49ers Collapse in the 4th Quarter to Lose 27-24 to the Rams

A 10-point lead and a masterclass from Jauan Jennings were wasted away by the 49ers as they collapsed in the fourth quarter to lose to the Rams in Week 3.

Sep 22, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings (15) celebrates his touchdown scored against the Los Angeles Rams during the first half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Pitiful, embarrassing, and atrocious.

Those are just a few words to describe the San Francisco 49ers collapsing in the fourth quarter to lose 27-24 to the Los Angeles Rams. They had a 10-point lead with seven minutes left in the game. As usual with the 49ers under Kyle Shanahan, they blew the lead.

It is a shameful loss against a team that they have owned for the last five years. It didn't matter that the Rams were missing Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua. They had more than enough on their team to get the job done, but so did the 49ers and it starts with the hero of the game wide receiver Jauan Jennings.

Jennings was an absolute madman against the Rams. He reeled in 11 catches for 175 yards and a whopping three touchdowns. Jennings put up a hat trick against the Rams for a career day. It was simply magical to watch. The Rams had zero answers for him. Not even a prayer would've helped them stop Jennings, let alone slow him down.

The 49ers needed a receiver to step up with Deebo Samuel out of commission. Rookie receiver Jacob Cowing seemed in line for those opportunities. But the 49ers didn't even look to Cowing. It must mean that Kyle Shanahan doesn't trust Cowing on offense yet. Or perhaps it's the fact that Shanahan knows increasing the opportunities for Jennings is a greater benefit.

What Jennings did today against the Rams is similar to what Fred Warner did last week against the Vikings. Jennings was the hero of the game for the 49ers. It's too bad Brandon Aiyuk doesn't want to be that. Now, Aiyuk garnered a lot of attention from the Rams on defense and not all of his passes were perfect from Brock Purdy. But he had a couple of opportunities to make a larger impact.

Jennings is the receiver that looks like the 49ers extended for a lucrative sum instead of Aiyuk. Credit goes to Brock Purdy for looking sharp for most of the game and giving Jennings a chance on every throw. These two must not abandon their connection when Samuel returns. It's too good for it to be placed back on ice ever again.

What should be placed on ice and frozen forever is receiver Ronnie Bell. Don't ever let him on offense ever again. The same could be said for defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen. He got his lunch money taken from Sean McVay and Matthew Stafford. Under no circumstance could the 49ers' defense get worked against the Rams' offense without Kupp and Nacua.

But they made receivers like Tutu Atwell look like a star. This loss is devastating. You have to wonder if this loss will have repercussions on the 49ers going forward. They were up 10 points and had a clear path to victory. A seasoned playoff team like they have been shouldn't have collapsed like this in Week 3 against an average-at-best team.

But that is exactly what happened. The 49ers will look to bounce back in Week 4 when they host the New England Patriots. It's a game that they should win easily, but after today how can you trust them to do that?