Mistakes cost 49ers in Loss to Saints

Week 10 - In what was thought to be one of the more intriguing games this season after the absolute barnburner that took place in New Orleans just a year ago, this year's version of the 49ers (4-5) versus Saints (6-2) would be a far cry from the epic 48-46 win that the 49ers were able to escape the Superdome with a season ago. Given the laundry list of injuries the Niners have suffered in 2020, Kyle Shanahan's team would need to play a near perfect game in order to leave the Big Easy with an upset victory over Drew Brees and the Saints, and through the first quarter, San Francisco would manage to do just that. Unfortunately for them, they would be far from perfect during the other three quarters of play on Sunday. 

Putting together an impressive touchdown-scoring drive that spanned 13-plays to open the game, the 49ers took an early 7-0 lead on a short 4-yard pass from backup quarterback Nick Mullens to rookie receiver Brandon Aiyuk. In what would be a forgetful game all around in the special-teams department for both teams, the Saints were first to make a gaffe when their defense forced San Francisco to punt on a three-and-out, only to witness return man Deonte Harris muff a fair-catch attempt that gave the 49ers the ball back and another opportunity to score. Cashing in on the Saints' miscue, the 49ers were able to get a field goal out of it to take a 10-0 lead. But Harris would redeem himself on the very next kick which he turned into a 75-yard return to setup the Saints with their first field goal to help put New Orleans on the board. San Francisco's woes on special-teams would then take effect as Ken Webster was unable to get out of the way after an aborted fair-catch call by Trent Taylor as the ball was recovered by the Saints. The head-scratching miscue would allow New Orleans to have another crack at tying the game. 

While the Niners' muffed punt didn't necessarily play a role in turning the tide, there would be a huge momentum shift on the same drive when San Francisco was penalized for a bogus "roughing the passer" call at the 8:42 mark in the second quarter that had everyone up in arms, including injured 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman who was following the game on Twitter and took to his social media account to express just how atrocious the call was. The would-be sack by Niners defensive-end Kentavius Street went from being a Saints 3rd and 18 deep in their own territory, to an automatic first down that breathed new life into the New Orleans offense and ultimately led to them capitalizing with a game-tying touchdown just three plays later. Hoping not to let the game slip away from their grasp, the 49ers turned the ball over on downs near midfield following a failed 4th and 1 attempt that allowed the Saints to take their first lead of the ballgame as Pro Bowl running back Alvin Kamara added to his busy day with his second of three touchdowns on the afternoon. Erasing a 10-point first quarter deficit, New Orleans suddenly found themselves heading into the locker room at the half with a 17-10 advantage and a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the way. 

For San Francisco, it would certainly be a game of missed opportunities as their first possession of the second half ended in an interception that halted what was shaping out to be a successful drive. Instead, the Saints continued to add to their lead despite QB Drew Brees sitting out the entire second half with what x-rays would later reveal to be five fractured ribs and a collapsed long suffered on the negated sack by Kentavius Street. A second muffed punt by San Francisco would help put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter as the Saints rode their Pro Bowl running back to victory as he found the end zone for a third time. With New Orleans pouring in 27 unanswered-points, the 49ers finally stopped the bleeding when Robbie Gould converted on a 40-yard field goal attempt to make it 27-13. In need of some late-game heroics, San Francisco forced a fumble after stripping backup QB Taysom Hill of the ball, but a Nick Mullens interception on a jump-ball in the end zone would seal the victory for the Saints and wipe out any chances of the Niners pulling off the come-from-behind miracle. 

Having terrible luck all season long in keeping healthy running backs on the field, the 49ers lost another one on Sunday as JaMycal Hasty suffered a broken collarbone. While there was no one player that jumped out via the run game, it was the catching ability by Saints running back Alvin Kamara that led the way for New Orleans as he caught 7 passes for 83 yards and a touchdown, compared to his 8 carries for 15 yards, though he did make them count with another two touchdowns on the ground. San Francisco's Brandon Aiyuk logged another solid performance by hauling in 7 catches for 75 yards and a touchdown. Nick Mullens led all quarterbacks with 247 yards, but threw only one touchdown to his two interceptions. Before departing at the end of the first half, Drew Brees threw for 76 yards and a touchdown on 8 of 13 pass attempts. In spite of the win, the Saints had put up only 237 yards of offense, their lowest total in a win since Week 11 of the 1998 season. Also worth noting is the first career sack for 49ers rookie and first round pick -- Javon Kinlaw who finished the game with 1.5 sacks.

