackson. Coming off a dominant Monday Night win on the road in L.A. against the Rams, Jackson became the youngest player in NFL history with multiple 5-passing TD games in a season and the first player with 5 TD's in his Monday Night Football debut as Baltimore handed the Rams their largest defeat in the history of the L.A. Coliseum: 45-6. San Francisco will look to slow Jackson who has the Ravens atop the AFC North and riding a 7-game winning-streak. Despite being tied with the New England Patriots for the best record in the league, odds-makers don't like the 49ers' chances in Baltimore as they open up as 6-point underdogs and are the first 10-1 team in over a decade to enter Week 13 as an underdog. With how dominant the 49ers have been on defense this year, the lone weakness I've seen has been against the running quarterback (Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray), and Lamar Jackson is that to a tee. If they can contain Jackson and prevent him from beating them with his legs, I like their chances of pulling off the upset and putting an end to Baltimore's streak. Also, with having to face the gauntlet of Green Bay, Baltimore and New Orleans in consecutive weeks, the 49ers will become the first team to play three straight games vs opponents with .800+ win percentage 10+ games into a season in the Super Bowl era.
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Week 11 - Looking to put their first loss of the season behind them and get back on track in the win column, the San Francisco 49ers (8-1) would hope for a much smoother outcome than the one that nearly ended in an upset against the Arizona Cardinals (3-6-1) two weeks earlier in Glendale. But from the opening drive on, it was Kliff Kingsbury's Cardinals squad that once again got off to the hot start. Leaving Kyle Shanahan shaking his head, his 49er team would allow Arizona to jump out to a quick 10-0 lead as the hole eventually grew deeper with San Francisco soon falling behind, 16-0. But having shown all season that they can answer the call when facing adversity, the Niners would eventually wake up on both sides of the ball to overcome the 16-point deficit, their largest of the season.
Having caused fits for the 49er defense virtually all game long in their Thursday night match-up back in Week 9 which ended in San Francisco narrowly edging Arizona by a final score of 28-25, Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray once again gave the Niners a headache, despite not padding the stat sheet. When he wasn't firing the ball off with impressive arm-speed or weaving around defenders, Murray was using his legs to get out of trouble and pick up a first down. However, it was the self-inflicted miscues that doomed San Francisco early on as a 41-yard penalty by Richard Sherman on third and long allowed the Cardinals to score their first points. Taking over in the red zone, Arizona was held to a field goal, but found themselves ahead, nonetheless. Drive no. 2 for Arizona would look a lot like deja vu as Sherman was called for a second pass-interference penalty that once again gifted the Cardinals with a trip to the red zone. Only this time, Murray and company would capitalize with a touchdown as a wide-open Larry Fitzgerald scored to make it 9-0 following a failed extra-point attempt. With the ball across midfield, Shanahan would dial up an early decision to go for it on 4th & 5, but the Niners were stopped in their tracks on an incomplete pass to Raheem Mostert.
After exchanging punts, Arizona added to their lead to start the second quarter as Murray connected with Pharoh Cooper for his second touchdown pass of the half. Serving as a wake-up call, the 49ers would finally begin to string together some offense of their own as a big play was made when quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo found Richie James Jr. on a screen-pass that the receiver turned into a 57-yard gain. Making their first red zone trip of the afternoon, it would be there that backup tight-end Ross Dwelley stepped up in the absence of George Kittle who was ruled out for a second straight game while nursing ankle and knee injuries suffered in the earlier meeting against these Cardinals. Fitting the bill, Dwelley would score each of the first two 49er touchdowns on the day and had another touchdown called back on an offensive-holding penalty. It would be a career day for the undrafted tight-end after entering the game with zero TD receptions in his first 20 career games. The Niners would inch closer to make it a one-possession game just before the half as Chase McLaughlin slipped a field goal through the uprights just before the half. Making the needed adjustments at the half, the Niners would open the third quarter with a bang as a 52-yard gain on the first play of the half helped set the table for San Francisco to take their first lead of the game on Garoppolo's second end zone connection to Dwelley.
