PHILADELPHIA — A goal-line stand, a couple of Nick Bosa sacks, and a lot of action by safety Jimmie Ward highlighted the 49ers’ defensive efforts to spoil the Philadelphia Eagles’ home opener 17-11 Sunday.
And what about the 49ers’ offense?
Jimmy Garoppolo, in baseball parlance, produced a complete-game victory in the comeback, and he didn’t cede any snaps to rookie Trey Lance, even after a very sluggish start.
But tor the second straight game, things got tense in the fourth quarter, and a penalty by Ward helped trigger an Eagles’ touchdown drive with 4:20 remaining.
Even so, the 49ers (2-0) are undefeated heading into their home opener next Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers, completing a 10-day road trip that began in Detroit and included a layover this past week in West Virginia.
Garoppolo and the offense had piled up enough points, however, to offset any further fourth-quarter torture. Those 49ers’ points came after their defense’s goal-line stand in the second quarter, mind you. Garoppolo threw a go-ahead touchdown pass (to Jauan Jennings, his first career catch) and scored himself on a 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
GAROPPOLO’S GAME
As quarterbacks were getting injured elsewhere throughout the NFL, Garoppolo was taking every snap and doing so in some really gritty situations, like converting on a third-and-1 keeper with two minutes remaining and the Eagles out of timeouts.
Garoppolo completed 15 of his final 17 passes for 138 yards after an inaccurate start (6-of-12, 43 yards). Garoppolo used his legs more than ever (11 carries, 20 yards).
Following the defense’s goal-line stand, Garoppolo commanded a four-minute, 97-yard drive that climaxed with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Jennings (first career catch) 12 seconds before halftime.
One of Garoppolo’s most clutch passes came in the final minutes, as he completed an 8-yard throw on second-and-9 from the 15. Kyle Juszczyk caught it but was injured on the play.
FOUR-MINUTE DRILL
An excellent, four-minute drill produced a go-ahead touchdown on a 97-yard march just before halftime. Garoppolo capped the 12-play drive by finding Jennings for an 11-yard touchdown catch, on Jennings’ first career reception and target.
A lot was packed into that drive following the 49ers’ goal-line stand on defense. Not to be overlooked was Eagles’ defensive stalward Brandon Graham exiting with an ankle injury, on George Kittle’s 8-yard catch-and run early in the drive. Another key play: Garoppolo’s second-effort on a quarterback keeper to convert on third-and-1 near midfield.
But that drive could have stalled out if not for Garoppolo finding Deebo Samuel on a 40-yard catch-and-run to the 11-yard line 17 seconds until halftime. When the Eagles took a knee to kill off the remaining seconds of the half, linebacker Fred Warner sprinted to the 49ers’ locker room and flapped his arms (once) in the Eagles’ signature move.
ALL-PRO JIMMIE?
One minute, Ward is correctly played a deep pass and preventing a momentum-turning reception or touchdown. The next minute, he’s tackling a scrambling Hurts short of a first down.
But with only 4 1/2 minutes to go, Ward drew a late-hit penalty as Jalen Hurts went out of bounds on a 27-yard scamper, so it wasn’t all great.
Ward, the longest-tenured 49er, made arguably the game’s biggest play during that goal-line stand when he met Hurts at the 3-yard line and pushed him out of bounds.
BOSA’S PERFORMANCE
Nick Bosa recorded two sacks after having one last game, so you could say his comeback from knee reconstruction is going as desired. His first sack Sunday came on the second snap after halftime, to spark a three-and-out drive. Bosa’s next sack came in the fourth quarter, for a 6-yard loss on third-and-2. Bosa did lose outside contain on a couple of Hurts’ zone-read runs but otherwise looks healthy and spry.
Backup defensive end Arden Key had the only other hit on Hurts through three quarters.
RUNNING BACK ROTATION
Having already lost Raheem Mostert for the season after a Week 1 knee injury, running back depth is a major concern after injuries to Elijah Mitchell (shoulder), JaMycal Hasty (ankle) and Trey Sermon (possible concussion).
Sermon fumbled on his first career carry, but only after a helmet-to-helmet hit on safety K’Von Wallace, so a penalty on Wallace allowed the 49ers to retain possession and move to the Eagles 35 with 5:30 remaining.
