Tag: NFL

Niners Embarrass Packers in Primetime 37-8; Improve to 10-1

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photo from sfgate: Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) is sacked by San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, center, and San Francisco 49ers defensive end Arik Armstead, bottom, during the second half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019.

By: Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA — Sunday Night’s highly anticipated matchup between the 49ers and Packers probably made NBC decision makers second guess themselves, as the flexed-in game turned out to be a complete drubbing. San Francisco dominated Green Bay 37-8, improving to 10-1 on the season, solidifying themselves as a legit Super Bowl contender.

It’s San Francisco’s largest win over their rival since they shutout Green Bay 35-0 in 1954.

The consistent questioning of who the Niners have beat can finally be laid to rest, after they handed Aaron Rodgers his second-worst performance of his career, throwing 20 of 33 for 104 yards and a touchdown before being pulled late in the fourth quarter. He was held to a career-worst 1.7 yards per dropback, following a bye week.

The pressure got to Rodgers early and often, as the Niners pass-rush hit him ten times, sacking him for five, and forced a fumble at his own 14 on the opening possession. Fred Warner was credited with the strip-sack, while Nick Bosa picked it up but got stopped short of scoring his first career touchdown at the two-yard-line.

It wouldn’t matter though, as Tevin Coleman punched it in on the next play to give San Francisco the early lead.

Arik Armstead led the charge on defense, sacking Rodgers twice, bringing his season total to ten on the season and putting him Top Five in the league. Bosa was also credited with his eighth sack on the season, bumping him to 12th in the NFL, and just 0.5 behind his older brother, Joey.

The Niners’ offense struggled in the early going, despite being handed excellent field position. Until three minutes to go in the first half, where they strung together 13 points in the final moments’ thanks to a 42-yard catch and run from Deebo Samuel for a TD and two Chase McLaughlin field goals to give them a 23-0 halftime lead.

Green Bay finally got on the board in the third quarter, when Bay Area native, Davante Adams, scored his first touchdown of the season, bringing the game with 15 after a two-point conversion.

However, the celebration was short-lived when the Niners fired back immediately with a quick 57-second, 75-yard touchdown drive. 61 of them came on George Kittle catch-and-run, where he completely burned the cornerback on a post-corner route in the middle of the field, before turning on the afterburners to find pay dirt, making it 30-8.

Kittle finished with six catches for 129 yards in his first game since Halloween, where he went down with ankle and knee injuries. Shanahan later confirmed that Kittle played through a broken ankle. Techincally, a chipped bone, though stable, Kittle still needed to battle through the pain. When asked about the pain, Kittle shrugged and said, “that’s football.”

Raheem Mostert ran in San Francisco’s final score from 15-yards out, finishing with six carries for 45 yards and the TD.

Green Bay’s offense only mustered 198 yards, with Aaron Jones chipping in 38 on the ground. Entering the game, Jones led the NFL in rushing TDs with 11. San Francisco’s defense completely dominated Green Bay in every facet.

The Packers picked up their first third-down conversion of the game on the second to last play, with just 1:04 remaining. Holding the Packers to 1/15 on third-down, the Niners were only a minute away from shutting out the Packers on third-down for the first time since 1999.

“They’re just relentless. They play 11 guys so strong, so complimentary of one another with the pash rush, the coverage, our linebackers. It’s incredible to see how smothering all 11 guys can be and that is what they do week in and week out,” said Mike McGlinchy.

Jimmy Garoppolo shined bright and avoided any costly turnovers in a magnificent performance, where he completed 14/20 for 253 yards and two touchdowns. More importantly, he gave a killer sideline speech that kicked the Niners’ offense into gear when it struggled after the opening possession.

The Niners couldn’t have started their toughest stretch of the season any better, destroying Green Bay at home. They’ll now carry confidence into back-to-back road games against playoff teams in Baltimore and New Orleans.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Some sports news to be thankful for this Thanksgiving

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sfgate.com photo: San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (85) celebrates after scoring against the Green Bay Packers during the second half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019.

