Tag: NFL

49ers fall to Chargers 27-24, but bubble guys show flashes

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sfgate.com photo: San Francisco 49ers quarterback C.J. Beathard rolls out to pass against the Los Angeles Chargers during the first half of an NFL preseason football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019.

By Jeremy Harness

SANTA CLARA – The 49ers lost their final preseason game of the year, 27-24 to the Los Angeles Chargers, but really, the night was about guys trying to make the team getting one last chance to put some good tape out there.

One of those guys is running back Jeff Wilson Jr., and on Thursday, he ran like he wanted that roster spot. He was the focal point of the team’s second drive, and to cap it off, he made an almost Walter Payton-esque cutback across the field to his right and got a kinda-sorta block from quarterback C.J Beathard on his way to a 41-yard touchdown that gave the 49ers a 7-6 lead near the end of the first quarter.

One quarter later, he also made a nice catch of a pass from Beathard that was at around his knees and was also behind him and converted it into a first down.

After an opening-drive field goal for the Chargers, D.J Reed Jr. took the ensuing kickoff and returned it 56 yards into Charger territory. Reed, who is a backup corner, is thought of as a guy who can play multiple corner positions – outside as well as in the slot – and with his special-teams playmaking ability, that should bolster his chances of making the 53-man roster that will suit up in Tampa for Week 1 of the regular season.

Dre Greenlaw is another guy who flashed on Thursday, and looks like he has solidified his spot on the team as a linebacker. After Damontre Moore whiffed on a sack attempt early in the second quarter, Greenlaw tracked Chargers quarterback Cardale Jones down and stood him up for a five-yard loss, to go along with a very nice open-field tackle on the first drive of the game.

Otherwise, the 49ers’ defense looked listless in the first half, regularly giving up chunk plays down the field before the Chargers were able to punch it in from point-blank range, eventually taking a 20-7 lead late in the second quarter.

The one things that has kept Kendrick Bourne from securing a spot on the roster has been his case of the drops, and that showed up the first time he was thrown to on Thursday, as he ran a nice crossing pattern but let the pass clank off his hands, taking away a first down.

However, he cashed in on the next opportunity he got, with a minute left in the first half. As Beathard eluded the Charger rush, he overthrew his intended target. But like a good backstop, Bourne was there to make a sliding catch in the end zone, the 21-yard touchdown cutting LA’s lead to 20-14.

NOTES: Prior to Thursday’s game, the 49ers released linebacker Malcolm Smith, who had spent most of his tenure with the team on the sidelines with assorted injuries, most notably a torn pectoral muscle that kept him out for the entire 2017 season.

The team also waived offensive linemen Willie Beavers and Dillon Day. The 49ers turned around and signed corner Chris Campbell, running back Brandon Wilds and receiver Nick Williams, who had a pair of catches in the third quarter.

UP NEXT: The 49ers take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, Sept. 8 at 1:25 p.m. Game will be broadcast on FOX.

Headline Sports podcast with Tony Renteria: Will Carr see some time on Thursday Night Football in Seattle?; A’s drop two in KC, hang onto wild card; plus more

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sfgate photo: Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr gets ready for the team’s NFL preseason football game against the Green Bay Packers on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2019, in Winnipeg, Manitoba

Headline Sports podcast with Tony R:

#1 The Raiders have won three pre season games does that indicate much or it really doesn’t show much the real test will be on week 1.

#2 The Raiders conclude pre season play in Seattle at Centurylink how much time will quarterback Derek Carr get in Thursday Night Football.

#3 The Oakland A’s held onto second place in the AL Wild Card despite losing two out of the three to the Kansas City Royals. The Royals are a struggling team were the A’s an exhausted team going into Kansas City or the Royals just geared up and played up to the level.

#4 The Golden State Warriors opened up their new arena Chase Center for the press on Tuesday and the nuances showed corporate sponsored bars, parking garage, and corporate concessions. The Warriors play their first game in their new arena on Oct 24th against the Los Angeles Lakers.

#5 With former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck retiring from pro football due to injuries was the fans booing him at the Colts last pre season game after he announced his retirement. Was the reason for the booing that Luck bailed with just two weeks left in pre season and abandon his team or were these ignorant fans who don’t recognize that Luck can no longer continue because of pain.