San Francisco's next possession seemed just as promising as the offense marched into the red zone, but the drive would go up in flames when a head-scratching decision by Garoppolo ended in an interception as his pass went directly to a defender. Scoring only a field goal out of it, Arizona was able to reclaim the lead before Garoppolo began to work his magic in the passing game. With a big play to get his team into enemy territory by rookie receiver Deebo Samuel who logged his second consecutive 100-yard performance, the drive was capped off by a touchdown pass from Garoppolo to Kendrick Bourne. But the Cardinals would answer on their ensuing possession as Kyler Murray scored on a quarterback-keeper from 22-yards out. With Arizona back up by a field goal with under seven minutes remaining, Garoppolo was intercepted for a second time when he threw a pass out of the reach of Dwelley and into the hands of a Cardinals defender. Taking over before the two-minute warning, Garoppolo would redeem himself by marching his team up the field before finding one of the most unlikeliest of heroes. With under a minute remaining, into the game came Jeff Wilson Jr. who on the first play he saw, caught a pass with an acrobatic grab that he ran up the middle with 22-yards for the go-ahead touchdown. But a lot would happen in the final 31 seconds as both teams would be given a chance to put the game away for good.
Any chance of a Cardinals comeback appeared to be put to rest when the 49ers pounced on a fumble on Arizona's first play following the Wilson Jr. touchdown. But three short rushing attempts and a failed 4th & 1 attempt, gave Arizona the ball one last time as 6 seconds remained. Needing a bit of late-game heroics to pull off the miracle, a quick pass from Murray to Fitzgerald ended with the veteran receiver trying a lateral that was eventually fumbled and picked up by San Francisco's D.J. Reed who scooped up the ball and took it in for the easy score as time expired. The final score of 36-26 would not be indicative of how the game panned out for both teams as the Cardinals fought tooth and nail to once again hand Shanahan's Niners a hard fought win that they had to work for until the final seconds of the game-clock. And with the Niners' run game shutdown for a second consecutive week as running back Matt Breida sat out due to injury, Garoppolo would again be forced to get things done thru the air. Finishing with 424 yards and 4 touchdowns, Garoppolo joined 49er greats Joe Montana and Steve Young as the only quarterbacks in franchise history to throw for 400 yards and 4 touchdowns in a single game. Before Jimmy G's remarkable performance on Sunday, the last Niner QB to put up such numbers was Young in 1993 and the 400+ yards are the most by a 49ers team since Week 13 of the 199 season.
Noteworthy: Given the many weapons the 49ers have had on offense this season, one interesting stat from Sunday's win, is that all four of San Francisco's touchdowns were scored by undrafted players: Dwelley, Bourne and Wilson Jr.
Week 12 Preview - Summing up their three-game homestand, the 49ers (9-1) will welcome in Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers (8-2) as San Francisco embarks on a string of three straight games against some of the league's top heavyweights that could very well make or break their season. And with Green Bay coming off a BYE, Kyle Shanahan's team will certainly need to be on their A-game in what has now been flexed into a Sunday night game, San Francisco's lone Sunday night meeting on their schedule. Aside from the future Hall of Famer Rodgers, the 49ers defense will also have to plan for running back Aaron Jones who is tied for the league lead in touchdowns with 14 and is coming off a three rushing touchdown performance in the team's Week 10 win over Carolina. With the Niner defense losing Kwon Alexander and Ronald Blair for the season in consecutive weeks, the team hopes to have both if not at least one of D.J. Jones or Dee Ford available in time for their game against the Packers. With Jones inactive for the Arizona game with a groin injury, Ford was the latest Niner to fall to the injury bug after he was pulled from Sunday's game with a hamstring ailment. San Francisco will need all the help they can get as a loss would drop them even in the NFC standings alongside Green Bay.
