3 Takeaways From the San Francisco 49ers 9-0 Win Over Washington
After three weeks of enjoying California weather, including a complete takeover of the Los Angeles sunshine last week, the 5-0 San Francisco 49ers traveled to rain-soaked FedEx Field to take on the 1-5 Washington Redskins.
The rain played a heavy factor in both team’s passing effectiveness. The 49ers had their worst offensive day by far, but in the end, the only thing that really mattered was coming away with a win to stay undefeated.
The 49ers moved to 6-0 on the season with a 9-0 win over the Redskins on Sunday.
Rain Spoiled the Day (sort of)
Hopefully you didn’t start anyone on either offense for your fantasy team. The 49ers were expected to run away with this game, but the weather eliminated a lot of the potential creativity Kyle Shanahan had planned. This game went from a potential 49ers’ offensive showcase to a 1950s slugfest.
The matchup was hyped as another installment of the Shanahan revenge tour (he was Washington’s offensive coordinator from 2010-2013). Although he didn’t blow out his former employer, he showed his play-calling ability by making due with what Mother Nature gave him.
The first half was ugly. Jimmy Garoppolo was 3-10 with 10 passing yards.
Yet, after halftime, the 49ers came out attacking through the air. Garoppolo went 9-for-11 in the second half for 141 yards. Those stats seem modest, but given the weather conditions, they were extremely important.
George Kittle did not have the flashiest day (three catches for 38 yards), but he did play a part in the running game as a blocker. The 49ers ran the ball 39 times for 137 yards, utilizing the play-action to free up their big gains through the air.
As for the 49ers’ receiving corp, they were already down Deebo Samuel. They also lost Marquise Goodwin for a brief time. This put the pressure on Kendrick Bourne and Richie James. The two made the most of their increase in snaps with James hauling in a 40 yard catch and Bourne catching three of four targets for 69 yards.
No Offense, No Problem
The 49ers’ defense has already proved they are more than capable at taking over the game while the offense struggles. The team overcame a five-turnover performance to win the home-opener over Pittsburgh and defeated the reigning NFC Champion Rams by holding their potent offense to just seven points.
Washington made it known on the first drive that they were going to run the ball at a high volume. Adrian Peterson carried the ball nine times (including the first seven plays of the game) and Wendell Smallwood had two carries before Case Keenum attempted a pass.
Although the Redskins drove deep into the 49ers' territory, the defense held strong and eventually forced a missed field goal by Dustin Hopkins. The now well-publicized 49ers’ defensive line once again showed they aren’t just carried by stars like Deforest Buckner and Nick Bosa. The depth of the line played a major part in today’s win.
Nose tackle D.J. Jones was inactive, but Arik Armstead, Ronald Blair III, Sheldon Day and Julian Taylor all stepped up in his absence. Taylor in particular made his presence known with a fumble recovery and a 4th-down tackle-for-loss on Adrian Peterson in the second quarter.
Unsurprisingly, the three key offseason acquisitions, Bosa, Dee Ford and Kwon Alexander, all had big games. Ford sacked Keenum before right tackle Morgan Moses even got out of his stance. Alexander ended a potential scoring drive when he stripped Peterson, which Taylor recovered.
Bosa, playing just his sixth game, might’ve been the best player on the field again. The rookie had four TFLs (one sack) and seven total tackles.
The first round pick out of Ohio State now has 16 tackles and four sacks on the year. He also demonstrated his celebration ability once again, following up his Cleveland Mayfield-revenge flag plant with a slip and slide dive on the wet field to end the game.
Stabilizing the Kicking Game
Although the game started off rocky for Robbie Gould with a missed 45-yard field goal, the All-Pro kicker came through when it mattered most. After being franchised in the offseason, Gould’s season has not gone to plan.
The 15-year veteran missed just three field goals in his last three seasons (82-85). On Sunday, Gould missed his seventh field goal of 2019. Weather played some part on the kick, but the miss still added to the uncertainty in the field goal unit.
Yet, rather than abandon the kicking game, Shanahan stuck with it, and Gould rewarded him by making his next three attempts to put the game on ice.
The three converted field goals were under 30 yards, but given the wet conditions and the inexperienced kicking unit, the three successful attempts should bring some needed confidence moving forward.
