There isn't typically a lot of bad to take out of a game for a team that racked up a 35-13 victory like the San Francisco 49ers did in Week 2 vs. the Miami Dolphins.
We were sifting through the good from Sunday's victory for the 49ers and stumbled across plenty of not-so-good in the process. It's still only Week 2, so there's a ton of time to clean up some of the problems that cropped up, and there's still plenty of time to celebrate the numerous bright spots.
Here's what was good and bad for the 49ers in their Week 2 romp:
Good: Brock Purdy
Not a lot needs to be said here. Purdy went 20-for-22 for 287 yards and two touchdowns through the air. He also rushed three times for 30 yards and a touchdown. He was in total control of the offense in a game where one mistake
could've changed the complexion of the game. Instead, he dominated a bad team.
Bad: Injuries at WR
Demarcus Robinson suffered what the team believes to be a high ankle sprain and was carted off. Later in the contest Mike Evans was listed as questionable with a hip injury. Head coach Kyle Shanahan after the game said Evans would've returned to the game had it not been a 35-6 blowout in the fourth quarter. The 49ers can't afford to have Evans go down for any length of time. Even overcoming the Robinson injury isn't going to be easy.
Good: George Kittle
Kittle had a slow start to the year. Through the first six quarters of the season he had two catches for 12 yards on five targets, including zero targets in the first half Sunday. That changed quickly in the second half when he caught a 40-yard strike from Purdy on the first play of the third quarter. Three plays later he was hauling in a 12-yard touchdown for his first TD of the season. Kittle finished the game with four catches for 80 yards and a touchdown.
Bad: 49ers RB rushing production
It was a strange game for the 49ers running backs. Kaelon Black entered the game nursing a groin injury and Christian McCaffrey never really got going on the ground. San Francisco's trio of McCaffrey, Black and Jordan James accounted for 63 rushing yards on 21 carries − good for just 3.0 yards per rush. No RB had a carry longer than six yards. Purdy was the leading rusher on the day with 30 yards.
Good: Pass rush gets home
The 49ers pass rush was effective again Sunday. They struggled to get speedy Dolphins QB Malik Willis on the ground, but they still managed 4.0 sacks, including the first of Romello Height's career and the first of Marques Sigle's career. Upton Stout and Fred Warner split a sack, and Keion White came up with one late in the game. San Francisco might've had a couple more sacks if Willis wasn't as elusive in the pocket as he is. That's a good sign for that group moving forward.
Bad: Run defense
This didn't look as bad on paper by the time the game ended because the game script didn't allow the Dolphins to continue running the ball like they might have wanted to. In the first half before things got out of hand they racked up 84 rushing yards on 20 carries. The 49ers had a similar problem in Week 1 that was solved by the game script. They have to figure out how to shore up their run defense by the time their schedule gets tougher.
Good: Upton Stout
The second-year nickel CB continues to shine. He put together a strong training camp and carried that over into the regular season. He was all over the field Sunday and logged five tackles, one tackle for loss and a pass breakup. Having a confident, physical nickel CB makes the 49ers' secondary makes their defense better.
Bad: Late-game penalties
The 49ers had three penalties for 30 yards going into the fourth quarter. In the final frame they were penalized four times for 48 yards. Holding penalties by Trent Williams and Luke Farrell negated big runs. Perhaps it was a matter of coasting to the finish, but the 49ers can't let penalties become a significant issue, especially late in games.
Good: Gracen Halton
It was fun to watch Halton in his second NFL game. He spent a ton of time in the Dolphins backfield and put together a couple of run stops and some quarterback pressures. Halton was officially credited with five tackles and one tackle for loss. Initial grades from Pro Football Focus had Halton down for three pressures and three run stops.
Good: 49ers in the red zone
The 49ers turned five red zone trips into five touchdowns. They're now seven-for-eight in the red zone this season. If they're going to maintain their place as a contender in the NFC they'll need to continue punching in touchdowns inside the red zone. So far so good, and a perfect Week 2 performance.
More 49ers: Kyle Shanahan has updates on 2 injured 49ers WRs after win vs Dolphins
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Good and bad from dominant Week 2 performance by 49ers