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Week 10 - Returning home to Levi's Stadium for a Monday Night showdown against the division rival Seattle Seahawks (7-2), the San Francisco 49ers (8-0) would put their undefeated record to the test against the NFC's front-runner for league MVP through the first half of the season in quarterback Russell Wilson. But with tight-end George Kittle ruled out before game time with ankle and knee injuries, Kyle Shanahan's 49ers would be forced to try their luck without their leading receiver and best player on offense. It would also be the team's first game without one of their emotional leaders in linebacker Kwon Alexander who was lost a week earlier to a torn pectoral muscle which ended his first season with the team. But perhaps the biggest absence would be that of kicker Robbie Gould (injured quad) as the fate of the game would come down to the foot of a free-agent kicker that was signed just four days earlier. And as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. So too would be the case for the 49ers' unbeaten mark of 8-0 as they entered the Monday Night affair as the last undefeated team in the league and gave it their all in what would go down as a Monday Night Classic.
Off to their best start since 1990 and vying for their 50th win in Monday Night Football history, the most of any team in the NFL, things were looking good early on for the Niners as they quickly jumped out to a 10-0 lead. Entering the Monday night match-up tied for the second best start in NFL history through his first 18 career starts at 16-2, San Francisco QB Jimmy Garoppolo was aided by three Seattle penalties on the opening-drive which setup the newest member of the 49ers, Chase McLaughlin, for a 43-yard field goal. Undrafted out of Illinois, McGlaughlin who had been waived or released by three different teams this season, seemed unfazed as he nailed his first kick right down the middle. San Francisco's second drive which resulted in a touchdown, was setup by big plays from receivers Deebo Samuel and Emmanuel Sanders before Jimmy G. found Kendrick Bourne in the end zone for the score. However, on the play made by Sanders, a 12-yard reception which resulted in a big hit that left Sanders without a helmet, the newcomer who has already developed into one of Garoppolo's favorite targets, would leave the game with a rib injury after showing obvious discomfort.
Forcing back to back three and outs to begin the game and punts on each of Seattle's first four possessions, the 49er defense would also open the game strong. However, it would be the Seahawks' defense that would get them on the board and swing the momentum in their favor just before the half when Garoppolo was sacked and stripped of the ball by Jarran Reed. Seattle's Jadaveon Clowney who was acquired before the start of the season from the Houston Texans, scooped up the Garoppolo fumble and returned it for the touchdown. Clowney would have a field day against a rusty 49ers offensive-line that had welcomed back a pair of starting tackles in Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey who had been out of action since Weeks 2 and 3, respectively. Seattle appeared to be on their way to taking the lead with them into the half, but a huge play would be made by Niners safety Jaquiski Tartt who helped the 49ers force a fumble recovery of their own. With San Francisco being the only remaining team in the league to hold opponents scoreless in the final two minutes of the first half, Tartt's heroics kept that streak alive when he stripped Seattle's DK Metcalf of the ball at the 2 yard-line to help stall the Seahawks' attempt to claim the lead.
The 49er defense would open the second half the same way they'd closeout the first, as K'Waun Williams and DeForest Buckner teamed up to force and recover a fumble on Seattle running back Rashaad Penny. However, San Francisco would give the ball back on three consecutive possessions which ended in turnovers by the offense. After a failed 4th and 2 attempt which resulted in a turnover on downs, Garoppolo was intercepted on a pass that went through the hands of Kendrick Bourne. And finally, a second fumble by the quarterback as Clowney once again got to Garoppolo to force the ball loose. Seattle would turn both the interception and fumble into points, capitalizing with touchdowns to put them ahead, 21-10. Trailing by double-digits for the first time this season to begin the fourth quarter, San Francisco would need to answer and stop the bleeding of 21 unanswered-points scored by Seattle. With all 21 of Seattle's points coming off turnovers, the Niner defense would finally break through with a score of their own when Russell Wilson was sacked and unable to hold onto the ball, allowing DeForst Buckner to take it into the end zone for a touchdown. Following a successful 2-point conversion cashed-in by Bourne, the Niners were once again in it, making it a 21-18 game before tying things up at 21-all following a field goal.
