The San Francisco 49ers reached the halfway point with a 38-17 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, and for a hot second, it had the familiar 49ers play-with-their-food game feel. Then, thanks to a bad snap, Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins opened the floodgates (and the second half) with this:
From there, the 49ers manhandled the Raiders. Yes, the Raiders scored another touchdown, but the 49ers were not blowing this lead.
The win puts the 49ers at the No. 1 seed in the NFC, a half-game ahead of the Minnesota Vikings (6-1). They also lead the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams by 2.5 games in the NFC West. Since both of those teams won, the lead stayed put, but the 49ers took care of business.
It came at a cost. Defensive tackle Gracen Halton broke hisankle and is out for the season. Cornerback Renardo Green also left with a back injury. Just when the pieces start coming back…
Seattle Seahawks (5-4)/Arizona Cardinals (3-6)
So that Minshew Magic we talked about last week? Well, it turns out that only lasts a single game.
Last Sunday, quarterback Gardner Minshew II came off the bench in Dallas with 1:35 left in the third quarter and the Cardinals down 17-3. He threw three fourth-quarter touchdown passes, won in overtime, and took the starting job. Like the Dallas game, Minshew found himself down 17-3, and unlike the Dallas game, we didn’t get any fourth-quarter theatrics. We didn’t even get a single touchdown. Instead, the Cardinals sat at three points.
That might be it for Minshew Mania, Magic, whatever we want to call it when he actually scores at least one touchdown.
Seattle had their own offensive issues. With Sam Darnold not suited for this game due to injury, Drew Lock helmed the offense despite an elbow injury that had kept him inactive the previous two weeks and a hip issue that popped up in the third quarter. An offense that got only 17 points. Right, the Cardinals, who have their own litany of issues, held the Seahawks to that. Drew Lock, or no Drew Lock, that seems a bit small, but the Seahawks found a way to win.
Minshew went 21-of-30 for 166 yards passing with no touchdowns and was sacked three times. Running back Tyler Allgeier ran for 147 yards in Dallas and managed 46 on 17 carries here. Meanwhile, Lock didn’t turn the ball over and finished 19-of-28 for 175 yards and a touchdown.
The NFC West. Those games are slugfests. This one was a slugfest with 180 yards of penalties between the two teams. I guess it was entertaining?
Los Angeles Rams (5-4)
Myles Garrett finally showed up.
In his debut against the 49ers in Melbourne, the defensive end didn’t record a tackle. Two months later, he came off injured reserve and had three sacks and a forced fumble in a 20-13 win over the Washington Commanders. The Rams needed every one of them, because the offense spent most of the day stuck in mud.
Luckily, the Rams have defense and Garrett. Which means this:
Sure, that defense was good, but the offense? Not so much. Puka Nacua was the entire passing game, with 14 catches on 19 targets for 150 yards receiving and a touchdown. No other Rams receiver had more than 20 yards. And the Rams might have more issues on offense now since Nacua hurt his knee on the Rams’ final offensive snap, a third-down jet sweep. He’ll get an MRI Monday, and the Rams don’t believe it’s a torn ACL,
Friendly reminder that Davante Adams is already on injured reserve. And I thought the 49ers had wide receiver injuries. Sheesh.
Onto Week 10
The 49ers go to Dallas to play the Cowboys (4-5). Dallas got past the 2-7 Colts on a Dak Prescott drive that took less than 30 seconds and a Caleb Downs interception. Really, all you need to know about that game is that the Cowboys’ defense isn’t that good and the offense is capable of things like this:
That is the drunken play of the year.
The Rams visit the Cardinals. Arizona already beat Los Angeles 18-16 at Levi’s South SoFi Field in Week 6, via six field goals and no touchdowns. All I’m saying is, Cardinals, you’ve done it once.
The Seahawks visit the Raiders, who just gave away four straight turnovers to the 49ers. Matchups matter, but I’m curious how the Raiders do against the Seahawks after what we saw with the 49ers today. Can they get four turnovers too?
1st: San Francisco 49ers; Next: at Dallas Cowboys
TIE-2nd: Seattle Seahawks; Next: at Las Vegas Raiders
TIE-2nd: Los Angeles Rams; Next: at Arizona Cardinals
4th: Arizona Cardinals; Next: vs. Los Angeles Rams
