It was a sloppy performance, but the 49ers were able to start their season 1-0 after a 31-17 win in Tampa Bay. The defense forced four turnovers and scored twice, and showed a major improvement from last season.
There was plenty of bad to go with the good. We picked out a few studs and a few duds from the win on Sunday:
Stud: LB Mark Nzeocha
Nzeocha had an impact on defense and special teams Sunday. He started his day by blocking former 49er Bradley Pinion’s first punt of the game to give the 49ers good field position for their first drive. He then replaced Kwon Alexander at the Sam linebacker after Alexander was ejected in the first quarter. Nzeocha responded to his additional playing time by intercepting a Jameis Winston pass in the second quarter.
Dud: LB Kwon Alexander
It feels unfair to put Alexander in the ‘Dud’ category. He had three tackles in the first quarter to lead the team and was all over the field. He lands as a dud because that’s all he could do after being ejected late in the first quarter for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Winston. Sunday was not only Alexander’s debut as a 49er, but also his first game back in Tampa Bay since signing with San Francisco this offseason. His inability to stay on the field earns him a dud, but it’s easy to envision Alexander flipping that script in Week 2 at Cincinnati.
Stud: CBs Richard Sherman and Ahkello Witherspoon
Not only did the 49ers intercept more passes today (three) than they did in all of 2018 (two), they were able to turn two of the interceptions into points. Sherman recorded his first interception as a 49er when he took a Winston pass to the end zone with 11:44 in the third quarter to give the 49ers a 20-7 lead. Tampa Bay fought back to get within six points late in the fourth quarter, but Witherspoon took an interception back to put the game away with two minutes left in the contest.
Dud: Team discipline
Both teams played sloppy, and maybe it had to do with the humid weather in Tampa, but it was an ugly game. The 49ers committed 11 penalties for 87 yards, including three that negated scoring plays. Two of the negated touchdowns came on one drive when a Raheem Mostert run was called back for holding, and a George Kittle catch-and-run was called back due to an illegal formation. Kittle also had a touchdown called back in the first quarter because of an offensive pass interference. Penalties will lose the 49ers games against better teams.
Stud: LB Fred Warner
The leading tackler in 2018 for the 49ers led the team in tackles Sunday with nine stops. Warner’s biggest play of the game came early in the second quarter when he stripped Bucs tight end OJ Howard at the 49ers 8-yard line to put a halt to a Tampa Bay drive that lasted 16 plays and took 8:10 off the clock. The ball was recovered by defensive end Ronald Blair and prevented the Buccaneers from trying a short field goal.
Dud: QB Jimmy Garoppolo
It wasn’t a bad game from Garoppolo, but it wasn’t a good one either. The 49ers’ signal caller completed 18-of-27 throws for 166 yards with one touchdown and one interception. His 80.2 rating was his second-lowest with the 49ers. He missed some throws that need to be made, and his lone interception was returned for a touchdown on a pass that was easily jumped by Bucs cornerback Vernon Hargreaves. Garoppolo played well enough to win today, but will need to step up if the 49ers want to be playoff contenders.
