There was no lack of excitement Sunday at Levi’s Stadium. The 49ers emerged with a 36-26 victory over the Arizona Cardinals to move to 9-1 on the season.
Here’s what we took away from a wacky Week 11 contest:
49ers alone in first
Sunday was a crucial game for San Francisco despite the fact Arizona isn’t in the playoff hunt. A loss would’ve moved Seattle into first in the NFC West and pushed San Francisco to the No. 5 seed in the NFC. A win keeps the 49ers a full game up on Seattle, New Orleans and Green Bay going into a six-game stretch where they play each of those teams once. The 49ers can’t be comfortable, but they’re in a much better spot now than they would’ve been had they lost.
Jimmy G overcomes himself
Jimmy Garoppolo was terrific for most of Sunday, with the exception of two bad interceptions in the red zone. He overcame those mistakes to fire a pair of go-ahead fourth-quarter touchdowns, including the game-winner to Jeff Wilson Jr. with 31 seconds left. He finished 34 of 45 for 424 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. His 115.4 rating was a dramatic improvement from Monday’s outing vs. Seattle. Now the road gets tough for Garoppolo and the 49ers’ offense. He needs to continue playing at a high level if they’re going to stay on top of the standings.
Who are these guys?!
The 49ers got some pretty big contributions from some unlikely sources Sunday afternoon. Tight end Ross Dwelley entered the game with 10 catches for 52 yards. He posted four catches for 14 yards and two touchdowns, plus a vital third-down reception that went for a first-down on the game-winning drive. That game-winning drive ended when running back Jeff Wilson Jr. beat his coverage from the slot for a 25-yard touchdown on a slant. It was Wilson’s only touch of the game, his second catch all season, and the first touchdown catch of his career. He picked a good time for it.
Dee. Bo.
The 49ers have been waiting for the No. 36 overall pick to break out, and he’s finally done so over the last two games. He backed up a terrific outing against the Seahawks with an eight-catch, 134-yard showing Sunday. It looks like they’re expanding his role in the offense and finding him in different areas of the field. Most of his work early in the year came on short throws, but now they’re looking for the rookie down the field and it’s paying off with big-time production.
Drop problem subsides just in time
Drops plagued the 49ers on Monday, and they hurt them again early Sunday. Samuel had a third-down drop on the first drive, then running back Raheem Mostert dropped a perfect throw from Garoppolo on a wheel route on a fourth-down on San Francisco’s second series. There were some others sprinkled in, but the receivers came up big down the stretch. Samuel had a magnificent juggling grab on the sideline. Kendrick Bourne made a 3-yard touchdown reception and another nice catch on the sideline on the game-winning drive. Marquise Goodwin even contributed with a five-yard catch late. If the 49ers are going to hang with the other top teams, they have to hold onto the ball when it’s accurately delivered by the quarterback.
A rare tough day for Richard Sherman
Sherman had a rare tough outing matched up against second-year receiver Christian Kirk. He was flagged for three pass interference penalties, although one was a pretty shaky call. Kyler Murray and the Cardinals were the first team this season to really target the veteran corner, who’s having an All-Pro caliber season. Still, Kirk caught six balls for 41 yards on nine targets. That’s hardly a monster day. Sherman has a chance to bounce back against a good Green Bay offense on Sunday Night Football next week.