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

Thanksgiving Day sports fans will be around the table during the Turkey dinner and they will talk about some of the things Bay Area sports fans should be grateful for this year. For example.

-Colin Kaepernick will never play again for the 49ers.The most unpopular man in the country,poll says 91% of the American people do not want him back in the NFL. The 49ers 10-1 record is tied for the best in the NFL with the reigning champion New England Patriots after the 12th week of action.

-The City of Oakland dropped the lawsuit against the Athletics.Other obstacles remain, but the 2019 season is ending on a good note after another 97 wins and and another playoff-wild card berth.

-The Oakland Athletics do not have to share the Oakland Coliseum with the Raiders anymore.Green and Gold will take over Silver and Black at the Coliseum from now on,until they build their new ballpark at Howard Terminal or at the current location.

– San Francisco Giants bullpens will not be on the field,but behind TrIples Alley,which will be reduced from 421 feel to a hitter-friendly 380. Only teams in MLB remaining with bullpens on the field are Oakland and Tampa Bay. 2020 will be the first year that Oracle Park will not have the bullpen on the field, but 2019 (after the Giant season and in the fall)is when the team made the change.

-Golden State Warriors playing in their first year at their new home, Chase Area in San Francisco a state-of-the-art sports facility. Fans can watch and “grow together”with their new cast of future star players. The Warriors and the Boston Celtics are the only two teams in history of the NBA to have played for the championship five consecutive seasons. 2019-20 will not be the case for the Warriors. -San José Sharks has dug out from their 4-10-1 start and are now over .500 with 12-11-1 record as of Sunday November 24.

-The Big Game.University of California Berkeley fans are grateful as the Golden Bears beat Stanford Cardinal 24-20 for the first time in a decade.

-San José Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2019 inducted John Doyle, All American. Doyle is a Bay Area soccer icon, starring at the high school, club, college, Olympic & professional levels who represented USA Soccer at the highest level.

Wishing you and your family a very happy and healthy Thanksgiving Day.

“Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” – Charles Dickens

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball  and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Raiders throttled by Jets in New Jersey 34-3

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photo from sfgate.com: New York Jets’ Brian Poole (34) breaks a tackle by Oakland Raiders’ Hunter Renfrow (13) to score a touchdown after intercepting a pass during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019, in East Rutherford, N.J

By Jeremy Kahn

It seems that Derek Carr does not like to play in the cold weather, and it was cold in the Meadowlands on this day.

The temperature was 43 degrees, but that did not hurt Sam Darnold, who threw two touchdown passes and ran for one and the New York Jets simply destroyed the Oakland Raiders 34-3 at MetLife Stadium.

With the loss, Carr is now 2-9 in games where the temperature is 50 degrees or below and he was pulled from the game by head coach Jon Gruden late in the third quarter.

Carr ended up going 15-for-27 for 127 yards passing and also threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown. It was the first interception that Carr threw in four games against the Jets since joining the NFL in 2014.

Darnold went 20-for-29 for 315 yards, as he topped the 300-yard plateau for the fourth time in his career. He also threw touchdowns to Robby Anderson and Ryan Griffin, as the Jets scored 34 unanswered points after falling behind 3-0 on a Daniel Carlson field goal.

The Jets went into the locker room with a 10-point lead and put the game away on their first series of the third quarter, as Darnold found Braxton Berrios, who got all the way down to the Raiders one-yard line after a 69-yard pass play. Darnold then found a wide-open Griffin on the next play.

You knew that things were not going well, as the Jets number one ranked defense stopped Alec Ingold on fourth-and-1 for no gain and gave the ball back to the Jets inside the Raiders 40-yard line.

Jets head coach Adam Gase slipped into his bag of tricks on the ensuing series, as Darnold handed the ball off to Bilal Powell, who flipped it over to Jamison Crowder, who then tossed it back to Darnold, who a great pass that Anderson caught for a 30-yard completion. Three plays later, Darnold found Anderson for a one-yard touchdown pass to give the Jets a 24-point leads.

