For San Francisco 49ers kicker Jake Moody, Sunday’s 23-20 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers went from a no good, very bad day to a really good, you’re the hero day. As the clock went to 0:00, Moody hit a 44-yard field goal to give the 49ers the win.
“You’re only as good as your last kick, so he did a hell of a job winning that game for us,” said 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Prior to that, Moody, who had been out San Francisco’s last three games with a high ankle sprain, had missed field goal kicks of 49 yards, 50 yards and 44 yards.
“I really, really wanted a chance to redeem myself…” Moody said after the game. “It was the same exact spot as the previous kick, so I felt really confident, saw what happened with the previous one and was able to make an adjustment and put it through.”
Sunday marked the return of RB Christian McCaffrey, who made his 2024 debut after dealing with Achilles tendinitis in both legs, to the tune of 13 carries for 39 yards and six receptions for 68 yards, one of which was a beautiful 30-yard catch down the sideline in the fourth quarter.
A few plays later, QB Brock Purdy found tight end George Kittle for an 11-yard touchdown to put the 49ers up, 20-17.
McCaffrey said he came out of the game feeling well, and though he thought he’d be more sore, he’d have to see how he feels when he wakes up tomorrow. Honestly, same.
After the third Moody missed field goal, the Buccaneers took over with 4:57 left in the fourth quarter. The 49ers defense was able to hold Tampa Bay to a field goal, which was kind of a miracle considering that before the drive San Francisco committed six penalties all game, and on that drive, committed four.
Purdy and the 49ers got the ball back with 0:41 left, and Purdy completed a six-yard pass to Jauan Jennings, a six-yarder and a 14-yarder to wide receiver Ricky Pearsall (who scored his first NFL touchdown in the first half and finished the game with four receptions for 73 yards) and then a 13-yarder to Jennings to set up the field goal.
Defensively, the 49ers held the Bucs – who were without top receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin – to 116 receiving yards.
“It’s crazy,” 49ers CB Deommodore Lenoir told FGSN after the game. “The Bucs receivers were doing all this talking as if Mike Evans was out there.”
The defense did however give up 110 yards rushing and looked as if it was unable to stop the run in key situations, which is something that has been an issue all season.
There was a bit of drama on the sidelines, when WR Deebo Samuel had words for Moody after the third missed field goal and long snapper Taybor Pepper tried to step in.
“Normally, I don’t even get like that, but, you know, frustrated in the heat of battle…I got a little out of character,” Samuel said. “But I’ll talk to Moody and we’ll get past it.”
“This was a character game, all the way through,” said LB Fred Warner.
And the 49ers needed it. The Seahawks come to Levi’s Stadium next week, and then the 49ers head to Green Bay and Buffalo in consecutive weeks.