“There’s no way to sugarcoat it. We got our ass kicked.”
San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan
The San Francisco 49ers said all week that beating the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday would not feel like revenge for the Super Bowl, because, well, that was then and this is now.
In the now, they lost, 28-18, while also likely losing wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk for the season, as Kyle Shanahan said initial testing points to a torn ACL, but they won’t know for sure until Monday.
The 49ers were already without WR Jauan Jennings, and while Deebo Samuel tried to play with an illness, he didn’t make it past the first offensive series. That left Brock Purdy and friends with wide receivers Chris Conley, Ronnie Bell and rookies Jacob Cowing and rookie Ricky Pearsall, the latter of whom was making his NFL debut 50 days after being shot in the chest.
Ricky Pearsall talks about the mental and physical hurdles he went through after being shot. pic.twitter.com/WVyWQ1FdDH
— Tracy Sandler (@TracyFGSN) October 21, 2024
Purdy threw three interceptions and posted a 36.7 passer rating, the worst of his career.
“I think I’ve just got to play better for sure just with my throws and some decisions,” Purdy said. “That’s pretty simple. I’ve obviously got to watch the film and stuff, but my instant reaction is I’ve got to play better.”
On his second interception, it seemed that he and Bell were not on the same page, with Bell running the wrong route, but Purdy took responsibility for it.
“It’s never on one player,” said tight end George Kittle. “I know [Purdy is] probably disappointed…It’s not on him though. Early on, the route I had a pass interference on, I could have ran a better route, he would have thrown a really good ball…that’s a catch and run. Unfortunately, Aiyuk has a drop. It’s the play before the play. He’s giving us chances to make plays, and then we weren’t taking advantage of those plays.”
The 49ers started off slow on offense and could not get a rhythm going.
“It’s tough to get the ball rolling when we’re not getting first downs and things like that,” said Purdy. “So, it starts with that. I think we’ve got to convert on third downs and find a way, especially when our defense is doing a great job getting stops and getting us the ball back. It’s on us, man, to move the chains and we just failed.”
Speaking of the 49ers’ defense, they forced Patrick Mahomes into two interceptions of his own, one by CB Deommodore Lenoir and one that was both tipped and caught by DL Kalia Davis. Mahomes also didn’t throw any touchdowns, though he did rush for one a few plays after scrambling for 33 yards in the most Mahomesian of ways.
And that’s what it comes down to. Kansas City improves to 6-0 in a season where they haven’t played amazing, while suffering a number of injuries of their own, but they figure out how to win the tough games, something that San Francisco continues to struggle with.
“I mean they find ways to win, that’s what’s great about their team,” said 49ers LB Fred Warner. “…It doesn’t always have to be just [Mahomes] having a great game. He obviously made the plays when he needed to make them. It’s a team sport. Their team won the game today.”
The 49ers drop to 3-4 with the Dallas Cowboys coming to Levi’s Stadium next week for Sunday Night Football. The good news is that Shanahan expects Jennings back next week and Samuel should be in too.
In other words, they’re on to Dallas.