49ers Slide to 6-0 with Win in Rainy D.C.

Week 7 - Continuing their road trip with a visit to the nation's capital to face the (1-5) Washington Redskins, the (5-0) San Francisco 49ers would look to keep their unblemished record in tact in a match-up that had the makings of a blowout. However, with rain in the forecast caused from tropical storm Nestor which battered the east coast, mother nature would have other plans. Raining from start to finish, the gridiron of FedEx Field would resemble a marsh by games end. The elements would serve as a defense for and against both teams as neither offense was able to establish any rhythm.

Winning the coin-toss and electing to differ, the 49er defense would be tested early on. After having the ball ran down their throat and allowing their first rushing touchdown of the season a week ago on the Rams' opening-drive, it appeared that San Francisco would face a similar fate during Washington's first possession. Coming off his first 100-yard performance of the season, running back Adrian Peterson picked up right where he left off in this one as the 'Skins employed a heavy dose of the future Hall of Famer early on. Running the ball on their first 10-plays, including nine by Peterson, the 34-year old veteran would be nearly halfway to the century mark after Washington's first possession alone as he tallied 49-yards on the ground. Unfortunately for him, those hard earned yards would be wasted as a 39-yard field goal attempt by Dustin Hopkins went wide right. The combination of rain and wind wouldn't be any more kind to 49ers kicker Robbie Gould as he too would miss a field goal, but from 45-yards out as the ball soared wide left. Already the seventh missed field goal of the season for Gould, he has already tied a career-high in misses for a single season less than halfway through the year. From that point on, you knew it would be a struggle for both squads as points were going to be hard to come by.

Knowing another field goal attempt would not be in their favor, Washington would decide to go for it on a 4th and 1 at the San Francisco 28 yard-line. Even after proving last week that gambling against this 49er defensive-line was a bad idea as they forced four turnover on downs against Los Angeles, the Redskins decided to try their luck anyway and were left disappointed as they failed to pickup the needed yard. The nasty elements would claim the first half as both teams headed into the locker room scoreless. Thinking their luck on 4th down would be any different, Kyle Shanahan and the 49er offense was sadly mistaken on their first drive of the second half as Jimmy Garoppolo was picked off on a pass attempt to Dante Pettis on 4th and 5. Forcing a three and out thanks to a big sack by Arik Armstead, the 49er offense would finally put some points on the board as a big 40-yard play from Garoppolo to Richie James Jr. helped setup a 28-yard field goal that Robbie Gould would redeem himself with. Looking to answer and putting together a nice drive of their own, the 'Skins would make it to the San Francisco 29 yard-line before a pivotal play by the 49er defense stopped them in their tracks.

Linebacker Kwon Alexander would strip Peterson of the ball, allowing Jullian Taylor to scoop up his first career fumble recovery and turn it into a 10-yard gain. Turning the turnover into points, the 49ers would put another field goal on the board to increase their lead. Adding a third and final field goal to make it a 9-0 49er advantage, the game would be out of reach for Washington and with the clock winding down, rookie Nick Bosa would add a fitting end to the game as he collected a sack on the final play. Bosa and his 49er teammates would then turn the soggy field into their own personal slip 'n' slide as he celebrated his game-ending sack by sliding belly first before being joined by others who slid and made mud angels as the clock hit double-zero. Cornerback Richard Sherman said it best during his postgame interview, appropriately proclaiming his team, "Mud Bowl 2019 Champions" following their dominant victory in less than ideal conditions and with seven starters out of the lineup. With the win, their first shutout since 2016, the 49ers improved to 6-0 for the first time since 1990 and only the third time in franchise history. It would also mark the first time in franchise history that San Francisco had won a game by a final score of 9-0. Emphasizing after the game that he likes that his team can win the blowout games when needed as well as those when facing adversity and now the ugly ones in treacherous conditions, coach Shanahan praised his team for how they answered the call in the grind-it-out win against his former team.

And though the box score and final stat line wouldn't be anything to write home about for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo as he completed 12 of 21 pass attempts for 151 yards and an interception, he made the big plays in the passing game when he needed to and still outshined his counterpart as Washington QB Case Keenum was held to only 77 yards on 9 of 12 passes. Not to mention no other QB in 49ers franchise history has more than 10 wins in their first 14 starts compared to Jimmy G who is now a career 12-2 at the helm in SF. Bosa, Armstead and Dee Ford each tallied a quarterback sack to make things hard on Keenum as the San Francisco defense has now allowed 7 or fewer points in three straight games, their longest streak since Weeks 14-16 of the 1987 season. They're also one of just three teams to hold their opponents to 20 or fewer points in each game this season. As for the ground game, with Matt Breida leaving with a concussion after only 35 yards on 8 carries, Tevin Coleman led the attack with 62 yards on 20 rush attempts. And Adrian Peterson who was 1-yard shy of 50 following Washington's first possession, rushed for only 32-yards the rest of the way and finished with a game-high 81 yards.

Week 8 Preview - The (6-0) 49ers will return home to Levi's Stadium in Week 8 where they'll host the (4-2) Carolina Panthers. Winners of four straight, the Panthers have shown new life after a rough 0-2 start and are not to be taken lightly as they're coming off of a BYE week. After losing former MVP quarterback Cam Newton to a Lisfranc injury in Week 2, Carolina was thought to be doomed in the NFC South, but has instead stayed afloat thanks to backup QB Kyle Allen who has filled in nicely in Newton's absence. It also helps when you've got a weapon as dangerous as running back Christian McCaffrey who has been an absolute scoring machine for the Panthers and will certainly be a nice test for the San Francisco defense. Trailing only the (6-1) New Orleans Saints for the top spot in the division, Carolina will look to keep their own hot streak alive while hoping to put an end to San Francisco's. With the rival (5-2) Seattle Seahawks falling at home to the Baltimore Ravens, the 49ers now own a 2-game cushion in the NFC Western Division standings. 


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