You don’t get any extra points for style in the NFL. All wins are equal, but the 49ers’ blowout victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday was different for several reasons.
The 49ers have shown their grit throughout the season, with the majority of their victories amid a slew of injuries being close-run grind-it-out contests, though they were comfortable in beating in the New York Giants in Week 9.
But the demolition of the Cardinals was the type of game for which San Francisco had waited all season,
the 49ers enjoying success in areas in which they have struggled consistently in 2024.
Return game sparks refreshing change
For most of the campaign, the 49ers have been an efficient but not explosive offense and have struggled to make consistently big plays in the return game.
It took just a matter of seconds for the 49ers to end their wait for a huge return as Skyy Moore took the opening kick back 99 yards, facilitating a one-yard touchdown plunge from Christian McCaffrey.
“I’m not lying, I was standing on the sideline next to (OL) Colton McKivitz and I was like, ‘It would just be so nice if he just housed this right now,’”, tight end George Kittle said of Moore’s rerurn. “When he started his return we just looked at each other and were like ‘Yeah, that works too.’”
From there, the 49er offense was a juggernaut, producing four plays that went for 20-plus yards, including their first such run of the season from McCaffrey in the fourth quarter.
As Kittle explained, it was Moore’s return that set the tone for a refreshing change from the 49er attack.
“Just a spark. When you can start the game off with a huge return and score one play in and have seven points in 16 seconds, it’s just huge,” Kittle said when asked what the opening play did for the team.
“I feel like our entire season it’s taken 10 to 15 plays to score on every single drive, which is fine and I’m okay with that, but having explosive and big plays is huge. Just to get that one to set the tone for the entire game was fantastic.”
All of the 49ers’ scoring drives lasted fewer than 10 plays, an illustration not only of the increased explosiveness they displayed on Brock Purdy’s return from injury, but also of another element that has largely been missing from San Francisco’s games this season.
Turnovers a cause for big celebration
The 49ers have found it difficult to create turnovers and went into the game with just one interception. Against the Cardinals, they scored 10 points off two picks, one from Malik Mustapha at the end of the first half and a third-quarter interception returned 64 yards by Deommodore Lenoir to the Arizona 14-yard line, setting up Kittle’s second touchdown grab. In addition, they also had a fumble forced by Upton Stout as Elijah Higgins looked to cross the goal line.
Save for a couple of unsuccessful extra points, it was a game where everything fell into place for the 49ers, and Kyle Shanahan summed it up succinctly in the locker room after the game.
“We’ve been waiting all year to have a game like that. Three turnovers to zero, that really took care of everything,” Shanahan said when addressing the team.
Shanahan was asked in his Monday conference call if those comments were reflective of the game feeling like a reset or a complete execution of the game plan.
“No,” he replied. “It was just more about getting turnovers and not having any and then making some big plays in the return game on teams.”
Even with an extremely banged-up defense, the 49ers can play better, and they were undoubtedly helped by the sloppy play of their opponent.
However, in a season in which they have had to stack up grimy wins to stay in the playoff hunt, the 49ers finally got a nice, clean and emphatic victory featuring the kind of plays that had previously eluded them. Beating a Cardinals team limping to the finish line of a lost season isn’t a huge achievement, but the manner in which the win came was definitely worth celebrating for Shanahan and the 49ers.
