49ers 31, Giants 21: Grades

SANTA CLARA – Here are the 49ers’ grades after their first win of the season – a 31-21 win over the Giants.

QUARTERBACK: A. It’s amazing what a difference protection makes. For the first time this season, the 49ers gave C.J. Beathard time to throw, and he threw extremely well. He completed 76 percent of his attempts, completed passes to eight different receivers, averaged 15.2 yards per completion, threw two touchdown passes, including a beautiful 83-yarder to Marquise Goodwin, ran for a touchdown, outplayed Eli Manning and posted the third-highest QB rating in the NFL this week. How can the Niners possibly bench Beathard after this performance? Jimmy Garoppolo can wait.

RUNNING BACKS: A-minus. Matt Breida scored a 33-yard touchdown and Carlos Hyde ran hard as he has most of the season. But Hyde’s most important contribution came in the pass game as a blocker, because made Beathard’s 83-yard touchdown pass to Marquise Goodwin possible. During that play, the Giants blitzed and Hyde blocked a blitzer rushing up the middle. If Hyde missed that block, as he missed numerous blocks earlier this season, Beathard would have gotten sacked, the Niners wouldn’t have scored a touchdown they might not have won this game. Hyde was clutch. But, I give this group an A-minus and not an A, because fullback Kyle Juszczyk fumbled and committed a holding penalty. He has been a major disappointment this season.

WIDE RECEIVERS: A. Marquise Goodwin caught one pass – the 83-yard touchdown pass — and made the key block during Garrett Celek’s touchdown catch. Undrafted rookie Kendrick Bourne became the go-to possession receiver on third down. And Louis Murphy, who was on the team during training camp, then got cut, then got re-signed last week, made a 40-yard catch. None of these guys dropped a pass.

TIGHT ENDS: A. Garrett Celek caught four passes, including a 47-yard touchdown pass. He replaced starting tight end George Kittle, who missed the game with an injured ankle. The offense seems to function better when Celek plays instead of Kittle.

OFFENSIVE LINE: A. Trent Brown and Joe Staley each committed one false-start penalty, and Laken Tomlinson allowed a hit on Beathard. Otherwise, this group was perfect.

DEFENSIVE LINE: A. The Giants slid pass protection toward DeForest Buckner most of the game and forced other defensive linemen to make plays. They did. Leger Douzable was excellent for the second game in a row – he made six tackles. He has been an upgrade over Arik Armstead. And Ronald Blair, who returned from IR last week, has been an upgrade over Solomon Thomas. Blair recorded a sack and a sack-fumble against the Giants. On both plays, he beat the offensive tackle around the edge, something I’ve yet to see Thomas do. Blair has a future on this team.

LINEBACKERS: A. Reuben Foster made 10 tackles and Brock Coyle made six. The Niners don’t need or miss NaVorro Bowman.

DEFENSIVE BACKS: B-plus. Eric Reid gave up a touchdown catch to tight end Evan Engram in the red zone, and the secondary gave up a touchdown catch to wide receiver Roger Lewis during garbage time. But, I’m not downgrading this group for the garbage-time TD. That play didn’t matter. The secondary played well most of the game. The longest catch the Niners gave up was a 26-yarder, followed by a 15-yarder. The defense forced the Giants to grind out long, mistake-free drives, which they couldn’t do. And free safety Adrian Colbert made it especially tough for Eli Manning to throw deep. Every time Manning went downfield, Colbert clobbered the intended receiver. The 49ers may have found their free safety of the future.

SPECIAL TEAMS: A. Punt coverage and kick coverage were excellent, and kicker Robbie Gould was perfect.

COACHES: A. Sure, the 49ers played a bad team. But the Giants didn’t give away the game. The Niners had to earn the win, and they did. They played hard, they were disciplined and they didn’t commit the self-inflicted errors that defined the first-nine games of their season. Kyle Shanahan gets credit for all of that. He was outstanding against the Giants, aside from one play, that fourth-and-1 when he called the same handoff for Juszczyk that didn’t work on fourth down earlier this season. We’ll let that slide though, because Shanahan did so many things right. He called 33 runs, he called screen passes, he called deep passes, he moved the pocket and protected his quarterback. If Shanahan becomes a successful head coach, we will remember this game as his breakout performance. He should feel proud of himself and his team.

