Fred Warner flipped his body sideways as he shuffled and spied Cam Newton. Then, in a flash, Warner coyly retreated into coverage and, voila, the 49ers' star linebacker came up with a shoestring interception.
At that point the 49ers led just 10-3, but the New England Patriots had already shown just how slim a chance they had Sunday on their home field.
With Warner commanding a 49ers defense rife with injury replacements, and with surprise starter Jeff Wilson rushing for a career-high three touchdowns, the 49ers cruised to a 33-6 victory in their first game at Gillette Stadium since their 2012 Super Bowl run.
The only downers from the 49ers' perspective were, of course, injuries. Wilson was carted off with a left ankle injury from his final touchdown run, which pushed the 49ers' lead to 30-6. Fellow offensive catalyst Deebo Samuel grabbed his left hamstring after a 1-yard run with 13:27 to go.
The 49ers (4-3) have won two straight after losing two in a row, and any positive momentum helps going into next Sunday's game at the NFC West-leading Seattle Seahawks. The Patriots (2-4) have lost three straight for the first time since 2002.
Jimmy Garoppolo, in his return to New England after a 2017 Halloween trade, said it was never his intention to hand Bill Belichick his most lopsided loss as Patriots coach. "I wanted to come in and get a win. To me, it didn't matter if we won by one or 100," Garoppolo said.
Warner's interception was the first of four by the 49ers, and their third got Newton benched in favor of Jarrett Stidham in the game's third quarter. Those were just some highlights by a defense that started only four of the same players from last season's Super Bowl appearance.
The 49ers outgained the Patriots 467-241, including 196 rushing yards on 37 carries.