Seattle would recapture the lead with a 46-yard field goal from Jason Myers, leaving 1:44 remaining in regulation for the Niners to either tie or take the lead. With a series of short passes and dump-offs, Jimmy G would get his kicker in position to send the game into overtime. And from 47 yards out, McLauglin would connect to send both teams to the extended period. Winning the coin-toss and electing to receive, Russell Wilson would begin marching his team up the field and into the red zone as they had reached the San Francisco 14 yard-line, but it would be there where Wilson would throw his first career red zone interception against the Niners as rookie linebacker Dre Greenlaw came up with the clutch turnover and first of his career. With the game now in sudden death as a score by either team would win the game, Shanahan once again left it up to his new kicker. With the only thing standing in their way of a perfect 9-0 record being a 47-yard field goal which McLaughlin had already made one possession earlier to force the game into overtime, the bright lights and big stage would get the best of the rookie kicker who was unemployed just a week earlier, as McLaughlin's kick was shanked wide-left.
Each team would exchange punts following a pair of three-and-outs, but San Francisco's biggest mistake would be their inability to chew up precious time as there was just enough on the clock for Wilson and company to come through in the clutch. With three straight incompletions by Garoppolo allowing the offense to eat up only 25 seconds of game-clock, Wilson used both his arm and his legs to put his kicker in position to win the game. And where McLaughlin failed to rally his team to victory, Myers answered the call as he shook off his missed extra-point and two missed field goal performance from a week ago by converting on the game-winning field goal from 42-yards out as Seattle won, 27-24. Needing overtime to hand San Francisco their first loss of the season, Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson admitted after the back and forth affair that it was the craziest game he had ever been a part of. Held to only 72 yards in the first half, Wilson would finish the game with 232 yards to go along with his one touchdown and interception. As for Garoppolo who suffered his first career loss at Levi's Stadium, the Niners QB threw for 248 yards, one touchdown and one interception, despite his receivers not doing him any favors as there were a number of key drops up and down the lineup. One of the few players that did step up on offense, was 49ers rookie receiver Deebo Samuel who logged his first career 100-yard receiving game, finishing with 12 receptions for 112-yards.
After being handed the loss and seeing their run to perfection come to an end, you can bet that coach Shanahan will let this serve as a learning block for his young team as they try to make a positive out of their first loss and work on correcting their mistakes moving forward.
Week 11 Preview - San Francisco will need to put their first loss behind them rather quickly as they'll be on short-rest when they welcome the Arizona Cardinals (3-6-1) to Levi's Stadium. As evident by their close call two weeks ago when the Niners narrowly escaped the desert with a 28-25 victory on Halloween, these Cardinals are not to be taken lightly in spite of their record. Having played both Russell Wilson and Cards QB Kyler Murray in consecutive weeks, the Niner defense will once again have to be on their toes in the rematch against the speedy Murray and these Cardinals whom San Francisco struggled to put away in the previous meeting. They'll also have to be better at containing Arizona running back Kenyon Drake who had one of the best games of his career when making his Cardinals debut against this very 49ers defense. If San Francisco can steer clear of the turnovers and mistakes they committed against Seattle, they shouldn't have any problem at getting back into the win column.
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Week 9 - With the San Francisco 49ers (7-0) riding hot and paying a visit to the desert for a meeting with the Arizona Cardinals for the first time this year in a Halloween match-up that would feature the first two picks of the 2019 NFL Draft in Kyler Murray and Nick Bosa, Kyle Shanahan's defense would find themselves in rare territory and would be pushed to the brink for the first time this season. Having allowed 100 net passing yards or less in four straight games for the first time since 1977 and a combined 23-points in those contests, the 49er defense would allow more points than that in this game alone against a Cardinals team that came into the affair on a three-game winning streak of their own. In only their second division match-up of the year and on short rest, the 49er defense would be caught off-guard and for the first time this season would rely on the arm of Jimmy Garoppolo who answered the call by logging his first 300 yard performance of the year while throwing for a season-high 28 completions and a career-high 4 touchdowns.