The Jets closed out the scoring on the Raiders next series, as Neville Hewitt deflected a pass that went into the hands of Brian Poole, who returned the interception 15 yards for the touchdown.

Josh Jacobs was held to 34 yards on 10 carries, as he entered the game ranked fourth in the NFL in rushing.

Carlson hit a 48-yard field goal their only points of the afternoon, and then the Jets were forced to settle for a 24-yard field goal by Sam Ficken.

It looked like the Jets tied up the game, as Demaryius Thomas caught an eight-yard touchdown pass from Darnold; however, Daniel Brown was called for offensive pass interference after the Raiders challenged the call.

UP NEXT: Once again, the Raiders will stay on the road, as they will travel to Arrowhead Stadium, where they will face the Kansas City Chiefs on December 1.

49ers Preview: Can They Overcome Injuries?

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Photo credit: ninersnation.com

By: Joe Lami

The toughest stretch of the season is here for the San Francisco 49ers and will give some clarity as to how elite the NFC leaders are. Over the next three weeks, their opponents’ combined records are 24-6 as all three appear like playoff locks. They start this critical stretch, hosting the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football.

With the game now flexed into the primetime slot, the entire country will get to find out how real the Niners are. Injuries continue to be the biggest concern heading into the weekend for the red and gold against their toughest opponent thus far.

Joe Staley will miss a minimum of two weeks with a broken finger, but rookie Justin Skule has been an incredible surprise protecting Garoppolo’s blind side so far.

Matt Breida’s nagging ankle injury has held him off the practice field once again this week. It appears Tevin Coleman, Raheem Mostert, and Jeff Wilson Jr. will fueling San Francisco’s running attack come Sunday.

Robbie Gould is expected to miss his third-straight game, but Chase McLaughlin has connected on 4-of-5 as a Niner and will be depended on again, come Sunday. His lone miss was the overtime shank against the Seahawks.

Dee Ford’s absence will leave the most significant question mark for San Francisco. His quad injury will leave him out and will re-structure how the D-line is set-up. Arik Armstead has had an outstanding year thus far, leading the team with eight sacks, but how will he perform lining up on the edge?

Both Deebo Samuel and Emmanuel Sanders are questionable, giving hope that Garoppolo will have weapons at wide-out.

More importantly, Kittle got back onto the practice field in a non-contact jersey on Thursday and Friday. His status will be a game-time decision, according to Shanahan, but leaves optimism that he’s making his return. Kittle’s absence has been missed most, surprisingly on the run game, as the Niners’ rushing attack has dipped from 4.9 yards per rush to 3.5 without him on the field.

Aside from injuries, the match-up favors the Niners on paper. Their biggest challenge will be finding a way to slow down Aaron Rodgers, which easier said than done. Rodgers enters Sunday’s contest with a 17 TD to 2 INT ratio, third in the NFL, and hasn’t thrown a pick in 138 attempts, but San Francisco owns the #1 pass defense in the league and has forced the fourth-most picks in the league.

The 49ers have the most elite pass rush in the league. If they’re able to get to Rodgers, that’ll be their best chance to forcing him into mistakes.

Green Bay brings in the #2 red-zone offense against the #1 red-zone defense. Will San Francisco’s defense continues to show the bend, don’t break attitude they’ve had all year or will the dam finally burst?

Expect a massive run attack from the 49ers. Green Bay brings in the 25th defense in the league. San Francisco is set-up for a field day; they’ve been averaging 225.8 yards per game against bottom ten rush defenses.

Kittle returning to the line up brings more firepower to it. When Kittle’s been in the lineup, San Francisco is averaging 4.9 yards per carry, but without him, they’ve only been averaging 3.5 yards per carry.

Oakland Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes: Raiders forcing turnovers and getting a good pass rush going

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Photo credit: justblogbaby.com

On the Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes:

#1 The Raiders are getting help on their pass rush. They have 25 sacks this season. They got 12 in their last three games.

#2 The Raiders head coach Jon Gruden says the pass rush had also forced turnovers in those last three games.

