The San Francisco 49ers slid to 6-0. When it rains it pours, right? That was certainly the case in our nation’s capital Sunday as the would 49ers battled in a mud bog that vaguely resembled Fed Ex Field. The 49ers defense flexed again and held the Washington Redskins scoreless and under 160 yards of total offense. Robbie Gould provided the points.
San Francisco 49ers Slide Their Way to 6-0 Record
The Niners struggled with the elements more than they struggled with the Redskins Sunday afternoon. The rain fell constantly throughout the game and the field was a muddy mess. It became nearly impossible to run any kind of standard offense, and defense ruled the day.
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked about the weather and its effect on the game and had this following to say. “A lot, I mean both teams. Just with the footing and everything how rainy it was. It is not just going and catching, but it is tough to stand up and block people too. I know everyone outside the field always is, just the way it was raining from last night made it a tough game for both sides.”
He wasn’t wrong. It became clear very early on that throwing the football with any measured success was likely not going to be possible. The teams were going to have to run and throw short, accurate passes. In fact, the Redskins opened the game by running the ball ten times in eleven plays, before missing a field goal.
“Yeah, are you kidding me? I had a blast out there, you couldn’t tell?” – George Kittle
The offense did what they needed to do, and in the second half Jimmy Garoppolo put together a good half. In the first half, he struggled, big time. He was 3/10 for 10 yards in the half. It registers as one of the worst statistical halves ever. However, in the second half, he was 9/11 for 141 yards. He definitely got it together when he needed to. He also put together a few crafty scrambles gaining key first downs.
Kittle seemed to be having a great time out there. He caught three passes on the day but was all over the place, making great blocks and was a major factor. He absolutely is the heart of the offense.
The 49ers managed to run for 137 yards on the day, which was pretty good. They lost Matt Brieda with a head injury, but he cleared concussion protocol and seems to be fine heading into the next game.
“It was ‘Mud Bowl 2019 Champions,’ you know what I mean?” – Richard Sherman
There’s been one constant all year long as it pertains to the success of the 49ers. The defense. They were unbelievable again Sunday, holding the Redskins to under 160 yards of total offense, and zero points on the scoreboard. They forced one turnover and had three sacks on the day.
Nick Bosa tore things up Sunday, leading the team in tackles and adding a sack. He was in the backfield all day making plays and disrupting the offense. He is beginning to look every bit the defensive rookie of the year. His post-game celebration of sliding across the wet field led to a dizzying celebration that really showed just how much fun this team is having.
DeForest Buckner was in on the 49ers slide party as well. He was quoted as saying. “It was a lot of fun. It was definitely worth it. I saw Bosa out there sliding, so I said, ‘Let’s do it.’ Everybody else started sliding around and everything. It was like a bunch of little kids out there. That’s part of the game, having fun. Right now, we’re having a lot of fun.”
He wasn’t just in on the celebration, he was second on the team in tackles and added a sack of his own. Dee Ford had a sack as well. This 49er defensive front is the best in the league and only seeming to get better week after week. The 49ers have held each team to 20 or fewer points this year and have allowed only a combined 10 points in their last three games.
Next week the 49ers will look to stay perfect as they host the Carolina Panthers in a game of upper echelon NFC teams. Carolina enters the game with a 4-2 and has a potential MVP in Christian McCaffrey who has nearly 1,000 scrimmage yards and nine touchdowns on the season already. He’s one of the most explosive players in the league and 49ers defense will need to bottle him as much as possible Sunday.