Week 11 - Receiving a much needed BYE Week in Week 11, the 49ers can only hope having a week away from the playing field will finally mean a week without any additional injuries suffered to the roster. However, they'll be keeping a close eye on defensive-end Arik Armstead who was placed on the team's Reserve/COVID-19 list on Monday. When the team returns from the BYE, they'll head to southern California to take on the (6-3) Los Angeles Rams. Having already beaten the Rams this season in their Week 6 meeting, L.A. will have a chance to avenge the loss when they play host to San Francisco in their new multi-billion dollar facility -- SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. 

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Packers Beat 49ers' B-Team on Thursday Night

Week 9 - Meeting for the first time since a blowout victory in the NFC Championship that punched a ticket to the Super Bowl for the San Francisco 49ers (4-4), the Green Bay Packers (5-2) would stroll into the Bay Area seeking revenge after being embarrassed not once, but twice a season ago. But any hopes of a slugfest would be shutdown rather quickly for one team. Having been ravaged by injuries all season long, a new enemy would emerge and make its presence felt on the 49ers roster, or at least the threat of it. Entering Thursday night's game with 13 players on Injured Reserve -- tied for the most in the NFL, the Niners would be dealt yet another blow after receiver Kendrick Bourne tested positive for COVID-19. With teammates Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams all considered, "high-risk close contacts," all four players would be ruled out of Thursday's game on Wednesday. But after a pair of subsequent negative Covid tests submitted by Bourne, including one several hours before kickoff, the initial positive test would be deemed a false positive. Unfortunately for the home team, the damage was already done as those players would still be placed on the NFL's Reserve/COVID-19 list and ruled out by the league, leaving 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan with even less to work with against one of the top teams in the NFC. To say the 49ers would be undermanned in their Thursday night affair would be an understatement. But as the saying goes: the show must go on. 

In what would be the 70th match-up all-time between the two historic franchises, backup QB Nick Mullens would make his third start of the season in place of the ailing Jimmy Garoppolo who re-injured his high-ankle sprain in last week's loss to Seattle. Even with the countless holes on offense, the 49ers would still have a sliver of hope before kickoff as Mullens' only other start on Thursday Night Football came during Week 9 of the 2018 season when he made his NFL debut and threw a career-high three touchdown passes in a blowout win against the Raiders. The main difference in this one, however, would be a guy named Aaron Rodgers. After being stymied and constantly pressured by the 49er defense in both games last season, the ghostly defense of San Francisco's past would like nothing like the team Rodgers faced on Thursday and he admitted it in his postgame interview. But that wouldn't stop him from turning up the heat and taking advantage of the situation. While the game would remain competitive until the final minutes of the second quarter, Green Bay took an early 7-0 lead after their first possession and never looked back. 

Needing only six plays to march 75-yards, Rodgers struck first by connecting with his Pro-Bowl receiver Davante Adams for a 36-yard touchdown. It would be the start of a big night from both players as they each registered impressive numbers in the box score. Biting into Green Bay's lead with a Robbie Gould field goal on San Francisco's second possession to make it a 7-3 ballgame, it would be the closest the Niners would get after kickoff. San Francisco nearly tied the game on a touchdown reception by the recently promoted River Cracraft who came down with a catch in the end zone from 4-yards out that was initially ruled a touchdown, but was eventually overturned after review showed he failed to maintain complete control of the ball when falling to the ground, forcing Shanahan to settle for a field goal. The absence of Pro Bowl tackle Trent Williams would be felt virtually all night long on the 49ers offensive-line as Justin Skule had a tough time trying to fill in for the sidelined Williams, but especially on a pair of plays that resulted in a Nick Mullens interception in the second quarter and on a sack-fumble in the third, both of which leading to scoring drives for the Packers. By halftime, Rodgers had tossed a trio of touchdown passes as Green Bay took a 21-3 lead into the locker room. 