#3 In the game last Sunday, the Raiders pressured Bengals quarterback Ryan Finley. The Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby knocked the ball out of Finley’s hand.

#4 In another play, Crosby chased Finley, who threw the ball to his right that got intercepted by cornerback Trayvon Miller.

#5 The Raiders face the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium Sunday. Joe sets this game up.

Joe Hawkes is a Raiders beat writer and does the Raiders podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Lami: Will 49ers’ injuries play a big part in game against Green Bay Sunday?

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Photo credit: mercurynews.com

On the 49ers podcast with Joe:

#1 San Francisco 49ers Mike LaFleur, who is the running game coordinator, and the Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LeFleur are brothers who will face each other on Sunday Night Football at Levi’s Stadium proving coaching runs in the family.

#2 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo might have to throw to receiver with less than 19 catches through the first ten games of the season due to injuries, which will be a tall task against Green Bay on Sunday.

#3 The receivers that most likely may or may not play Sunday are tight end George Kittle (ankle), wide receiver Deebo Samuel (shoulder), and Emmanuel Sanders wide receiver (ribs).

#4 The 49ers are also missing running back Matt Breida (ankle), kicker Robbie Gould (quadriceps), defensive end Dee Ford (hamstring). All are out this Sunday how much will the 49ers miss them in the line up.

#5 Lastly, Joe tells us how the 49ers and Packers shape up on Sunday Night Football.

Joe Lami is a 49ers beat writer and does the 49ers podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

After three straight wins at home, the Raiders head east to take on the Jets

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Photo credit: sports.yahoo.com

By Joe Hawkes
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — Having completed a successful three-game home stand undefeated, the Raiders will hit the road for a two-game road trip beginning Sunday as they they will face the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in Week 12 action.

Oakland is 5-1 at home this season, but are 1-3 from the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum.

Kickoff is set for 10:00 a.m. PT and will be broadcast on CBS with Greg Gumbel and Trent Green on the call.

The Raiders currently hold a two-game winning streak over the Jets, most recently defeating New York by a score of 45-20 at home in Week 2 of the 2017 season to push the all-time series to 23-17-2 in favor of Oakland.

In Week 11, the Raiders defeated the visiting Cincinnati Bengals 17-10 to pull their record to 6-4 and giving them their first three-game winning streak since 2016.

Running back Josh Jacobs recorded his fourth 100-yard rushing game of the season, after rushing for 112 yards on 23 carries and broke Marcus Allen’s team-record for most 100-yard rushing games in a season by a rookie in the process.

Allen set the franchise rookie record with three games of rushing for over 100 yards in 1982

Jacobs is fourth in the NFL in rushing with 923 yards (4.8 average per rush) to go along with seven touchdowns on 191 carries. Oakland could have a tough day rushing against a Jets defense that ranks tops against the run, allowing just 79.1 yards per game on the ground this season.

In fact, the NFL’s 13th ranked defense allowed just one 100-yard rusher in 2019, surrendering 105 rushing yards to Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott in New York’s 24-22 victory over Dallas in Week 6.

Quarterback Derek Carr recorded just his second career rushing touchdown, while also tossing a touchdown to rookie tight end Foster Moreau. Carr threw for 292 yards on 25-of-29 passing in the contest.

As for Moreau, his touchdown was the 14th score by a rookie this season for the Silver and Black, tying the franchise mark set in 1982. Not only have this year’s rookies been big contributors on offense for the Raiders, the defense has seen a big boost from rookies as well this season.

First-year defensive end Maxx Crosby has a career day against the Bengals recording four sacks, including three in the fourth quarter. “Mad Maxx” set a rookie franchise record with his performance, and was just the third player to record four sacks in a game in 2019.

Crosby also had a forced fumble in the first quarter for good measure.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Crosby became just the fourth rookie in NFL history to register a four-sack game since the stat became official in 1982.

Rookie cornerback Trayvon Mullen’s interception on the Bengals’ final offensive drive of the game sealed the win for Oakland with just a minute remaining in the fourth quarter, keeping Cincinnati (0-10) winless. It was the third-straight game that Oakland’s defense would seal the win.

