Your daily San Francisco 49ers news for Monday, January 2nd, 2022
Thompson: 49ers defense gets a ‘needed’ humility check and a ninth straight win (paywall)
“In overtime, on second-and-10, Bosa bull-rushed Raiders left tackle Kolton Miller like he was spiked onto a sled. Three seconds after the snap, Miller’s back was crashing into the throw of Las Vegas quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who’d terrorized the 49ers’ defense all game. He was going deep to Davante Adams, a connection that had already produced 153 yards and two touchdowns. But Bosa, who’d nearly gotten to the agile Stidham all game, finally got to the quarterback. More accurately, he got Miller to get to the quarterback…“Man I was happy to see the ball fluttering in the air,” Bosa said. He ran towards the 49ers’ sideline with both hands raised while the duck of a pass sailed into the arms of San Francisco’s Tashaun Gipson Sr.”
“For weeks, Fred Warner had been mentioning how there were things to clean up defensively. Given how dominant — for the most part — the performances had been, it was something to take with a grain of salt. It came off a bit like coach-speak from a leader demanding excellence….But when you look a little closer, the weaknesses were there, especially in coverage. Deommodore Lenoir has been inconsistent on the outside, and Talanoa Hufanga, often his designated help over the top, tends to be far too eager to play-make in the run game, abandoning his coverage responsibilities.”
“What Brock’s doing is real,” Shanahan said. “He’s a talented guy who is very tough, and when he does make mistakes he understands why and then he tries to learn from them. He doesn’t have a ton of experience in this league. So, every time he goes out there, whether it is good or bad, I feel like when you’ve got the skill set and play the game the right way, he’s only going to get better from it. So, there was a number of situations that happened today that he didn’t get in his other four games, and yes, I do think that helps.”
49ers’ flaws were highlighted by Raiders in OT win — and Nick Bosa is thankful (paywall)
“After the game, Bosa saw something positive in the defense’s second-worst performance of the season: It will force that unit to address its issues, perhaps in the same way it did following the loss to the Chiefs…“I think we needed this as a defense,” Bosa said. “That’s a really good team, the best running back I’ve played against in my career, no doubt about it. That dude’s a beast. … The NFL will humble you 100 percent of the time.”
“Purdy can absolutely win games on the road. He proved that in Seattle in a very hostile environment and he did it Sunday in front of a split crowd but under some amount of pressure. Still, the more games you can play at home, the better it’s going to be for a rookie QB … or any QB, really. Maybe Purdy’s a road warrior like Jimmy Garoppolo was last postseason. But I’m sure the 49ers will be just fine if they don’t have to figure that out until future postseasons.”
How Brock Purdy overcame struggles in the 49ers’ epic outburst against Raiders (paywall
“Griese did a great job on the sideline,” Purdy said after the game. “When I felt a little off-schedule with things, just getting back centered. Like, ‘Hey man, you’ve done this time and time again. In games, at practice, nothing’s changing. The situation is a little different, but just do your job.’”
49ers stumble, rumble in punch-drunk overtime win over Raiders
“What followed was insanity. Both offenses ran rampant, and turned the ball over in outrageous fashion. There was even a Robbie Gould game-winner miss, followed by overtime redemption. It had everything… except defense.”
“If the Eagles lose to the Giants next week and the 49ers beat the Cardinals, they’d clinch the top spot in the conference, a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. However, even if Gardner Minshew is playing quarterback again for Philadelphia, they will still be 14-point favorites against a New York team that has clinched a playoff berth and has nothing to play for.”
Kyle Shanahan provides injury updates on Aaron Banks, Dre Greenlaw
“The severity of that injury is fairly wide-ranging. Elijah Mitchell has suffered two MCL sprains this season, with six-to-eight-week timelines given for both. Kevin Givens suffered an MCL sprain on December 4 and is expected back for the start of the playoffs. Colton McKivitz suffered an MCL sprain on October 3 and returned to practice on November 7.”
“I think it was a good game for us,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said. “We didn’t play perfect. But to still be able to find a way to win, I’m real proud of the guys.”
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