It was pure domination for the 49ers in Cincinnati. They defeated the Bengals 41-17 Sunday at Paul Brown Stadium. The 49ers out-gained the Bengals 572 yards to 316, with 259 of the yards coming on the ground. The 572 yards were the most by the 49ers in a game since 2012.
There were many bright spots in what may have been the best game in the Kyle Shanahan era. Typically we do studs and duds, but Sunday’s game was such a huge win we only focused on the studs:
Studs: RBs Matt Breida, Raheem Mostert, and Jeff Wilson
The 49ers had their way all game on the ground. The trio of running backs combined for 238 yards on 35 carries for an average of 6.8 yards per carry. Breida had the meat of the yardage with 121 yards on 12 carries, while Wilson scored both rushing touchdowns on runs of two and four yards. Mostert found the end zone on a 39-yard catch-and-run in the first quarter. San Francisco was without starting running back Tevin Coleman, but his absence wasn’t felt Sunday.
Stud: DL Ronald Blair
The entire defensive line played well and held the Bengals to just 25 yards on the ground, while sacking quarterback Andy Dalton four times. Blair was the standout on the line, totaling five tackles with a career-high three for a loss and a sack. His presence on the edge was needed with Dee Ford and Nick Bosa both battling injuries, and he answered the call with one of the best games of his career.
Stud: QB Jimmy Garoppolo
Garoppolo had one horrible throw that resulted in an interception just like he did in Week 1. The difference this week, however, is Garoppolo played great outside of the interception. The quarterback finished the game completing 17-of-25 passes for 297 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. His passer rating on the game was 131.2, his highest rating as a 49er. The biggest difference between this week and last was his yards per attempt. Against Tampa Bay, his YPA was at 6.2, but that jumped to 11.9 against Cincinnati.
Stud: LB Kwon Alexander
Alexander was all over the field just like he was against Tampa Bay, only this time he was able to stay on the field all four quarters. Not only did Alexander have six tackles, but he was effective in pass coverage with three pass breakups and one interception.
Alexander looks like a spark plug on the defense and could be the piece that ties together the defensive unit.
Stud: WR Deebo Samuel
It seemed to be a point of emphasis to get Samuel more involved with the offense this week after the rookie only had three targets last week. Samuel led the team with seven targets, five receptions, 87 yards, and his first career touchdown reception.
Samuel showed his versatility by making plays on deep routes, screen passes and on the ground with consistent success. With Dante Pettis playing only sparingly, there could be case made that Kyle Shanahan views Samuel as the No. 1 receiver on the team.