The Jets defeated Washington 34-17 on the road in Week 11 to improve to 3-7 on the year behind four touchdown passes from Sam Darnold. The second-year quarterback threw for 293 yards on 19-of-30 passing for New York, who jumped out to a 34-3 lead that held up midway through the fourth quarter before Washington scored their first touchdown of the game.

Jets tight end Ryan Griffin hauled in 109 yards and a touchdown. Griffin’s five catches were tied with wide receiver Jamison Crowder for most in the game. Crowder finished second on the team with 76 yards and a touchdown.

Dynamic safety Jamal Adams recorded three of the Jets’ six sacks on Washington’s rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will head to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Kansas City Chiefs in what will be a huge matchup in the AFC West in Week 13. The Chiefs are currently 7-4, but have the Raiders breathing down its neck with Oakland trailing Kansas by half-a-game in the division.

The Jets will face the Bengals in Cincinnati next Sunday.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Will Kaepernick ever throw another pass?

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foxsnews.com: Free-agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick arrives at a workout for NFL football scouts and media, Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019, in Riverdale, Ga

By: Amaury Pi-González

In the media world we live today, where 24-hour news cycles are furious and non-stop, it seems like a decade ago since the last time Colin Kaepernick threw for a touchdown pass. Did we forget that his college career was a great success? He is the only player in NCAA history to pass for over 10,000 yards and rush for over 4,000 yards in college. He is the greatest player in the history of the University of Nevada football.Then, as a professional, he led the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl in his second season.

Recently, Kaepernick was getting another chance. A workout for 26 teams. It has been more than three seasons he has not played in the NFL. His biggest enemy is his ego. Let us don’t forget the fact he was a backup when the 49ers decided to let him go. When you are a backup in the NFL,you are not as big as you might think you are, in this case, Kaepernick. He has also made over $40 million from the NFL,not to shabby for a guy that today is not remembered as a very good football player but the man “that took a knee and became world famous.”

At the time, Kaepernick took the knee and started a conversation in the country,which depends on your opinion, I defended his rights to free speech as an American citizen, and I said in an interview with Telemundo (Channel 48) that although I did not agree with his action, he had all the right in world to do what he did, as unpopular as it was. You might call me “old fashioned.” but I believe sports is truly a escape from the real world, and politics should not be mixed with sports. It is as simple as that. He could have called a press conference, at any time and place to give his opinion.

Kaepernick should understand that the NFL is a business and businesses stay in business only when they make a profit. The NFL is not a non-profit organization. It is capitalism. This recent workout was a debacle because his inability to understand he is just a guy that played in a popular league, that at the end respected but not agreed with his actions on the field. He is not bigger than the sport. When he played, he was an employee, not an owner.

In the end, how the league organized a workout for the quarterback was a fiasco. He still very much toxic to the NFL.

He is 32 years old in a sports league where the average career is between three to four years. His time might have passed or might have not.

The question remains: Will Colin Kaepernick ever throw another pass?

Amaury Pi Gonzalez does News and Commentary each week and podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with David Zizmor: After playing two close games, do 49ers have a chance against Green Bay?

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sfgate.com photo: Jeff Wilson Jr. dances in the end zone after making the game-winning catch in Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals. (Nov. 17, 2019)

On the 49ers podcast with David:

#1 David, tell us how close this one on Sunday was against the Arizona Cardinals really was. Did the 49ers 9-1 have to get desperate in the closing minutes of this game?

#2 After watching the 49ers in their last two games, both close ones. Is there a concern about the 49ers and their next game against Green Bay 8-2?

David Zizmor does the 49ers podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Garoppolo’s Career Day Powers Comeback for Niners

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Photo credit: cbssports.com

By: Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA — The San Francisco 49ers continue to find ways to win football games and improve to 9-1. On Sunday, they came firing back from a 16-point deficit despite not having a run game to beat Arizona 36-26. It also marks the first time since 2013 San Francisco has swept Arizona in the season series. Coincidently, 2013 was also the 49ers’ last winning season.

