Game Breakdown: 49ers Shoot Themselves in The Foot, Fall to Browns 19-17

Injuries were costly as Deebo Samuel left the game early with a shoulder injury and Christian McCaffrey couldn’t finish the game due to an injured oblique.

The San Francisco 49ers fell to 5-1 on death by a thousand cuts, most of them self-inflicted. The deepest cut of all, a missed 41-yard field goal by rookie Jake Moody with six seconds left as the Niners lost to Cleveland 19-17.

The Browns' top-ranked defense, combined with rain and strong winds, threw off the timing and execution of the Niners' anticipatory passing game. Brock Purdy had his worst game as a pro, 12-27 for 125 yards with a touchdown and an interception. That said, Purdy led the team on a nine-play 52-yard drive to set up a chance to win it and then Moody missed right.

Injuries were costly as Deebo Samuel left the game early with a shoulder injury and Christian McCaffrey couldn’t finish the game due to an injured oblique.

The hamstring injury causing Dre Greenlaw to miss the game was a critical loss. Cleveland ran for 160 yards at 4.7 yards per carry. The Niner defense had given up an average of 64.2 rushing yards per game.

GAME BALLS

Deommododre Lenoir – His clutch 4th quarter interception put the offense on the 8-yard line and they punched it in on the next play to go up 17-13. Lenoir fell and gave up a 58-yarder to Amari Cooper, so the pick was redemption.

Randy Gregory – A sack, two tackles for loss, and three quarterback hits in his 49ers debut.

Jordan Mason – His power running provided a needed spark, five carries for 27 yards and a touchdown.

PENALTY FLAGS

Jake Moody – He was drafted for his strong leg and clutch kicks at Michigan. In this one, he missed a 53-yarder and the potential game-winner.

The refs – An unnecessary roughness call against Tashaun Gipson on a 4th down pass decided the game, replays proved it was a clean hit. 25 penalties were whistled. The refs made an ugly game worse.

TAKEAWAYS

The Niners depend on combinations to win, take them away and the team falters.

The combination of McCaffrey and Brandon Aiyuk fuels the offense, a defense focusing on CMC sets up Aiyuk to win man-up. An injured McCaffrey, one of the league’s top cornerbacks in Denzel Ward on Aiyuk, and the offense dries up.

The combination of Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw fuels the run defense. How many runs in this game would Greenlaw have stopped for short gains?

The Niners need the No. 1 seed. Purdy needs the weather. So does Kyle Shanahan.

Brock Purdy’s worst games as a Niner have been in rain and wind. In Seattle, in Cleveland. For Shanahan, he kept calling plays that ignored the weather and its impact on Purdy. Three straight passes with 3:21 left led to a three-and-out and minimal time elapsed. Would he have done that if the back was McCaffrey instead of Mason?

Shanahan also needs to avoid Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, who is now 9-1 lifetime against Shanahan.

Schwartz has given the league a game plan on how to stop the Niners' offense.

The problem for the rest of the league is they don’t have Myles Garrett, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Denzel Ward. The problem for the Niners is Philadelphia can come close with five great pass rushers, Jalen Carter and Darius Slay.

This game was a playoff preview of what can happen against a team that can run the ball on the Niners and matches up well defensively. Philadelphia defensive coordinator Sean Desai will no doubt study this game tape closely.

The last Niners draft is not looking good and the team depth is hurting as a result.

Ji’Ayir Brown plays only on special teams. Jake Moody just pulled defeat from the jaws of victory. Cam Latu is on IR. The rest don’t play. On a team that has suffered a significant loss of depth, the Niners need the rookie class to contribute. 

Outside of Ronnie Bell and Moody before this game, they haven’t contributed much. For the team to be playoff-ready with sufficient depth they’ll need rookie contributions later in the year.

UP NEXT

In Minnesota for a Monday night game. Injuries are a concern now and could be a greater one after playing on that surface. Slit film turf, the same as MetLife Stadium in New York, where non-contact injuries are waiting to happen. The injury risk in Minneapolis is Defcon Five. The Vikings are not, the Niners should rebound.