Tony R does Headline Sports each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Raiders wrap up the 2019 exhibition season in Seattle on Thursday

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Photo credit: @Raiders

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

Raider Nation, we have finally come to the end of the 2019 exhibition. The Silver and Black will play their final game of the exhibition season in Seattle Thursday night against the Seahawks. With no starters expected to play on both sides, this game will showcase players fighting for roster spots who want to put on a good showing for the coaches.

Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. PDT from CenturyLink Field.

Oakland is looking to close out the exhibition season undefeated. Last week, the Raiders needed a 33-yard field goal from kicker Daniel Carlson as time expired to edge the Green Bay Packers, 22-21, in a bizarre game that featured an 80-yard field for player safety.

End zones were marked by bright orange pylons at the 10-yard lines and there were no kickoffs. The field was reconfigured because of concerns about the areas where the goal posts for the CFL’s Winnipeg franchise were removed and covered with turf.

The game was actually a home game for the Raiders, who decided to move one of their two home games in the exhibition season to Winnipeg in a move that would save the team $500,000 in rent at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

Oakland is set to move to Las Vegas in 2020.

Quarterback Nathan Peterman, who is in a close battle with Mike Glennon to be the primary backup to starter Derek Carr, threw a pair of touchdowns, including a 17-yard strike to wide receiver De’Mornay Pierson-El in the fourth quarter to cut the Green Bay’s lead to 21-19. Peterman’s 2-point conversion attempt was intercepted.

Peterman, who took over for Glennon after the first quarter, finished 23-of-37 for 210 yards in three quarters. Glennon, who struggled in his appearance against the Packers, completed 4-of-9 passes for just 38 yards.

Seattle picked up their second win of the exhibition season last week, defeating the Chargers, 23-15, in Los Angeles.

Seahawks starting quarterback Russell Wilson looked ready for the regular season to begin, leading Seattle on two touchdown drives before calling it a night. The eight-year veteran completed 6-of-9 passes for 73 yards. Wilson also rushed for 31 yards.

San Francisco 49ers podcast with David Zizmor: Garoppolo ready to make some plays against San Diego on Thursday Night Football

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Photo credit: @49ers

On the 49ers podcast with David:

#1 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo threw for 188 yards, a touchdown for 14 completions out of 20. It was a game that was called Jimmy G’s on track game after struggling the first few weeks of preseason. Garopplo has looked much better in camp.

#2 The 49ers signed former Arizona Cardinal cornerback Chris Campbell, the 49ers waived offensive lineman Dillion Day, the 49ers will be without Jason Verett, K’Waun Williams, Ahkello Witherspoon, and Richard Sherman for Thursday Night Football against San Diego.

Join David for the 49ers podcast each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

49ers players on the bubble who have one last chance to make mark

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Photo credit: mercurynews.com

By Jeremy Harness

The 49ers will play one more preseason game before it’s time to go for real, but don’t expect the starters to be anywhere but the sidelines on Thursday.

The preseason finale, which will pit the 49ers against the Los Angeles Chargers, is really all about the guys who will make one last push to make the team’s 53-man roster, as the final cutdown will take place this Saturday.

There are reportedly a few notable names that are on the bubble to make the 49ers’ final roster, including receivers Jordan Matthews, Richie James and Kendrick Bourne as well as linebacker Malcolm Smith.

Matthews struggled in his last few years with the Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles, and was signed by the 49ers as a free agent this offseason. Head coach Kyle Shanahan has been open in expressing how impressed he has been with the veteran pass-catcher’s showing in training camp.

He would otherwise be a lock for the 53-man roster, other than the fact that he does not stand out on special teams, as a backup receiver should. However, if he has a great outing on Thursday, there is no reason to believe that he will not be suiting up come Week 1.

Bourne came on during the second half of the season, but he has had a continued issue with the drops, which will be crucial in deciding exactly how many wideouts the 49ers want to keep. Marquise Goodwin, Dante Pettis, physical running back-turned receiver Jalen Hurd, highly-touted rookie Deebo Samuel and Trent Taylor all seem to be locked on to the final 53, so that apparently leaves either one, or maybe two, spots.

