He got sacked six times and still posted a passer rating of 101.3, which is impressive. Plus he led the offense down the field twice in the fourth quarter. But he turned the ball over twice — one interception, one fumble that looked like an interception. Plus he nearly threw a pick on his final pass of the game. At times, he looked like a robot, mindlessly following Kyle Shanahan’s orders. Purdy used to be a playmaker who would confidently spin away from pressure and ad-lib. Today, he just went down. He still is a good quarterback, but not a great one, and paying him $60 million per season would be insane. He’s only dominant when he’s surrounded by six All Pros. Today, he had merely five All Pros to lean on.
Jordan Mason rushed 20 times for 100 yards and 1 touchdown — he was the offensive MVP for the second game in a row. Unfortunately for the 49ers, none of their other running backs gained a yard on the ground. Mason is their only rushing threat. If he goes down, they’re in major trouble.
Deebo Samuel had 8 catches for 110 yards — he was good. Brandon Aiyuk was invisible for most of the game. He finished with four catches for 43 yards and an illegal formation penalty. I guess $30 million per season doesn’t get you as much as it used to. His backup, Jauan Jennings, had 37 receiving yards.
George Kittle had 7 catches for 76 yards and 1 touchdown despite briefly leaving the game with leg cramps. He has to be a future Hall of Famer. He’s as good at breaking tackles as any tight end I’ve seen other than Rob Gronkowski.
They performed well in the run game but they were putrid in pass protection as Purdy got sacked six times. And many of the sacks came off the left side where Trent Williams plays. He also had a penalty. It’s interesting how McCaffrey makes this group look better than it is.
Nick Bosa had two sacks, but collectively the 49ers gave up 146 yards on the ground. They couldn’t stop backup running back Ty Chandler, nor could they keep Sam Darnold in the pocket — he rushed 5 times for 32 yards.
Fred Warner was the best player on the field. He intercepted Darnold and forced a fumble at the goal line to save a touchdown. He’s the only reason the 49ers didn’t get flat-out humiliated in this game. He’s a legitimate candidate to win the Defensive Player of the Year Award.