Hall of Famer and Fox NFL analyst Michael Strahan questioned the ability of Garoppolo during the pregame show and begged the question of whether or not he could lead his team to victory if needed. "Has the game ever been on his shoulders? Has it ever been on him to win a game?" Those questions would be put to rest in this one as Jimmy G silenced the critics with his bast game yet, albeit against the rebuilding Cardinals. With the defense bailing Garoppolo and the 49er offense out on multiple occasions this season, it was only appropriate that their QB returned the favor on Thursday when the defense had a hiccup of their own and needed his help. Among their struggles against the Arizona offense, was the outstanding debut of Cardinals running back Kenyan Drake who was acquired from the Miami Dolphins just days earlier on Monday. With both David Johnson and Chase Edmonds nursing injuries, the Cardinals were forced to acquire three new running backs during the week. However, it'd be a one man show from the onset as Drake burst through for a 36-yard gain on his very first carry of the ballgame, an impressive start considering his previous season-long was only 11-yards while with Miami. Starting the drive and game with the big play from Drake, his team would continue feeding him as he finished the drive with a 4-yard score to kickstart his most productive game of the season and give Arizona an early 7-0 lead.
After surrendering only the second Cardinals touchdown in their last 21 drives to open the game, the 49er defense would keep the opposition at bey in their next two drives by forcing back-to-back three-and-outs. The 49ers would dodge a bullet early in the first quarter after having a scare when Pro Bowl tight-end George Kittle went down after taking a helmet to the knee. Kittle, easily the team's biggest weapon on offense, would head to the sidelines, but would return on San Francisco's next possession and would end up scoring the team's first touchdown on a 30-yard reception in which he shoo'd off a defender and stiff-armed his way to a game-tying score. The big time play would ignite a streak of three consecutive touchdown-scoring drives for the 49ers and four TD's in a five drive span as Garoppolo connected in the end zone with a different receiver each time. Garoppolo's second touchdown pass of the evening, a 7-yard connection to Kendrick Bourne, would be the first TD reception of the season for Bourne. His third touchdown pass, a 1-yarder to Emmanuel Sanders, would be the second in as many games for Sanders who has quickly become one of Garoppolo's favorite targets after being acquired just a week earlier via trade with the Denver Broncos.
But the Niners would have Arizona's first-year head coach Cliff Kingsbury to thank for the Sanders touchdown as they caught a huge break just before the half. Facing 4th and goal from the 1 yard-line and with 0:04 remaining in the half, Kyle Shanahan dialed up a hand-off that Arizona appeared to make a stop on at the goal-line. Fortunately for them, Kingsbury called for a timeout just before the snap, which then gave San Francisco another chance and resulted in the touchdown pass to Sanders as the Niners jumped out to a 21-7 lead at halftime. Showing the same uptempo offense to begin the second half that they showed in the first, the Cardinals, despite only 15-yards passing through the first two quarters, once again came out swinging and scored a touchdown on their first drive of the new half. Answering with a score of their own, Garoppolo would toss his fourth and final TD pass of the game as he found a wide-open Dante Pettis alone in the end zone from 21-yards out. And while it was his only catch of the night, he made it count in what's been a disappointing season from the second-year wide-out from the University of Washington.
