The San Francisco 49ers defense was on the field first, and it didn’t take long for Fred Warner and Nick Bosa to make an impact.
Bosa hit Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford on his first dropback. He followed that up with a tackle for loss on the ensuing drive. Warner broke up the intended pass to Puka Nacua.
After Deommodore Lenoir made a tackle, the Rams went three-and-out.
Brock Purdy used his shiny new toy on his first third down of the game. Evans beat Quentin Lake for a seven-yard reception
to move the sticks. It came after an inexplicable drop.
Purdy played with fire on the first drive, after a Drake Maye impersonation. Purdy threw off his back foot, and the throw was nearly intercepted just shy of the end zone. Thankfully, Trent McDuffie landed out of bounds.
When Purdy needed somebody, he went to Evans. The veteran had three receptions for three first downs to begin the game. Evans came off the field on third and goal. Shanahan tried to get Purdy outside of the pocket, but to no avail.
Instead of going for it on 3rd & goal from the two, Shanahan elected to go for a 20-yard field goal. Eddy Pineiro’s kick was good, but it was a disappointing result after an incredible 15-play, 65-yard drive that took over seven minutes off the clock.
After picking up a first down on the second drive, Stafford was off-target twice to Puka Nacua on the second drive.
Shanahan stuck to his word, as we saw Kaelon Black on the field on the first drive of the game. Black had a reception and a carry. His catch helped keep the drive alive. Black was the first running back to start the second drive.
The offense went three-and-out after McCaffrey dropped a pass on 3rd & 2. On the same drive, De’Zhaun Stribling limped into the blue medical tent.
You knew the Rams wouldn’t stay down for long. Ji’Ayir Brown took a gamble and lost. It resulted in a 41-yard Puka Nacua reception. It’s a risk you cannot be wrong about in that situation. Unfortunately, Brown was, and it gave the Rams the ball in the red zone.
Dre Greenlaw’s tackling wasn’t much better. Kyren Williams capped the drive off with a touchdown, and just like that, the Rams took the lead 7-3.
Deebo dropped a pass to begin the next drive, but Evans made up for it with a first-down reception. After running for a first down, Purdy threw it over the middle to Kittle, but it was Quentin Lake who intercepted the pass.
It was a costly turnover, as the 49ers were driving and in a position to put points on the board. The 49ers’ defense: After gains of 5, 6, 10, and 13, McVay abandoned the run, and that was just what the doctor ordered for the 49ers. Odighizuwa had a pressure on second down. Renardo Green picked Stafford off on third down, and the Rams failed to score.
Stribling went left on the next drive with a non-contact injury. He was not putting any pressure on his left leg.
That didn’t prevent the 49ers from finding the end zone. Purdy found Demarcus Robinson streaking down the middle of the field on a post behind the Rams’ quarters coverage for a walk-in touchdown:
That was the longest air-yard completion of Purdy’s career, as it traveled 44 yards.
The Rams took over and moved the ball, but Keion White drew a holding call, which made it 3rd & 13.
Morris drew up a beautiful design out of dime personnel. He took Greenlaw off for cornerback Jack Jones. Stout and Warner blitzed, and Jones nearly came up with another interception. The Rams were forced to punt.
Brock Purdy took a big helmet-to-helmet blow on the two-minute drive. That inched the Niners closer to midfield. Mike Evans dropped a third-down pass, and the offense was forced to punt.
The 49ers were 5-for-8 on third downs compared to the Rams’ 1-for-5 in the first half. They had double the first downs, but also threw an interception, had four drops, and came up empty on a goal-to-go situation. Yet they took the lead into halftime and got the ball back to open the second half.
Deebo Samuel ignited the first drive with a 45-yard kickoff return. McCaffrey picked up 14 and 16 yards. Before you knew it, the Niners had another goal-to-go situation. A perfect fade pass to Mike Evans gave the Niners a 17-7 lead.
But you knew the Rams wouldn’t go away. Puka got behind Lenoir on one play, which led to an illegal contact penalty. Another chunk play allowed by Lenoir put the Rams inside the red zone.
Fred Warner and Jaden Dugger made a stop on second and goal. Lenoir did just enough on third down to prevent Nacua from scoring. Then, on fourth and goal, the Niners stood tall for the second year in a row to force a stop.
The worry was that, with the offense backed up, they’d give the ball right back to Stafford. Purdy had other ideas.
He found Farrell for a first down, then Deebo for 13. Purdy scrambled for 18 yards to flip the field. Purdy’s legs were the theme of the drive. He extended another play before finding Samuel in the end zone. That extended the lead to 24-7.
As the Rams were driving, Fred Warner forced a fumble. However, the offense didn’t capitalize. Eddy Pineiro’s 56-yard field goal was good, and the Niners took a 27-7 lead.
It was a dominant performance. Myles Garrett was held without a pressure for the first time since 2018. He had as many tackles as Kyle Shanahan.