This article has 99 Comments

  1. I liked these grades and your analysis. I was at the game, more fans than what the tv showed, lots of people were the food area and other crevices or shady areas, fans were pumped, much more enthusiasm than last year, good building block game!

    1. Great to hear. 49ers might lose some draft position, but it shows show future free agents Levis could be a good place to wind up.

  2. Keeping a lid on penalties was huge. Picking up blitzes too. Amazing what a little pass pro can do.

  3. man this game gave us something to think about

    To bench boatyard or not to bench boatyard?

    Ultimately Boatyard earned at least an opportunity to compete this week in practice.

    Should be interesting to see if Garopoo can pull something off

  4. Just to quibble, I do not think Juice committed a holding foul, so I would give the RBs an A.
    .
    Overall, it was a solid team win, and the coaches deserve that A.

    1. That’s a good point, Seb. They re-showed that play, and even the announcers said they didn’t see a hold.
      I’m not sure about all As, but as I told my gf while we were watching, these guys played like a FOOTBALL TEAM this game. Fun to watch, and even though it was against a pretty poor team, it was still a damn good win!

  5. No longer will watch the game, been a 49er fan growing up in Sunnyvale since 1982. Cancelled my NFL Sunday Ticket and changed my browsing home page “49erswebzone” before the end of 3rd quarter after watching the protests on fox news during this Veterans Day weekend. Once the 49ers were a team of dignity winning and loosing with class and respect. Now they are a team of no moral or ethical principles to guide them. Did not read the article by Grant and don’t care if they won, just don’t care. If this protest ends I might start watching again. Sad, Goodbye.

    For those who feel the same as me, like and follow “Boycott NFL” on Facebook.

    1. Are you a Russian troll or something? Who thinks about the protests so much other then Fox News and their viewers or others that want to split this country apart. The players and everyone love the military. The protests are about something else, not the damn military. You said you live in CA, well open your eyes and EARs and act like it. Or go back to trollville.

      Go Niners

      1. No matter what you think or say, the protests are divisive. You have people making millions per year protesting in a venue that is supposed to be for entertainment. I don’t hear the protests about the white police officers being shot. I don’t hear the protests about the number of single parent homes that help create the violence. I don’t hear the protests against the gangs that run rampant in many cities. There is so much violence and bigotry that is currently running rampant that something should be done about it, but the football field is not one of them.

    2. Good riddance, dont let the door hit you on the way out. The 9ers will pick up fans to replace those of your ilk. Dont come back when we get back to winnin either.

    3. so long Doc. The protest will end when conditions they are protesting end, not because some Trump-led butthurts change their status on Facebook

      1. What’s the deal with posters announcing their absence, LOL? If you’re boycotting, then, you know, …boycott! Be an Existentialist; let your silence and your absence speak for you.
        How can we miss you if you won’t go away?

    4. Glad to see another fair weather fan depart. Since you do not like the protests, you must be for rogue cops killing unarmed civilians.

    5. Have you stopped to really think about what these players are protesting about? Their intent isn’t to disrespect our military or the flag, but to call attention to the senseless minority injustices that have been happening all over our nation. It’s your choice to shun the Niners…but you’re missing out on a team that’s got tremendous togetherness and is just beginning to jell. It’s your loss.

  6. This game will be remembered as the last straw that got McAdoo fired because they let CJ Beathard beat them

    1. In the ultimate insult, the NYT doesn’t even have a Giants beat writer, they just publish an AP summary of the game.

  7. Only managed to stay awake till half time due to time-zone difference and being up since 5am yesterday morning with poorly children, but from what I saw (up until the last 2 minutes of the first half) seemed to be the usual disappointing Niner array of fumbles, turnovers, penalties. I did see some improvement in QB protection, and clearly once the 2-minute warning happened they seemed to be a different team.

    I went to bed thinking it was a winnable game, that I wouldn’t be surprised to wake up this morning to see the Niners had got their first win… but these grades… WOW!

    Am I being too critical of their first half performance? Or was it really the second half when they decided to start playing like a pro-caliber team?

    I didn’t want Garoppolo to start at all this season even before yesterday’s game, and definitely agree with Grant that Beathard should continue to be the starter for at least few more games. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, that kid has gumption.

  8. 49er Security: “How did you get in here?”
    Grant: “My Dad is Lowell Cohn”
    49er Security: “Again,, how did you get in here?”

  9. No complaints on the grades, but I think something should be mentioned about Goodwin playing with a heavy heart and how Saleh did coaching the defense.

