By Morris Phillips

The most exquisitely-planned and executed opening night in NFL history started to go horribly wrong toward the end of the third quarter.

Unexpected as Colin Kaepernick’s struggles or the mind-numbing, deluge of penalties, things unraveled fast in the first regular season game at Levi’s Stadium.  After increasing their halftime lead to 13 late in the third quarter, the 49ers begin making mistakes.  And the Bears, surprisingly composed despite facing the possibility of an 0-2 start, began making plays so brilliant they prefaced Coach Jim Harbaugh’s thoughts after the game.

“They made some really good plays,” Harbaugh said.  “Mades some great plays.  A couple interceptions that were really good plays.”

Fueled by those two interceptions, the Bears responded with three unanswered touchdowns and shocked the 49ers in their home opener 28-20, a result that left the home team and its fans deflated.

“It’s the first game ever in Levi’s Stadium.  You want to end it on a good note.  I think we turned the ball over too much.  We as an offense need to pick it up.  We can’t leave our defense out to dry like that,” offensive lineman Alex Boone said.

For the 49ers, the roots of the reversal were obvious.  The team committed 16 penalties and four turnovers, which more than offset their huge advantage in total yards and time of possession.  And the opening drive of the second half symbolized all of that: After running 14 plays and nine minutes off the clock, the team settled for a 24-yard Phil Dawson field goal and a 20-7 lead.