There are losses, and then there are games that make you question everything.
The 49ers’ loss last week to the Vikings was just a loss. Minnesota played great, the Niners have trouble against that defensive scheme. The loss wasn’t good, but it wasn’t the end of the world, either.
Sunday might have brought about that end of the world.
What else would you call a collapse of that magnitude?
The Niners choked away a 14-point second-half lead and 10-point fourth-quarter lead to lose, in regulation, to the Rams and fall to 1-2 on the season.
And if you’re so inclined, here are three studs and three duds from the game. (I imagine the latter will be read first.)
Studs
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Jauan Jennings
» You couldn’t ask for anything more from the 49ers’ No. 3 wide receiver. With Deebo Samuel and George Kittle out and the Rams’ focus in the pass game, rightly, on Brandon Aiyuk, Jennings needed to step up.
I’d say that two touchdowns, big first downs, and excellent blocking, all in the first quarter, qualify as stepping up.
He ended the game with three touchdowns, on 11 receptions for 175 yards. It was the game of his life, and he would have been the MVP of the Super Bowl this past February.
And again, it was in vain.
Brock Purdy
» Yes, the Niners collapsed, but you’d be hard pressed to pin this loss on the Niners’ quarterback, who completed 22 of 30 passes for 292 yards and those three aforementioned touchdowns.
Purdy was in complete control of the Niners’ offense, posting a 19.2 total EPA and a 77.6 QBR rating. That’s high-level play.
He also ran for 41 yards on 10 carries and extended plays like prime Russell Wilson.
Had Ronnie Bell caught that fourth-quarter pass, we’d be having a very different conversation about this team. Alas, he did not, but don’t pretend the quarterback is at fault after delivering a perfect throw to the receiver.
Nick Bosa
» The second-best defensive end in Sunday’s game was Sam Okuayinou.
He’s a practice squad player who was called up for the game and played limited snaps.
So no, Nick Bosa didn’t get much help against the Rams.
But he still made an impact, consistently blowing up plays in the backfield, giving the Niners’ defense a chance Sunday.
The stat sheet won’t show it, but he had a great game.
DUDS
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De’Vondre Campbell
» Was attacked again and again and again, with the biggest exploitation coming on the game-changing defensive play, when Matt Stafford threw to Colby Parkinson down the right sideline, knowing that Campbell was in one-on-one coverage and wouldn’t stand a chance of defending it.
He was right. After all, he had burned Campbell in the red zone for a touchdown pass earlier in the game.
Two plays after the PI, the Rams kicked a game-winning field goal.
Campbell has struggled mightily so far this season, and the Niners don’t have an apparent healthy replacement on the roster.
But until the Niners coaching staff decides to roll the dice with someone else, expect these plays to become commonplace.
Ronnie Bell
» Bell had two passes thrown to him on Sunday.
Both clanked off his hands in an almost cartoonish fashion.
The first wasn’t a game-changer. Drops happen. (Especially with Bell.)
The second lost the 49ers the game. There’s no sugar-coating it.
On a second-and-7 from their own 43-yard line, in a tied game with 1:08 to play, Brock Purdy threw a perfect pass to Bell just outside the right numbers on the field at the Los Angeles 35-yard line.
The pass hit Bell, who was facing the quarterback, in both hands, right in front of his face.
CLANK.
Had he caught the pass, the Niners would have been in field goal range and likely would have won a few snaps later.
Instead, Purdy was sacked on the subsequent third-down play, as center Jake Brendel was pushed onto his rear (again), and the Niners’ quarterback couldn’t escape the pressure. The Niners’ punt was returned to the 50-yard line, and then Campbell happened.
Charvarius Ward
» His tackling in the run game has been extremely suspect, and opposing teams have figured it out, going right at him, particularly in big moments.
They’re now attacking Ward in the passing game, too. Ward’s coverage has been anything but elite in the last two games, and his being burned by Tutu Atwell late in the fourth quarter on Sunday, setting up the game-tying touchdown, showed that the Rams were waiting for the right moment to burn him.
Between Campbell and Ward, Sunday, Rams coach Sean McVay dialed up some diabolical plays to attack two weak links at just the right time.
Evil genius stuff.