    1. Heavy heart indeed. So sad for Goodwin and his family.
      Win or lose, these youngsters are playing tough.

  10. Good-win and my thoughts and prayers go out to him and his family. Seems like the team responded with an emotional effort for a member of their family. Good grades, Grant!

  11. Big picture stays the same: Shanahan system looks great, and when we accumulate good players we’ll have a fun/good team to watch

    Yesterday: your opponent can either make you look like patsies, or brutes. Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce you to the NY Giants, a team of questionable talent, big attitudes, in the NYC media cauldron, which makes any bad trait worse.

    smoke ’em while you got ’em, Niner Faithful.

  12. Looking ahead …
    has anyone heard anything about “Smurf” Wilson’s status
    concerning the concussion protocol ?

    While I never would wish harm to any player ..
    it sure would be nice if he wasn’t on the field in two weeks

    1. I’ve only heard that the team is subject to discipline, nothing about Wilson in particular.

  13. Fair grades across the board.
    As some have said, we beat a poor NYG team so perspective needs to be applied.
    While I agree with that mindset, I also believe that we did not accidentally fall into a win. The 49ers went out and dominated the NYG at every position.

    Sure, beating the Giants is nothing to really boast about unless your a team desperately looking for a win like the 49ers have been.
    At this point I would be happy with a win even if we had beat the Sister’s of the Ascension (doubt they have a team, but you get the point).
    The one thing that has stood out this season is the teams ability to play hard. Not once has this team tanked or mailed it in and that says volumes about their professionalism and belief in Shanahan’ approach.

    On a different note; I’m sure that at some point this season Garappolo will get on the field. But I’ve become a CJB fan over his last starts and will begrudgingly give Garappolo the keys to the offense. We all know that CJ is all heart and courage but after yesterdays outing I was able to see a glimpse of what he could do with a little more time to throw. CJ is a keeper!
    Also, 11/12/2017 could be known for the day our rookie class shined and made their mark for years to come.
    CJ, Colbert, Witherspoon, Breida and Foster made an impact and helped with the win.
    We may have a very good 2017 draft class after all!

  14. happy we won……finally…….but still it was the 1 win Giants……..win next game against SEA…..and we definitely have something…..

    they better keep the kid Colbert at safety………move Ward back to CB……find a way to keep Reid on the team…….He is the adult in the group (saved us a personal penalty yesterday)

    1. I agree. His veteran leadership should not be dismissed as unimportant. Hope they sign him and move Tartt to ILB like Bucannon of the Cards.

  15. Apart from the outcome of the game, I enjoyed the post game articles. Nice job putting the reader in the moment, and providing a distinctive personal insight. Objectively critical where appropriate without suggesting invalidation.
    A good read.

    1. Saint Louis,
      Agreed – a nice job by Grant.
      I also love the look on Shanahan’ face in the above picture. He looks as if a ton of weight was removed off his back!

  16. Nice to finally get a win. Still not impressed with Saleh (Giants were averaging 5 ypc) but I’m excited about Colbert who looked like a human missile out there again. He’s an upgrade from Ward and should be paired with Tartt next year. Replace the liability in Johnson and our secondary might just be decent. Kudos to CJ and Staley by the way… Two tough dudes right there.

    Interested to see how this team comes out against the Hawks after the bye. The D will get gashed I’m sure but if CJ can move the ball against that D in non-garbage time then things should get real interesting…

    1. Big props to Goodwin as well for playing with a heavy heart. This team is not only bringing in players as the building blocks for success, but it is also bringing in players that are helping build strong character!

      1. Condolences to the Goodwin Family. Hope she can have many healthy children in the future.
        .
        Sure am glad Marquise Goodwin had something to smile about when he caught that TD pass on the worst day of his life.
        .
        His loss put this win in perspective.

  17. The best part of this game is the Niners will not go 0-16. The Niners continue to shoot themselves in the foot however this time the Giants are not a good enough team to take advantage of the mistakes. Worth noting I didn’t see one dropped pass.

    I love this kid CJ, he has some promise, he is the epitome of tough. His skillset was skewed during his first few games but you could see during that time, the game is not too big for him. I believe he deserves another start against the Hawks. I hope he gives JG a run for the starting job – that bodes well for the Niners. The QB position for the first time in many years is looking good.

    Staley and Goodwin, two players who could of sat out the game and they didn’t. That’s a direct reflection on them as men and of KS.