The 49ers saw four running backs carry the ball, with last week pickup Trenton Cannon getting summoned on the snap following Sermon’s play.
Mitchell was cleared by the 49ers’ medical staff to return for the final minutes. Earlier in the quarter, he injured his shoulder when denied of the goal line on a first-and-goal run at the 1. Mitchell had 32 yards on 14 carries at the time, after a 104-yard debut in the opener upon replacing Mostert.
The 49ers’ opened their first two possessions with Mitchell runs that lost yardage (minus-4 yards, minus-1 yard). They didn’t panic and pull him out for Trey Sermon’s NFL debut, and Hasty didn’t get a touch until the fourth quarter.
Hasty, who scored on his only touch in the opener, nearly did the same on his first carry this game, taking a run around the right side for a 21-yard gain to the 5. On the enusing snaps, Hasty had a 2-yard run, dropped a shovel-pass with a clear path to the goal line and lined up in the backfield on a third-down throw to Mohamed Sanu that drew a pass-interference penalty.
WIDE RECEIVER HEIRARCHY
Stay tuned for injury updates on Deebo Samuel. He was having his left leg tended to as he sat on the 49ers’ sideline with a few minutes remaining. He had six carries for 93 yards and remained Garoppolo’s most explosive playmaker. Samuel was coming off a 189-yard debut.
The 49ers’ ever-curious receiver rotation saw Brandon Aiyuk thrust into more opportunities while apparently gaining more reps than Trent Sherfield. Aiyuk responded with a 6-yard catch on third-and-2 in the third quarter, after Garoppolo’s first target of him sailed high and nearly got intercepted.
Officially, Aiyuk was the only wide receiver in Sunday’s starting lineup. Kittle had four catches for just 17 yards.
THREE-AND-OUT
Each of the 49ers’ opening three possessions lasted only three snaps before a punt, and their third series nearly ended in an interception. Afterward, Garoppolo took a seat on the bench next to quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello, who was flanked by Lance, and as they looked at video on a tablet, Scangarello appeared to diagram a play, so a staff member held up a towel covering them in case any lookyloos were out there.
On the fourth drive, Garoppolo kept it temporarily alive with a fourth-and-1 dive near midfield, but a Mohamed Sanu penalty and Garoppolo overthrow foiled that series.
DEFENSE’S DEBUT
The 49ers’ first defensive series featured an ability to overcome adversity, that being cornerback Josh Norman drawing a pass-interference penalty for a third-down conversion when he made a pass breakup on his first target as the 49ers’ new starting right cornerback.
On the next snap, Jaquiski Tartt made one of the best plays of his lengthy 49ers’ career, recovering a on deep ball to nearly intercept the 50-yard heave at the goal line. Then, to halt the Eagles from breaching midfield, Fred Warner and Arik Armstead shared a tackle for no gain on an Eagles’ run on third-and-6 (a third-and-6 run?).
KINLAW’S DEBUT
Javon Kinlaw, making his season debut, blocked a 47-yard field-goal attempt early in the second quarter, following a third-down stop (minus-2 yards) by D.J. Jones and Jaquiski Tartt.
CORNERBACK CHALLENGES
Rookie Deommodore Lenoir figured he’d get targeted more than in his debut in Detroit, and he was right. Lenoir gave up a 91-yard strike to Quez Watkins down the right sideline in the first quarter (to set up the goal-line stand).
Hurts went deep again toward Lenoir just after halftime, but Lenoir recovered to prevent the reception. Lenoir’s tight coverage prevented a second-down, 30-yard shot into the red zone later in the quarter.
Lenoir appeared to give up a 36-yard, first-quarter touchdown catch, but Jalen Reagor went out of bounds before making the reception to nullify that score.
Starting at the other cornerback spot in his 49ers debut was Josh Norman, replacing the injured Jason Verrett (season-ending knee injury) and Emmanuel Moseley (knee injury, was doubtful this game). Norman got called for two pass-interference penalties in the first half, including one in the end zone amid the goal-line stand.
GIVENS HURT
Defensive tackle Kevin Givens (right ankle) got injured on a first-quarter run. That impacted their depth because Zach Kerr did not suit up after an ineffective opener.