With the Green Bay lead increasing to 34-3 at one point, the 49ers were able to fend off a complete massacre on the scoreboard as they pieced together a pair of touchdown scoring drives in the fourth quarter to make it a 34-17 final score. The first of which would come on a 41-yard touchdown pass to receiver Richie James Jr. who served as one of the lone bright spots on what was a dismal night for San Francisco after hauling in career-highs with nine receptions for 184-yards and a touchdown. Running back Jerick McKinnon would supply the only other score as he struck pay dirt from a yard out in the game's final seconds. Both Rodgers and Adams would tally impressive numbers for Green Bay's offense as the Packers QB threw for 305 yards, four touchdowns and no picks, one of those touchdowns and 173 yards going to Adams who hauled in a game-high 10 receptions. In comparison, Nick Mullens threw for 291 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Turning back the clock, the 34-points scored by the Packers were the most they put up on the road against San Francisco since December 13, 1959. 

Week 10 Preview - The 49ers' schedule will not get any easier in Week 10 when they make a trip to the Big Easy to face Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints (6-2) who are coming off an impressive blowout win against Tom Brady and the Bucs, 38-3. Following one of the best regular season games of the year a season ago when the 49ers left the bayou with a thrilling 48-46 victory that went back and forth in Week 14, it's unlikely we'll see anything remotely close to that shootout with all of San Francisco's missing pieces. With 13 players on IR, 45 different starters and 71 players used -- all the most in the NFL this year, coach Shanahan will do his best to try and piece together a team that can hopefully compete much better than they did against Green Bay. The Niners might also see the recently traded Kwon Alexander on opposite ends next week as he recovers from a high ankle sprain that has caused him to miss an extensive period of time. Another familiar face on opposite ends and one that helped play a key role in San Francisco's wild win against the Saints last season, is receiver Emmanuel Sanders who missed the last two weeks after being placed on the NFL's Reserve/Covid list. Two players the Niners are hopeful of getting back to assist their offense and their chances of pulling off the upset against the Saints are running back Raheem Mostert and receiver Deebo Samuel as the two have been dealing with ankle and hamstring injuries, respectively. 

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49ers Lose Kittle & Garoppolo in Loss to Seattle

Week 8 - Coming off an impressive two-game winning-streak and playing their most inspiring football yet this year, the San Francisco 49ers (4-3) appeared to finally begin hitting their stride following the sluggish 2-3 start that had many pundits declaring their season as good as over. But the one thing that has deprived the Niners in the first half of the season -- injuries, would rear its ugly head once again. Entering their meeting with the first-place Seattle Seahawks (5-1), the 49ers looked to continue their winning ways against their division rivals as they took a trip to CenturyLink Field for the first time since the thrilling Week 17 victory that secured both a division title and the number one overall seed in the NFC just a season ago. And with Niners QB Jimmy Garoppolo boasting a record of 5-0 on the road versus NFC West opponents throughout his career, San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan had to have liked his quarterback's chances of improving that record heading into Sunday's game, but things would take a turn as his depleted team suffered yet another blow on the injury front. 

Prior to the trio of injuries that would deplete the Niners offense even further, San Francisco came out swinging on defense and appeared to be thirsty for blood as they forced the Seattle offense to punt on each of their first two possessions. But an interception by Garoppolo on a pass behind his intended target, would setup their opponent and give Seattle new life on offense. The Seahawks would use that new life and turn it into a 46-yard touchdown by receiver D.K. Metcalf. The early score on the final play of the first quarter would be just the start to a busy afternoon by the second-year receiver that has quickly become one of Russell Wilson's favorite and most reliable targets this season. After a missed point-after by Seattle, the 49ers responded with a touchdown-scoring drive of their own that spanned 14-plays and over eight minutes long as rookie running back JaMycal Hasty scored his first career touchdown from 1-yard out to give his team a 7-6 lead. Not to be outdone, Wilson and the Seattle offense would march down the field and score on a second Metcalf touchdown in consecutive drives. With San Francisco trailing 13-7 at the half, the 49ers would find themselves in hot water and history against them as Seattle entered the game having won 59 out of their last 60 home games when leading by 4 or more points at the half. A stat that would not bode well for any visiting team, much less for a 49ers team that has struggled so mightily over the years at CenturyLink Field. 