Smith has been nonexistent for much of his two years with the 49ers, and a lot of that has to do with assorted injuries, a bug that started in his first training camp with the team, which resulted in a torn pectoral muscle that saw him miss the entire season.

It hasn’t gotten much better for him since, and he was nowhere to be found during his preseason debut last week at Kansas City. The 49ers may keep him around as a locker room influence – he has been to two Super Bowls, including a win over the Denver Broncos that saw him return an interception for a touchdown – but his lack of production may force the team to pull the plug on him.

But this much is certain: There will be a lot of tough decisions to be made in the two days following Thursday’s game.

Headline Sports podcast with Barbara Mason: Giants try to knot up series with Diamondbacks tonight; Gruden happy with quarterbacks in camp; plus more

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Photo credit: sfchronicle.com

On Headline Sports with Barbara Mason:

#1 The Oakland A’s and San Francisco Giants Bay Bridge Series was expected to be a real Battle of the Bay since both teams are vying for a wild card birth. The Giants ended up winning the two-game series with a 10-6 win on Saturday and a 5-4 win on Sunday took a loss on Monday night in San Francisco to Arizona 6-4.

#2 The A’s had a breakdown in their bullpen in each of the two games. Frustration took hold when A’s reliever Ryan Butcher threw high and inside to Giants catcher Stephen Vogt, who hit the dirt. No warnings were drawn. Vogt hit a grand slam home-run off Butcher on Saturday and Vogt said he had his suspicions about Butcher’s pitch since he’s noted to have decent control.

#3 The Oakland Raiders quarterbacks have the confidence of Raiders head coach Jon Gruden. Gruden said starting quarterback Derek Carr, backups Mike Glennon and Nathan Peterman all had good preseasons and the Raiders are expected to come out of the gate strong. The Raiders head to Century Link in Seattle for the final pre season game against the Seahawks on Thursday Night Football.

#4 San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has a great outing in his last preseason game on Saturday night against the Kansas City Chiefs after having a tough preseason. Garoppolo threw for 14-20, 188 yards, and one touchdown. The 49ers host the San Diego Chargers on Thursday Night Football.

#5 Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, who announced his retirement from football over the weekend, said that it was not fun anymore waking up each day to pain, rehab, and more pain. It was repeat and repeat again. He at 29 year old said it’s unlikely he will return to the NFL.

Barbara Mason does Headline Sports each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: Fans and players not big fans of the weekend uniforms; When will Brown’s helmet issues get settled?; plus more

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Photo credit: foxnews.com

On That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast:

#1 How bad were the weekend uniforms, some said the home whites looked like they were cricket players or they were selling ice cream in the stands like the concession salespeople. MLB said and made sure each player wore the proper uniform.

#2 The helmet issue of Oakland Raiders’ Antonio Brown has not yet gone away yet. Brown filed a grievance with the Players Union. Brown said the helmet that he used to use in Pittsburgh was a good-fitting helmet that did its job. The league is saying Brown needs to wear the proper helmet to protect himself from concussion and if he collides with another player.

#3 The Raiders picked up a close win in Winnipeg against the Green Bay Packers 22-21 last Thursday. It took a Daniel Carlson field goal with eight seconds left to get the Raiders the win on a rugged short field that’s normally used for Canadian Football.

#4 The A’s will try and shake off the double loss to the Giants from the weekend series and tango with the Kansas City Royals. The A’s really need this series in order to keep pace with Cleveland and Tampa Bay in the AL wild card.

#5 It’s hard to believe that former San Francisco Giant pitcher Juan Marichal is 81 years old. He’s had a storied career, most notably when he got into that ruckus with John Roseboro and the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1965 in a brawl that Marichal hit Roseboro on the head with a bat. Marichal is also noted for his high leg kick and his multiple 20-win games.

