The San Francisco 49ers lost a heartbreaker to the Tennessee Titans on Thursday Night Football, as they suffered their first loss of the season. The Niners were in control for most of this game until just before halftime when an illegal formation penalty was called against them and led to a touchdown for the Titans. Despite losing, you can take away some positives from this game including two impressive performances by Jimmy Garoppolo which is something we have not seen often enough in 2018.
The “sanfrancisco 49ers” are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California. The 49ers compete in the National Football League as a member club of the league’s National Football Conference West division.
The San Francisco 49ers’ defeat to the Tennessee Titans in Week 16 left them with a sour taste in their mouths. The 49ers seemed to be in control of the game until costly turnovers allowed the Titans to reclaim possession—and a last-second field goal win, lowering San Francisco to 8-7. Following the painful defeat, we examine the 49ers-Titans matchup with a few Week 16 thoughts in mind.
After a lengthy first-quarter drive, the 49ers took a 7-0 lead, got a stop, and then went on another drive deep into Titans territory before Jimmy Garoppolo’s costly red-zone interception derailed the drive. With so many expensive mistakes and a strange choice from head coach Kyle Shanahan, 49ers supporters are probably wondering what might have been offensively, while Titans wide receiver AJ Brown absolutely torching the San Francisco defense has them ripping their hair out.
The 49ers are still in postseason contention at 8-7, but their defeat to the Titans surely made things more difficult for them.
With that in mind, here are a few Week 16 takeaways from the San Francisco 49ers’ defeat to the Tennessee Titans.
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Takeaways from Week 16 for the San Francisco 49ers
Deebo is number three. With the ball in his hands, Samuel is electrifying.
Deebo Samuel, a wide receiver for the 49ers, put on a show against the Titans on Thursday Night Football. Samuel rushed for 32 yards on six carries after catching nine catches for 159 yards. This season, the 25-year-old has surpassed the 100-yard mark five times and has a total of 1,548 yards from scrimmage and 12 total touchdowns. Simply told, he is one of the NFL’s greatest and most versatile weapons. Samuel earned 126 of his 159 receiving yards after the catch, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. He once converted a play that seemed like it was going to be a five-yard loss into a five-yard gain. Samuel is electrifying with the ball in his hands, and when the 49ers give him the ball, wonderful things happen.
2. The 49ers’ cornerback situation remains their most pressing concern.
With Titans wide receiver AJ Brown scorching them for 145 receiving yards and a score, the 49ers cornerbacks had a field day. Last week, Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Russell Gage had 91 yards and a touchdown, while Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins had 114 yards the week before. Emmanuel Mosley and Jason Verrett, both cornerbacks for the 49ers, are both on injured reserve, which doesn’t help matters. While K’Waun Williams had a good pass coverage grade against Brown and the Titans, the 49ers will need more from Josh Norman and Ambry Thomas if they want to get to their destination.
1. Kyle Shanahan does not seem to have faith in Jimmy Garoppolo.
Jimmy Garoppolo, the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, had a terrible game. Garoppolo passed for 322 yards but threw two costly interceptions, one in the red zone. Kyle Shanahan’s choice to basically run the time out with over a minute remaining in the first half, rather than try to score again, was undoubtedly influenced by those interceptions. Shanahan would have been significantly more active there if he really trusted Garoppolo. Instead, he squandered the team’s opportunity to extend their lead against the Titans, a mistake that cost them a three-point defeat. Shanahan must either find out a better way to make the offense work for Garoppolo, as he seems to have done all season, or switch to Trey Lance. For the 49ers to thrive, whatever Shanahan picks at quarterback, he must have complete faith in his quarterback.
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