Receiving the ball at the half and hoping to get off to a better start than they did in the first, the Niners would witness things go from bad to worse as they were held to a consecutive three and outs and were forced to punt as Seattle began to have their way. Scoring on a 2-yard touchdown by rookie running back DeeJay Dallas, the first of his career, Seattle would string together 17 unanswered-points as 49ers return man Dante Pettis fumbled on the ensuing kick return. Adding insult to injury, Jimmy Garoppolo would fall victim to a high-ankle sprain that would force him to leave the game, the same injury that caused him to miss two and a half weeks earlier in the year. One drive later, the 49ers would lose their Pro-Bowl tight-end George Kittle to a foot injury. With both Garoppolo and Kittle sidelined and off to the locker room, the 49ers would string together three consecutive touchdown-scoring drives in the fourth quarter with backup QB Nick Mullens under center. The first of which on a 1-yard score by running back Jerick McKinnon and the next two on touchdown passes from Mullens to Ross Dwelley and Brandon Aiyuk, respectively. Unfortunately, an unsuccessful on-side kick would allow Seattle to setup shop and score one final touchdown to put the game out of reach as the 49ers dug too big a hole to climb out of and lost 37-27. 

Russell Wilson who has been the league MVP up to this point and entered Sunday's game with 22 passing touchdowns on the year, tied for the most all-time through the first six games (Peyton Manning - 2013), added four more TD's and 261 yards in the win. Meanwhile, Garoppolo finished with zero touchdowns, one interception and 84 yards passing, to Mullens' pair of touchdowns and 238 yards in only one quarter. Seattle's D.K. Metcalf led all receivers with 12 receptions, 161 yards and 2 touchdowns. 49ers rookie receiver Brandon Aiyuk logged another nice game after hauling in 8 catches for 91 yards receiving and a touchdown. Neither team got much from their run game as DeeJay Dallas led all rushers with 41 yards and one touchdown on 18 carries. San Francisco saw JaMycal Hasty tote the ball 12 times for 29 yards and a touchdown and got another 20 yards on three carries from Tevin Coleman who returned from a 5-game absence due to a knee injury before having to depart Sunday's game with another knee injury. 

Week 9 Preview - The 49ers will have a shortened week to get things back on track as they return home to welcome the Green Bay Packers to Levi's Stadium on Thursday Night Football. A rematch of last year's NFC Championship, this one will feature a totally different 49ers team as they continue to deal with the injury bug after recently learning that both Kittle and Garoppolo will be out indefinitely. But that won't stop Aaron Rodgers and company from attempting to avenge two blowout losses at Levi's a season ago, including one that allowed San Francisco to punch their ticket to last year's Super Bowl. Having started the season 4-0, the Packers find themselves at 5-2 following losses in two of their last three games, including a loss at home to the lowly division rival Minnesota Vikings. For San Francisco, backup QB Nick Mullens will be thrusted into the starting role and will one again be given a chance to shine and prove himself in Jimmy G's absence. Something he did quite well in Weeks 2 and 3 and again in the fourth quarter on Sunday when the Garoppolo injury had occurred. 

UPDATE: Due to Covid-19 protocols, the 49ers will be without wide-receiver Kendrick Bourne in their Thursday Night game against Green Bay, as Bourne was initially reported to have tested positive for the Corona Virus. Teammates Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams were also ruled out after coming into close contact with Bourne around the time of his positive test. However, it was later discovered that Bourne's positive test was a false positive, meaning he didn't actually contract the virus. Unfortunately, he along with Samuel, Aiyuk and Williams will still be ruled out with little to no time to prep for gameday, meaning San Francisco will be even more shorthanded come kickoff. 

Noteworthy - The lone transaction made by the 49ers before the November 3rd trade deadline, was a deal that sent linebacker Kwon Alexander and his expensive contract to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for linebacker Kiko Alonso and a conditional fifth-round pick. While the often injured Alexander served as the emotional leader and provided an energy boost to the 49ers defense during the team's Super Bowl run a season ago, his hefty contract and unreliable health were enough to will Niners GM John Lynch to ship him off once they were able to find a trade partner as the Saints take the remainder of his four-year, $54 Million dollar contract off of San Francisco's hands. Having missed the last three games, the 26-year old Alexander is nursing a high ankle sprain that New Orleans is confident he'll be able to recover from relatively quickly as they battle it out in the NFC South with their rival and Alexander's former team -- the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

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