    East, couple of weeks ago you had asked who do we have to build the team around. The consensus was Buckner, I think we can add Foster, AW and Colbert all young but are demonstrating some real talent.

    Celek isn’t getting any love here but he was just as instrumental on Goodwin’s TD as Hyde was by picking up his man. He also had a few catches and the one for a TD. Not sure what got into Hyde but he actually showed that he can block

    The Giants are not a very good team but a victory is a victory and the victories are very far and few between the last few years. Still too many mistakes and they need to be resolved for this team becomes relevant again.

    1. UC,

      I would agree that there were many good points regarding yesterday’s victory. Had they played like that earlier in the year, the record would not be so bad, but maybe they need to go through the crucible.

      Foster is a great player, when he is on the field, so I hope his durability holds up. Witherspoon has looked good out there, but he has yet to really be challenged. To be fair, the big knocks on him were his run support and tackling and he has looked good in those areas. Colbert had a great game, let’s see if he can keep it up. Remember that they played the diminutive Giants. I’d like to see a broader sampling before making a decision.

      The same is true for CJB. He’s had terrible luck of being pummeled for the last few games and yesterday he had the immense luck of not getting hit and having his targets largely open. Let’s see what he can do with a decent team who can challenge him while he gets a little better protection.

      The big thing o take away is that the Giants weren’t able to take advantage of their opportunities while the 49ers didn’t compound their errors. Most were small and isolated. Receivers caught the ball which also helps and the play calling helped keep CJBs Jersey clean.

      Oh and I think the first half had some good moments but that British9er is right about it. This game was won in the 2nd half. Something this team hasn’t been able to do in quite some time.

  18. Man this game gave me hope! It was fun to watch. And it’s amazing how much better the offense is when you give the QB a little protection. But the biggest takeaway from me is the difference in these two 1-9 teams. The Giants look like total losers. They don’t play hard, they just don’t care. The coach has no answers and is just waiting to be fired.

    Compare to the 49ers. Even when they were losing they didn’t give up and always played hard. And they seem excited to play for Shanahan. That scene in the locker room after the game spoke volumes. These guys are pumped and have bought into Shanahan and Lynch. And now we have 2 legit quarterbacks. Who knew????

  19. vs. Sea 1:05 PM PT
    @ Chi 10:00 AM PT
    @ Hou 10:00 AM PT
    vs. Ten 1:25 PM PT
    vs. Jax 1:05 PM PT
    @ LAR 1:25 PM PT

    hmm…..I see a win ……possible 2…….

    1. Chicago & Houston perhaps. Depends on which Tennessee team shows up on whether we get a W or not. Don’t see the Sea, Jax, or LA games as winnable.

  20. Glad for the guys on the team that they finally got a win – especially Marquise Goodwin. One thing to take away from this season so far is the 49er players have played hard the entire season. That cannot be said for the New York Giants. If I were the Giants organization Janoris Jenkins would be cut before the team plane landed back at LaGuardia. That dude just flat out quit. I know nothing about Ben McAdoo other than he looks like a rejected villain from an episode of Starsky & Hutch. It sure looks like his team has zero respect for him. Not sure how he still has a job. I’ll definitely take the W but kind of interested in seeing how this win impacts our draft position. Probably puts us around #3 which isn’t awful. I’ve heard some coaches say picks 2-5 are more valuable than pick #1 so hopefully Lynch can turn that pick into something special.

    1. “I know nothing about Ben McAdoo other than he looks like a rejected villain from an episode of Starsky & Hutch.”
      Dating myself, but that’s funny…

  21. Grant does his best Oprah impression, “You get an A, you get an A, EVERYBODY GETS AN A” and the response is, “Good grades”, “Fair grades” lol.

    This stuff is damn funny.

    1. regardless of the grades, the takeaways to me are:

      1) KS still has buy-in from the team (unlike NYG), and

      2) CJ can become a competent QB in the league, and

      3) this is a 3 yr. build back to respectability– unless 2018 draft and FA class are stellar…

    2. Jack
      You do note the players’ buy-in to Shanny, don’t you? You don’t agree, fair enough, but the players seem to. They’re not very good, but they play hard for him. The injuries and roster adjustments make progression of the offense difficult because of lack of continuity.
      You ride a tall horse wrt Shanny.

      1. Brotha,

        My comment had nothing to do with the grades or the team and everything to do with the responses to the grades.