Jimmy Garoppolo joined rarified air in Niners’ history, joining Joe Montana and Steve Young as the only players to throw 400+ yards and four touchdowns in a single game. Garoppolo shattered his previous career-high of 371 yards, passing for 424, yet wasn’t perfect throwing two interceptions in the process.

Jimmy was forced to be excellent, with no support from a run game that finished with 34 yards on 19 carries and leading the comeback. His 424 yards were the 10th most in San Francisco history. Garoppolo did so without George Kittle and with Emmanuel Sanders limited. Instead, he used the entire roster to his advantage, completing receptions to ten different receivers.

Ross Dwelley was the star on Sunday, standing in for the injured Kittle, catching four balls for 14 yards and two touchdowns and is proving himself to be the swiss-army knife the red and gold need. They marked his first two career touchdowns of his NFL career.

The Cardinals jumped on the Niners’ early, especially targeting Richard Sherman, who was tacked with three pass interference penalties in the opening half. The first came on Arizona’s opening possession and pinned San Francisco inside their own five-yard line on a third down. Fortunately, the Niners defense bent but didn’t break, forcing Zane Gonzalez to kick a 26-yard field goal.

Later in the first quarter, Kyler Murray found Larry Fitzgerald in the end zone for the hall-of-famer’s 118th TD reception of his career. Zane Gonzalez kept the score at 9-0 after a missed PAT.

Arizona took the 16-point advantage in the second quarter when Kyler Murray found Pharoh Cooper for his second touchdown of the day. Murray was electric, and one can see why the Cardinals spent their first-overall pick on him. His 150 passing yards, 67 rushing yards, and three touchdowns don’t do him enough justice. The Niners’ defense adjusted, clamped down, and made his life difficult for the majority of the day.

The Niners looked dead to rights in the second quarter until they ran a screen pass to the left side to Richie James Jr. James showcased his incredible speed, darting down the sideline for 57 yards and sparking the 49ers’ offense and setting up Dwelley’s first score.

The Niners cut the deficit to six, as Chase McLaughlin nailed a 43-yard field goal to end the half.

San Francisco made it 17-unanswered points, scoring on the second half’s opening drive with Dwelley’s second TD of the day to take a 17-16 lead. After another Gonzlez field goal, San Francisco would re-take the lead again early in the fourth with Kendrick Bourne’s third touchdown of the season, making it 23-19 after a missed two-point conversion.

Shanahan mentioned his chart and being “the right thing to do” when explaining the two-point attempt.

Murray ran in his only rushing touchdown of the game from 22-yards out to retake the lead at 26-23 with 6:30 to go. The ball and game would fall onto the lap of Jimmy G once again.

In his first attempt, a deflected ball targeting Dwelley was intercepted with 4:41 to play. Luckily, the defense had his back, buckled down, and ensured he would get a second chance at the comeback.

Jimmy G drove down the field, bringing the ball inside the 30-yard line. With under a minute to go, a short pass to Dwelley on third-and-three triggered a lengthy review on whether or not the Tight End picked up the first down. Following the review and with a first down, Shanahan drew up the perfect play, targeting Jeff Wilson Jr. in his first snap of the game. Wilson found himself wide open and scampered into the end-zone for the last-minute touchdown.

“Kyle’s a mastermind. I give [all the credit] to him, I can’t give any credit to me. He called the right play for me. I just did what I had to do to make a play,” explained Wilson Jr. He became the 12th different receiver to haul in a touchdown from Garoppolo on the year.

The Niners put a feather in the cap on a crazy defensive score to finish the game. DJ Reed was credited with the score after an errant Fitzgerald lateral as time expired, making it 36-26.

The Niner’s ability to find various ways of winning continues to be their greatest strength. They’ll need to rely on these early experiences and the success they’ve seen as the schedule continues to get tougher. In the next three weeks, we’ll fully comprehend what the red and gold are made of, with Green Bay in town next weekend before back-to-back road games against the Ravens and Saints.