After a Zane Gonzalez field goal made it a 28-17 lead for San Francisco in the fourth quarter, the Cardinals would strike for a huge 88-yard touchdown that took only two plays and chewed up only 35-seconds. Leading all rookie QB's in both passing and rushing yards, Kyler Murray found fellow rookie Andy Isabella who's third career reception and one and only catch of the night, would be a long one as he darted to the end zone for a 88-yard score that helped his team leap right back into the ballgame. Following a successful 2-point conversion to add to the busy day by Kenyan Drake, the Cardinals suddenly had all the momentum on their side and had the 49ers on their heels. With San Francisco taking over with under five minutes remaining and Arizona in possession of all three of their timeouts, the Niners were in need of a productive, yet time consuming drive in order to seal the win. Orchestrating an 11-play, 40-yard drive, Garoppolo managed to do just that as the 49ers signal-caller did a superb job eating up clock and making several big plays on third down. None would be bigger than the 3rd and 9 call at the two-minute warning that iced the win as Garoppolo stepped up and out of the pocket to deliver a clutch pass to tight-end Ross Dwelley who converted the game-winning first down that allowed his team to milk precious time as the final seconds ticked away.
Hoping to receive one final shot at rallying his team to victory, Kyler Murray would not get that chance and would have to watch from the sideline as the clock hit double-zero. Having outscored opponents by 130 points this season, the most through 7 games in franchise history, San Francisco would squeak by with the 28-25 victory to log their first win at Arizona since 2013 and snap their 8-game losing skid to the Cardinals. After becoming the first 49er to ever record three rushing TD's and a receiving TD in the same game, running back Tevin Coleman was virtually shutout as he was kept out of the end zone and held to only 23-yards on 12 carries. Matt Breida rushed for 78-yards on 15 carries, but both backs paled in comparison to Kenyan Drake who tallied 110-yards on 15 carries, registering only the third 100-yard performance of his career, while also adding 52-yards receiving on 4 receptions. But the player of the game would belong to Jimmy Garoppolo who became the first 49er QB with 4+ touchdown passes and 300+ passing yards in a single game since Jeff Garcia in 2000. With three of his TD passes coming on third down and one on fourth, Jimmy G also became the first 49er QB since Colin Kaepernick in 2012 to toss for 4 TD's in a game.
Garoppolo's favorite target of the game would be Emmanuel Sanders who in just his second game with his new team, has already hauled in a pair of touchdown passes after his seven catch, 112-yard performance against Arizona. With the timing and chemistry on a number of passes from Garoppolo to Sanders, you'd think the two have worked with each other all offseason long as the savvy vet and 2-time Pro Bowl receiver has already become arguably the biggest mid-season acquisition in the NFL this season. The ever-so reliable George Kittle also caught his second touchdown pass and racked up 79-yards on six receptions. It would be a quiet game for rookie sensation Nick Bosa who a week after being named both Rookie Defensive Player of the Week and NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his three sack, 1 interception performance against the Panthers, logged only one tackle in Thursday night's win. That win would come at a price, however, as the defense lost a key contributor in linebacker Kwon Alexander who will miss the remainder of the season after an MRI revealed that he suffered a torn pectoral muscle. Signed to a lucrative deal in the offseason, Alexander was enjoying a stellar 2019 campaign in the middle of this 49er defense.
Week 10 Preview - Officially halfway through the 2019-20 NFL regular season schedule and the 49ers find themselves as the last remaining unbeaten team in the league at 8-0. Turning the page to their next opponent, San Francisco will return home to host the Seattle Seahawks (7-2) on Monday Night Football. Hoping to win their second straight game against their division rivals, the 49er defense will need to rebound quickly from their rough performance against Kyler Murray and the Cards as they'll see a similar skill set in Russell Wilson who's even more dangerous and has been arguably the league's MVP through the first half of the season. Despite Wilson's monster game on Sunday in which he threw for 378 yards and 5 touchdowns, the Seahawks needed Overtime to avoid being upset at home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The 49ers will certainly have their hands full with Wilson, but are also expected to get one of their starters back in Tackle Joe Staley who's been out since Week 2 when he suffered a broken left fibula against the Bengals. One thing that is certain is that there'll likely be plenty of fireworks as Richard Sherman gets to take on his former team and head coach once again when the two teams renew rivalries on Monday.
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