The San Francisco 49ers did something in Week 11 that they hadn’t done since Week 5. They took a lead in the first quarter. The offense took the field at the two-yard line after a 98-yard kickoff return by Skyy Moore. Christian McCaffrey punched it in, and San Francisco had an early 7-0 lead.
After the Cardinals only picked up 12 yards on their first offensive drive, the offense looked like the unit we expected on the second series. Brock Purdy found Jauan Jennings for 25 yards, Demarcus Robinson for 13 yards, and then audibled into a slot fade to George Kittle for a 30-yard touchdown. Eddy Pineiro’s extra point was blocked, giving San Francisco a 13-0 lead.
Rookie Upton Stout gave up a 34-yarder. It wouldn’t be a game unless he gave up a big play. Arizona dinked and dunked its way down the field to cut the lead to 13-7. The 49ers went three-and-out, then allowed a 40-yard punt return — just like that, the special teams had already turned into a net negative. But the defense got another stop, and the Cardinals returned the favor by missing a field goal.
The big-play offense returned for the 49ers on the ensuing drive. Jennings and Kittle caught passes for 10 and 11 yards. McCaffrey sandwiched a run for 14 yards in between that. After scanning the field, Purdy found McCaffrey wide open for a 9-yard touchdown pass to give the 49ers a 19-0 lead. This time, Pineiro’s kick was wide right.
The 49ers allowed points on the next drive, but it should never have come to that. They were off the field on 3rd & 10, but Renardo Green had a boneheaded penalty against Trey McBride, where he went out of his way to grab McBride’s facemask. Kyle Shanahan and Robert Saleh were both shown on the replay cursing at Green. An offensive holding call made it 1st & Goal from the seven, and Arizona settled for a field goal to make it 19-10.
After trading punts, San Francisco came close to another red zone trip. On 3rd & 3, Purdy scrambled, saw Robinson late, and almost had another interception. Pineiro’s kick was good from 48 yards.
Malik Mustapha intercepted Jacoby Brissett during their two-minute drive, giving the offense enough time to tack on a field goal before the half. Pineiro’s first attempt was blocked. But Calais Campbell’s penalty on the long-snapper meant Pineiro would have another opportunity, this time from 47 yards. His kick was good, and the Niners had scored the most points in the first half since December 2022, when Brock Purdy made his first start against Tampa Bay.
The Cardinals raced into the end zone to start the third quarter on 4th & inches, but a holding penalty negated the play. It was the 13th flag of the day for the home team. Rookie Nick Martin was the one who drew the flag.
Curtin Robinson remained in for Bethune, who hadn’t been ruled out yet, despite talking to the medical staff on the sideline.
Kyle Juszczyk joined the fun, picking up 21 yards on first down. McCaffrey was this close to scoring on two plays on the drive. He showed his frustration after both plays. Ultimately, a sack ended the drive, and Pineiro’s 47-yarder was good to make it 28-10.
After allowing a long reception, Deommodore Lenoir got his revenge on an interception. He nearly returned the pick to the house. It wasn’t for a lack of effort. It was the first time since the Niners played the Cowboys last season that they had a game with multiple interceptions.
In an apparent effort to pad Purdy’s stats, the 49ers threw it three times near the goal line. Purdy found Kittle wide open in the end zone for Kittle’s second touchdown of the day to give San Francisco an emphatic 35-10 lead.
That lead did not come without a cost, however. Eddy Pineiro came up gimpy, where he was grabbing his hamstring. Curtis Robinson, who was in for the injured Tatum Bethune, also went down on a drive and was looked at by the medical staff. Luke Gifford, who was filling in for Robinson, took a big hit on the punt team and went down, being looked at. Robinson came back in for Gifford.
Arizona added a touchdown in the fourth quarter. The score meant little, as San Francisco still held a three-possession lead. An onside attempt failed, meaning the Niners had the ball in Cardinals’ territory once again with a 35-16 lead and just over eight minutes remaining.
Interestingly enough, the offense came out throwing. And yes, Purdy was still in the game. In the most Purdy way possible, he threw a jump ball to McCaffrey on 3rd & 15, and McCaffrey made the play. McCaffrey would find the end zone. So, for the first time since Week 15 of 2023, the 49ers scored over 40 points in a game.
There were a lot of “firsts” in this one. Arizona didn’t do itself any favors with a slew of penalties, but it also didn’t have much room for error. Another garbage-time touchdown made the score look closer than it was, to 41-22.
It’s a bit much to ask the offense to drop 40 every week, but they were humming all afternoon, and it wasn’t as if they were overreliant on a single player. That’s the sign that they are clicking.
