49ers @ Commanders Week 17 Live Blog
This is the live blog for the 49ers' Week 17 road game against the Washington Commanders. I will update this frequently with information and analysis from my living room.
8:31 Here are the 49ers' inactives: Arik Armstead, Ji'Ayir Brown, Jauan Jennings, Ross Dwelley, Jaylon Moore, Jalen Graham, Brandon Allen. This means starting left guard Aaron Banks (turf toe) is active, which is huge news for the 49ers because they're so thin on the offensive line. Washington has two excellent defensive tackles -- Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen -- who can wreck the game if the 49ers don't have all of their guards. Banks clearly is their best guard, so he needs to play. Let's see if he can make it through the entire game.
8:35 Here are the Commanders inactives: Jacoby Brissett, Andrew Wylie, Kendall Fuller, Benjamin St. Juste, Jalen Harris, Cole Turner, Mitchell Tinsley.
The Commanders benched starting quarterback Sam Howell and intended to play Brissett against the 49ers this week, but Brissett somehow pulled his hamstring in practice, so the Commanders have no choice but to play Howell. Awkward. Howell currently leads the league in interceptions (17) and sacks (60), which means he should single handedly lose this game for Washington. I can't wait to watch this trainwreck. The Commanders are clearly tanking, considering they traded Chase Young to the 49ers midseason just to weaken themselves and make the 49ers stronger. So when the 49ers win today, they should thank the Commanders for being so committed to losing.
10:00 I predict the 49ers will win 31-13.
10:04 The 49ers get the ball first.
FIRST QUARTER
10:12 On 3rd and 11 from the Commanders 20, Brock Purdy scrambles to his right and throws the ball away. Then Jake Moody makes a 38-yard field goal. Seven of the 12 plays on that drive went to Christian McCaffrey.
49ers 3, Commanders 0.
10:19 On 3rd and 8 from the Commanders 27, Sam Howell throws a pass that's nearly intercepted by Deommodore Lenoir, and the Commanders go 3 and out. They passed all three times. Ridiculous. After the punt, the 49ers take over at their 37. Nice 16-yard punt return by Ronnie Bell.
10:28 On 2nd and goal from the 2, Brock Purdy throws an underhanded pop pass to Deebo Samuel running a jet sweep, and he scores a touchdown. That's what we used to call a Jimmy Gimme.
49ers 10, Commanders 0.
SECOND QUARTER
10:41 On 3rd and 9 from the 49ers 29, Nick Bosa pressures Sam Howell who throws the ball away. Then the Commanders make a 47-yard field goal. That's a big kick for them.
49ers 10, Commanders 3.
10:47 On 3rd and 6 from the 49ers 47, floats a pass toward Ronnie Bell near the left sideline and his pass gets broken up. After the punt, the Commanders take over at their 16.
10:58 On 3rd and goal from the 3, Terry McClaurin beats Ambry Thomas for a touchdown catch. Howell threw a nice backshoudler fade. The Commanders are starting to run the ball well behind Brian Robinson who's averaging 5.5 yards per carry so far.
49ers 10, Commanders 10.
11:11 On 3rd and goal from the 4, Purdy throws an incomplete pass intended for Brandon Aiyuk who was not open. The Commanders are playing extremely hard, and they'll get the ball to start the second half.
49ers 13, Commanders 10.
THIRD QUARTER
11:30 On 3rd and 1 from the 49ers 34, Sam Howell runs out of bounds after a loss of 5. After the punt, the 49ers take over at their 17.
11:43 On 2nd and goal from the 2, Elijah Mitchell trots into the end zone for the touchdown. He has 8 carries for 42 yards and a touchdown in this game. Smart not to overuse McCaffrey against a bad team.
49ers 20, Commanders 10.
FOURTH QUARTER
12:00 On 3rd and 8 from the 49ers 11, Charvarius Ward intercepts Howell at the 5-yard line. Great play by Ward. All Howell had to do was not throw a pick and the Commanders would have kicked a field goal and been back in the game. Terrible.
12:00 On 3rd and 9 from the Commanders 17, Purdy spins to his right, stops, sets his feet, points to Brandon Aiyuk and throws a touchdown pass to him. Incredible play.
49ers 27, Commanders 10.
12:23 On 2nd and 4 from the Commanders 31, Javon Hargrave pressures Howell who throws an interception to Deommodore Lenoir. The 49ers will take over at the Washington 41.
12:33 On 4th and goal from the 1, Elijah Mitchell takes the handoff and loses a yard. The Commanders take over on downs.
12:36 The Commanders go 3 and out. Nick Bosa hit Sam Howell as he tried to throw the ball away and Lenoir nearly intercepted the pass. After the punt, the 49ers take over at their 47.
12:42 The 49ers go 3 and out. After the punt, the Commanders take over at their 18.
12:45 On 3rd and 8 from the Washington 20, Howell throws deep to no one and the Commanders go 3 and out. After the punt, the 49ers take over at their 26. Sam Darnold will takes knees and the 49ers will win. Stay tuned for their grades.
