The Chiefs have won the last six matchups against the 49ers. At the moment, Kansas City owns San Francisco, and it is starting to get old.
Coming into the game the Niners were already down Dre Greenlaw, Javon Hargrave and Christian McCaffrey. Then over the week we found out Jauan Jennings was injured and unable to play. On game day, Deebo Samuel came up sick. Finally, during the game, the Niners lost Brandon Aiyuk to a seemingly severe leg injury.
Brock Purdy threw three interceptions today. The first one was on him. It was a bad read and he missed Justin Reid flashing underneath George Kittle. Purdy’s second pick was in the second half. Ronnie Bell failed to run this route deep enough and Purdy seemingly overthrew him. His last interception occurred in the redzone when the Niners had an opportunity to possibly tie the game. He was hit as he threw, and the ball settled into a defender’s hands.
Some may criticize Purdy’s play. He had a long throw to Kittle late in the second quarter that if he led him a bit more, he might have caught the ball in stride and scored. Late in the game if Purdy led Jacob Cowing a bit more instead of a 41 reception play it might have been a 50-yard touchdown. On both plays Purdy was throwing under significant duress which affects accuracy and timing.
The Niners offense is still going through growing pains. Pass protection must improve. Receivers must run the correct routes and work to get open quicker against man coverage. Frankly, the play calling could be a bit more inventive.
Early in the game Brandon Aiyuk was targeted five times. He either ran the wrong route or dropped the ball. When he finally caught a big 15-yard pass in the second half, he went down with injury. If he heals up, he must get his head in the game. He doesn’t look like he is playing with the same intensity or attention to detail as last year. In fact, he doesn’t even look like the same player.
With the Chiefs lining up in man coverage, finding ways to put the Chiefs defensive backs in conflict should be the priority for any opposing offense. Bunch formations and choice routes are a good way to loosen up a man-to-man defense. In fact, that is how the Chiefs chose to attack the Niners aggressive man coverage.
Coach Shanahan likely felt restrictive in what he could call with his top three wide receivers out. With nothing to lose but the game, take a few chances. Coach Shanahan didn’t call one screen pass. He also failed to call any end arounds or reverses for a shifty speedy receiver like Cowing. Coach Shanahan appeared to have hand cuffed himself in today’s game.
The Niners defense actually played a decent game today. The Chiefs are going to find ways to score, so no team should help them like the Niners did. The Niners held Mahomes to 154 yards thru the air, forced two interceptions and sacked him twice. A team like the Chiefs will always find a way to score. The difference in this game was the Chief’s defense forced three key turnovers.
The Chiefs defense set their offense up for victory. Their last two turnovers against the Niners ended up in Chiefs drives for touchdowns. The Chiefs have perfected winning ugly. They have three superstars: Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid and Steve Spagnuolo. Those three have found a way to win each game this year. The Niners need to catch up.