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez is the radio voice for the Oakland A’s Spanish radio on 1010 KIQI, is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Heritage Museum and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Garoppolo Bounces Back in Win Over Chiefs 27-17

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photo from sfgate.com: San Francisco 49ers quarterback throws behind 49ers offensive guard Mike Person (68) during the first half of Saturday Night Football’s game against the host Kansas City Chiefs in the final pre season game for 2019

by Joe Lami

Jimmy Garoppolo bounced back to expectations in his second appearance of the pre-season on Saturday night. After an abysmal performance on Monday, Jimmy G threw for 188 yards completing 14 of 20 passes and adding a touchdown in his first half dress rehearsal.

Garoppolo opened the Niners scoring with a 20-yard completion to Matt Breida to cap a seven-play, 78-yard drive, in which he went 4-for-4. He completed two more drives that ended with Robbie Gould field goals. After a 0.0 passer rating against the Broncos, Garoppolo greatly improved to a 116.2.

The Niners improved to 3-0 on the pre-season by defeating the Kansas City Chiefs 27-17. Most importantly, their dry run went phenomenal and gives hope that they’ll be ready when the season kicks off.

After showing strong defense all pre-season, the Niners defense got torched by MVP Patrick Mahomes on the opening drive. He found running back Damien Williams for a 62-yard quick touchdown strike. However, the defense was able to rebound by keeping Mahomes out of the end zone the rest of his night. He finished 8-of-10 for 126 yards.

Nick Mullens came in for backup duty; passing 8-of-11 for 84 yards. CJ Beathard didn’t see the field on Saturday night, which could give insight to how Kyle Shanahan is leaning for the backup spot.

Jeff Wilson Jr. is going to make cut down day difficult for the red and gold. He continues to impress, scoring two touchdowns in the second half, making the difference in the win. He finished with 45 yards on 12 carries and the two scores.

Kwon Alexander made his debut finishing with three tackles.

Damontre Moore stole the show with two sacks, five tackles, and four QB hits. Moore may be playing well enough to earn the 49ers a draft pick when they trade him since there’s just no room on the D-line for him on this team.

The Niners wrap up their preseason on Thursday at home versus the Chargers. While we won’t see most of the starters, we’ll get an in-depth look at how the 53-man roster is beginning to form.

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Lami: Can Garoppolo hit his targets on Saturday in Kansas City in preseason finale?

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Photo credit: sacbee.com

On the 49ers podcast with Joe:

#1 On Monday Night Football, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo passed for zero yards throwing, one interception, and basically said he hasn’t been there for a year so he’s coming out of the shoot tired and rusty.

#2 Also, it should be mentioned that Garoppolo threw nine passes for zero yards from what Joe saw. Was Garoppolo pressing or was he genuinely rusty from not seeing action over a year?

#3 Do you expect to see Joe Staley and George Kittle out for preseason or on limited time in preseason?

#4 San Francisco 49ers tackle Shon Coleman, who broke his leg in the first preseason game, is out for the rest of the season. How much of an impact will that be on the team?

#5 Saturday the 49ers are in Kansas City. From what you’ve seen, how far are the 49ers ready for regular season play?

Joe does the 49ers podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon: Is the Raiders’ comeback against Green Bay in Winnipeg still significant even though it’s preseason?

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Photo credit: @Raiders

On the Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes:

#1 It may be just preseason, but there is something in the air in the Oakland Raiders dressing room — an excitement, and the anxiousness to get out on the field and do the job. The Raiders, who trailed to the Green Bay Packers up until the last few seconds of Thursday Night Football, came back and got kicker Daniel Carlson in kicking range to boot a game-winning field goal to get the Raiders their third straight preseason victory.

#2 Hard work and determination really goes into a win like the one the Raiders played on Thursday. Even though head coach Jon Gruden is using different rookies, players busting their tails to get a job on the team, and new faces who played their hearts out but were left with no choice but to be cut after a game like this.

#3 Talk about the field, it was a 80-yard field on Winnipeg and the 10-yard line is where the goal line. Did the CFL field kind of ruin the NFL game as the players had to convert their play to fit the field?

#4 There were no kickoffs in the game and the team who won the toss would start at the 25, how much of a difference did this make?

#5 The Raiders started Nathan Peterman, who completed 22 out of 36 passes for 230 yards, and Derek Carr sat out this one. How impressive did Peterman look and what are his chances as being the Raiders backup?

Joe Hawkes Beamon does the Raiders podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com