San Francisco 49ers: 3 Takeaways vs. Seahawks in Week 12

The San Francisco 49ers dropped to 1-10 with their Week 12 defeat to the Seattle Seahawks, here we look at three takeaways from the loss.

The San Francisco 49ers experienced the all-too-familiar feeling of defeat on Sunday as they were beaten 24-13 by the Seattle Seahawks, but it was a loss that came with a significant silver lining. After playing Seattle close for three quarters, San Francisco allowed the Seahawks to pull away in the fourth quarter as the Niners’ offense struggled throughout.

But a glimpse into San Francisco’s future was provided in the waning seconds as, with C.J. Beathard suffering a knee injury on a hit from Michael Bennett, Jimmy Garoppolo was forced into action and tossed a last-gasp touchdown to Louis Murphy that has quickly ignited talk of the Week 13 game with the Chicago Bear being the week for Garoppolo to be thrust into the starting role.

Here we are our three takeaways from a defeat that officially eliminated the 49ers from playoff contention.

3. Run defense finally comes to play

The 49ers have been very generous to opposing running backs this season and came into the game ranked last in the league in rushing yards allowed per game with 133.5.

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But against Seattle’s struggling ground attack the run defense finally showed up, allowing just 90 yards rushing, with the Niners’ defensive line winning the battle on the line of scrimmage in that regard.

Ronald Blair, who had five tackles on the day, was extremely impressive defending the run as the 49ers’ D-Line, bolstered by the returns of Solomon Thomas and Tank Carradine and the addition of Sheldon Day, gave up just three yards per carry, an effort that could perhaps have been decisive had they been able to stop Russell Wilson.

2. Trent Brown is indeed a cornerstone

Last Tuesday, general manager John Lynch, per Niners Nation, described veteran left tackle Joe Staley and third-year right tackle Trent Brown as “cornerstones”.

Those who do not follow the 49ers will not be overly familiar with Brown but, if an illustration of his value was needed, it came on Sunday as San Francisco’s offensive line wilted with Erik Magnuson playing in place of Brown, who missed the game with a shoulder injury.

Beathard, per Pro Football Focus’ Jeff Deeney, was pressured on 46.5 percent of his dropbacks, while Magnuson — according to Oscar Aparicio of the Better Rivals’ podcast — gave up two sacks, one hit and eight hurries.

RT Eric Magnuson had a rough day in place of Trent Brown. Magnuson allowed 2 sacks, 1 hit, and 8 hurries and finishing with a pass blocking grade of 38.0. His best position is likely along the interior, but injuries forced Magnuson into play at tackle.
— Oscar Aparicio (@BetterRivals) November 27, 2017

Magnuson, to his credit, did finish the game a sprained foot, as head coach Kyle Shanahan revealed on Monday, but this game demonstrated what San Francisco misses when Brown is not in the lineup. Brown’s pass protection skills make him a cornerstone, look for him to be signed to an extension in the offseason.

1. The Jimmy Garoppolo era needs to be now

Shanahan has slow-played the Garoppolo situation since his arrival last month, which has been a wise strategy that has allowed Beathard to get game time and Garoppolo to learn the system. But with his three plays in relief of Beathard, Garoppolo showed just how far ahead of his teammate he is.

He scrambled for four yards, hit Aldrick Robinson for a fourth-down conversion and, after getting to the line and getting the snap off before time expiredm, evaded pressure and rolled out, before resetting his feet and firing a perfect touchdown pass to Murphy.

It was in garbage time, but Garoppolo displayed exactly why the 49ers traded a second-round pick for him. He has the distinct look of the franchise quarterback and his cameo gave San Francisco fans something to smile about in an otherwise depressing game.

With San Francisco having long since realistically been out of playoff contention, Garoppolo is the lone reason for Niners fans to get excited about the remainder of this season.

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Shanahan said on Monday that he will make a decision on his quarterback on Wednesday and, with Beathard beat up, it is time for him to make the call to start the Garoppolo era against the Bears.