We all knew the wide receivers were going to be an issue for the San Francisco 49ers, but we didn’t realize how much that was going to be the case. In their first game of the season against the Arizona Cardinals, the wideouts were pretty much a no-show. Kendrick Bourne had two catches for 34 yards, which was the best receiver on the team.
George Kittle at four catches for 44 yards but the tight end was outdone by Raheem Mostert who had 95 yards and a touchdown on his four receptions. Mostert added another 56 yards on the ground, leading the team rushing as well. But the problem has continued to be the same thing for the Niners year after year — they can’t threaten teams on the outside.
That proved to be there undoing once again in this one, as they found themselves trailing the Cardinals 24 to 20 late in the game. They drove down the field, but Jimmy Garoppolo couldn’t connect with any of his wideouts and they ended up turning the ball over on downs. The Niners are trying to defend the NFC title from a season ago and now start out 0-1, with that loss being from a team in their division. That’s not the best way to get things started.