The San Francisco 49ers defeated the New York Giants to claim their first win of the season, here we look at three takeaways from the victory.
The San Francisco 49ers finally ended their wait for a first win of the season, cruising past the New York Giants to claim a 31-20 victory on Sunday. C.J. Beathard, for once kept clean by the offensive line, was able to pick apart the New York defense in what was his best performance of his fledgling career.
Meanwhile the 49ers averaged 5.6 yards per carry on the ground behind strong performances from Carlos Hyde and Matt Breida. Also, their young defense did enough to stop Eli Manning and the Giants keeping pace.
Here we look at the three takeaways from the win.
3. Offensive line allowed Beathard and backs to flourish
A week ago against the Arizona Cardinals, Beathard was sacked five times and hit on 16 occasions as the offensive line struggled minus Joe Staley. With Staley restored to the lineup having taken the decision to wear facial protection and miss just one game due to a broken orbital bone, it was a completely different story.
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Beathard did not suffer a sack and was excellent throughout, completing 19 of his 25 passes for 288 and two touchdowns with an interception. The former Iowa quarterback was decisive and threw with anticipation, consistently hitting receivers in stride. He also ran for a score as the 49ers had their way with the Giants on the ground. Carlos Hyde had 98 yards on 17 carries while Matt Breida surged for a 33-yard touchdown as he finished with 55 yards on nine attempts.
If the line can continue to hold up this well for the rest of the season, this may not be the 49ers’ only win.
2. 49ers survive turnovers
Turnovers have been an issue for the 49ers this season and that continues to be the case. Indeed, the margin of victory may have been greater had they not turned the ball over twice. Beathard picked off by Olivier Vernon and Kyle Juszczyk giving away a fumble, with the Niners in position to strike on both occasions. Victor Bolden also dropped the ball on a punt return but was correctly ruled down by contact.
The Giants were not good enough to take advantage of these miscues, but the Niners rank 24th in the league in turnover differential. That must improve long term if San Francisco is to be consistently competitive.
1. Rookies make big contributions
As well as Beathard and Breida, the 49ers got a wide array of contributions from their other rookies. Undrafted wide receiver Kendrick Bourne had three catches for 42 yards, while on defense Reuben Foster again led the way with 10 tackles. Foster, according to Pro Football Focus‘ Refocused recap, had four stops and a quarterback hit, and allowed just two receptions for seven yards.
On the back end Adrian Colbert was the star of the show in his first start at free safety, again showcasing range and physicality in an extremely impressive display. Defensive end Ronald Blair, making just his second appearance of the season, recorded two of the 49ers three sacks, joining a host of other second-year players, such as DeForest Buckner, Trent Brown and Jaquiski Tartt, in delivering strong showings this season.
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Rookies Solomon Thomas, Trent Taylor and George Kittle all missed the game through injury but have shown enough this season to suggest they will be key players in the coming years.
With so many first and second-year guys playing well, the Niners look to have a young base to build from that will hopefully ensure such difficult seasons will soon be a thing of the past.