The 49ers’ bad loss to the Rams was already in the making – now they have to get it together
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Kyle Shanahan probably sensed the opportunity coming. Maybe that’s why he was so determined to break the spirit of the Los Angeles Rams.
For most of Shanahan’s time in the Bay, the San Francisco 49ers were the bosses of his buddy Sean McVay’s club. SoFi Stadium was a sea of red again Sunday. The hosts were still winless and coming off an embarrassing defeat. Shanahan sensed the vulnerability. He knew his team couldn’t afford to give them life.
Shanahan was right.
The 49ers had a 14-point lead in the first quarter. They were capable of beating the Rams. Coming off a tough loss at Minnesota and with a shopping list full of injuries, the 49ers could have used the burst they were about to get.
But they didn’t. They didn’t finish Los Angeles. They made enough mistakes, missed enough plays to keep the Rams close. The 49ers led 24-14 early in the fourth quarter.
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Their loss to Minnesota last week was much more understandable. They always struggle when visiting the Vikings, who are now 3-0. But Sunday in Los Angeles was shocking.
The 49ers gave this game away with their uncharacteristic futility across the board. Porous defense. Unchecked offense. Unreliable special teams. And a coaching staff that couldn’t stop the momentum from overwhelming the 49ers.
“I thought we had every opportunity to win that game,” Shanahan said. “I also thought we had a couple of opportunities in the game to run away with it, especially early in the game and with a 14-point lead.”
This loss has been a long time coming, actually. The 49ers have been creating this hole they are in for months now. Because losses like this are a collective failure and the result of a team that is not yet in a flow.
Three games into the season, the 49ers are a team that has looked great in spurts but hasn’t yet put together a meaningful run of consistency. Even when they held the New York Jets in Week 1, they weren’t in a groove — which was understandable in Week 1.
The 49ers’ success has traditionally been built on synchronicity. How the coverage feeds off the pass rush, while the linebackers create chaos. How the offense is built on timing routes, a delicate choreography balanced by a physical run game. For all their star power, the 49ers’ dominance is a product of their interdependent rhythm. A metronome of violence and grace, timing and deception, precision and explosion.
But the 49ers are nowhere near a click. Far from it.
“I think this loss came from us being complacent,” cornerback Deommodore Lenoir said. “We should have put them away. … A lot of it has to do with finishing.”
And the current turmoil is a natural consequence of their last eight months — from an absolutely gut-wrenching Super Bowl loss, to an offseason dominated by warring contract rejecters, to significant changes at key positions, followed by injuries to their best players.
Yes, from a macro perspective, this was coming.
If the Shanahan era has proven anything, it’s this: When the machine that is 49ers football is disrupted, San Francisco becomes a run-of-the-mill team, susceptible to the vagaries and odds of NFL parity. Unlike some teams, like Kansas City, whose success has largely been built on a few strengths that outweigh any weaknesses, the 49ers rely on a more universal strength. They wear down opponents with depth and a barrage of great players spread across the roster.
It’s proven to be a reliable formula, surpassed only by Patrick Mahomes, which is why they still feel good about their chances of finding the synchronicity that makes them special.
Listen to Kyle Shanahan and the players who follow #SFvsLAR.
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) September 22, 2024
If Sunday’s embarrassing loss was a stain on the 49ers’ blisters, it was a productive defeat.
“We have to feel the loss, that’s for sure,” Nick Bosa said. “We can’t just go on and pretend it’s okay. Feel the loss and just start piling on week after week.
“A tough start for sure, but there’s still a lot of football to be played. We’ve been through tough times before. We just have to stick together. We’ve got the guys to do it.”
Brock Purdy did his utmost to lead the 49ers to victory.
The remaining criticism of Purdy is the opulence of the 49ers’ roster. He’s been noted by his critics as more of a beneficiary than a creator of his team’s success. But with the 49ers offense missing its top three playmakers — Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel and George Kittle — Purdy should carry a significant load in this game.
He did his part. He was 22 of 30 passing, 292 yards, three touchdowns. He was a playmaking cyclone out there, scrambling for first downs and keeping plays alive with his feet.
“Even though I’m focused on the defense,” said 49ers linebacker Fred Warner, “I still stand on the sideline and watch the offense and see him fight for every piece of the game and do the job that he did. That’s exactly why he’s the guy that leads us at that position.”
And Jauan Jennings was his favorite target, he looked like Randy Moss. Jennings caught 11 of his 12 targets for 175 yards receiving and three touchdowns. It was a career achievement for someone who is normally the No. 3 receiver.
“He’s a guy,” Purdy said. “I really like that guy.”
But the offense faltered every time it had a chance to put the Rams away. Six of Purdy’s eight incompletions were drops, costing him a great day. The 49ers managed to score three points in the fourth quarter after building an early 14-0 lead.
The defense, which held a two-touchdown lead, was pounded seven times from 15 yards or more, including a pass interference penalty in the final minute that set up the Rams’ game-winning field goal. The number of ball carriers operating in space underscored how bewildered the 49ers were.
And the special teams? The coverage unit allowed a 38-yard punt return to start the Rams’ game-winning drive. Jake Moody missed a 55-yard field goal with three minutes remaining that could have decided the game. And Shanahan believes the game started with a Rams’ fake punt in the second quarter that worked, even though the 49ers expected a fake punt.
“That fake punt,” Shanahan said, “was just the momentum of the game. We gave them a lot of hope to get back into it.”
The 49ers started 1-2 two years ago. In 2022, they also opened the season with two road losses and a home win. They were 3-4 through seven games. It was enough that they traded McCaffrey. The 49ers had won 12 games in a row back then. By the time the NFC Championship Game came around, they were the best team in the conference. But Purdy got injured in Philadelphia, and that was that.
It became the catalyst for their Super Bowl run the following season. They were hungry to come back. They started 5-0 and, despite an injury-ridden three-game losing streak, reached the Super Bowl.
If the third time is a charm, it makes sense that they’ll have to overcome a slump. On their third trip to the Super Bowl, and what it takes to get back on track and find their flow, that might have been inevitable.
“It’s still early in the season, obviously,” Purdy said. “But still, every game counts. We’re just going to take it day by day and not panic about anything, but at the same time focus on the things that we need to get better at. And really need to get better at.
They couldn’t rob the Rams of hope. The trick now is to get it together fast enough so they don’t lose their own hope.
(Photo of Rams coach Sean McVay and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
