On Thursday, Sept. 10, the San Francisco 49ers shocked and surprised everyone in the NFL world. They upset the Los Angeles Rams 27-7 in their Week 1 matchup.
Los Angeles came into the game as heavy favorites. Many around the league, including the media and fans, could not believe the dominance from the underdog 49ers. But San Francisco managed to shake up the NFL in Week 1.
Brock Purdy and the Offense Had a Near-Perfect Game
One of, if not the biggest reason San Francisco simply dominated their divisional rivals was because of the offensive unit and how well prepared they were. They played almost a perfect game.
Quarterback Brock Purdy had one of his best training camps this offseason, and it showed in this game. He finished 25-of-34 for 205 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. Besides one interception to corner Quentin Lake and a near interception that was caught by center Jake Brendel, Purdy had perhaps his best game against the Rams.
Along with the passing game, the running game was also effective. Rookie Kaelon Black surprisingly led the way with 14 carries, while superstar Christian McCaffrey had just 10 carries. Nonetheless, it was a dominant game on the ground, as the team totaled 174 rushing yards.
But the most important part was the trenches with the offensive line. In addition to helping the run game finding success, they allowed zero total sacks and gave Purdy enough time to lead a 27-point performance.
Not only did they give up zero sacks, but they completely shut down Myles Garrett, who recorded no stats in 27 snaps.
If this offense continues to carry this momentum and keep performing the way they did in Week 1, they can be very successful for the remainder of the season.
Raheem Morris’ Defense Shut Down the MVP
The 49ers’ offense played their part in the win against Los Angeles. However, the biggest surprise of the day was San Francisco’s defense dismantling the Rams’ star-studded offense.
The Rams scored just seven points, the fewest in a game during Stafford’s tenure in Los Angeles. They recorded just one touchdown on the day, and it came on a short run by Kyren Williams.
Stafford threw for 155 yards with one interception. In addition, he only had one explosive play, which went to Puka Nacua for 41 yards.
All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner had a standout game. He put up 11 total tackles and a key forced fumble. This gave San Francisco the momentum to close out the game. Dre Greenlaw, who had six total tackles, and Renardo Green, with three tackles and one interception, also played major roles in the defense maintaining control.
Defensive coordinator Raheem Morris and his personnel looked impressive, especially playing against one of the best offenses from last season and completely shutting them down. If this continues, Morris should have a home in San Francisco for a long time.
The 49ers Embraced the Underdog Role and Thrived
Coming into Week 1, the 49ers were always looked at as the underdogs because of the hype surrounding the Rams as well as all of the drama coming from San Francisco’s offseason.
There were also many negative headlines surrounding the 49ers heading into Week 1, including disagreements with former 49er Brandon Aiyuk, fake player scandals, and outside controversies in the front office with head coach Kyle Shanahan and owner Jed York.
However, coming into the game, many around the 49ers organization believed Brock Purdy had one of his best offseasons yet, improving drastically, and his improvement ultimately led the team to a victory.
The one stat most forgot about was San Francisco’s Week 1 record when Purdy is the starting quarterback, which was 3-0.
Additionally, coming into Week 1, the 49ers have one of the oldest rosters in the league. With a majority of their key players being over 30, many had their doubts about how much they had in the tank.
Ultimately, those older key players proved them wrong, with receivers Deebo Samuel, Mike Evans, and Demarcus Robinson all having touchdowns. Meanwhile, Warner, Greenlaw, and Nick Bosa all had big impacts on the defensive side of the ball.
In the end, clearly making San Francisco the underdogs won’t change the way they play, and now they are on the NFL’s radar after dominating dominating a loaded Los Angeles Rams roster.
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