        I gave praise to certain things I noticed that seemed different than in previous weeks. And Grant was right when he said the Giants weren’t a good team but the 49ers still needed to earn it.

        Regarding the players buying in, they kind of have to if they want to be employed don’t they? At least the guys play, and don’t lie down like dogs ala Janoris Jenkins yesterday.

        1. …and Giants players have the option of staying employed without buy-in with McAdoo? The NYG players will have to convince a new coaching staff in NY or elsewhere that they will play hard again– Kyle’s guys are playing for an potential winning future with a coach that has a pedigree and upside…

          most of our young and the few not so young players believe in KS and will have his back, since they see a future with him, if they hold up their end of the contract….

          McAdoo has lost NY locker room, obviously. NY didn’t fight, obviously. But we did– and I’d say locker room buy-in to KS’ got a shot in the arm yesterday– again, obviously.

          and Goodwin’s sad tragedy will add further psychological bonding adhesive to the team, especially the O.

            1. and your 2nd to last sentence implied our guys buy-in is directly linked to a desire for a paycheck…
              buy-in is about many things, but in the NFL, fear of losing a paycheck rarely gets a guy motivated to lay it out for the team and coach staff, week after week….

              1. When the coach has a contract longer than yours you should buy in.

                And if you’re a GM who watches film of the Giants and still would sign #20 than you deserve what you get.

    3. Its easy to get A’s when the test isn’t very difficult. Lets see how the team fairs against the Hawks.

  22. Once again Grants reviews are so myopic, caught up in the moment.

    “The team doesn’t need or miss Navarro Bowman”…maybe not in todays game but the previous 3 weeks they sure could have used him.

    “Blair has a future on this team”…after one game against probably the 2nd worst team in the NFL..bold statement.

    “The offense seems to function better when Celek plays instead of Kittle.”…because they played a defense that is swiss cheese and horrific against tight ends.

    Yeah, lets enjoy the win, it may spark 3 or 4 more before the year is done, finally getting over that hump, but come on Grant, you always go ALL IN on every statement you make. Before the first game you were talking about Hyde being gone and not fitting the system, swore up and down on it, and yet here he is averaging 4.2 yards per carry, 9th in the NFL in rushing yards, tied for 8th in TDs (leader has 7 to his 4), and could probably be a lot higher up those lists if he wasn’t splitting carries with Breida.

    One of these days you might learn some balance, until then…

    1. Well, frankly, I think Foster has massively out-played Bowman. And I’ve thought he’s done a very good job. I’m not the only one thinks so:

      This week’s grades are still going through the review process, but Reuben Foster’s 90.3 overall grade on the season currently ranks 4th among LBs, just ahead of Luke Kuechly (89.9).

      Meanwhile, here’s Bowman:

      Overall 45.0 #61 LB

      And Bowman certainly didn’t do much for the Raiders when McCoy lit the Raiders up for 173 yards before their bye…

      1. But when Foster was out…and when Ray Ray was out…and Reid had to move back to safety because of Wards injury.

        They traded him and then had nothing to replace him at ILB.

        Players will have their ups and downs, and Navarro has had more downs this year than ups, but lets not forget the injury he’s coming back from and that while he is playing, he isn’t physically back to where he could be next season (as that injury is one of those 1 year injury/recovery injuries).

  23. one thing i take away is we need to fix the offensive line.when CJ had the time and Hyde had the holes this offense worked .I know its not sexy but we need to draft or sign some line talent

  24. Please trade soloman thomas…guy off the street is doing a thousand times better…tradr him amd armstead for anything u can get.

    1. “Blair was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round, 142nd overall, in the 2016 NFL Draft.[5] On November 27, 2016, Blair got his first career sack on Ryan Tannehill of the Miami Dolphins. He ended his rookie season playing in all 16 games, recording 16 tackles and three sacks.”

      Wrong.

    2. lol. Until he got hurt he was Top-10 in TFLs and run-stops in the NFL. Top-10. His pass rush, for LDEs was average. For RDEs it’s been below average. He has been improving in that area but needs a lot of technique work.
      Work he couldn’t get because, as a Stanford player, he couldn’t attend mini-camps because the NFL has some idiotic rule about ‘finishing college’ when that’s not what’s on the mind of most of these players.

      Maybe you should stick to Madden or something.

  25. What surprised me most was KS actually calling plays that I have been advocating for all along. He did controlled rollouts so CJB would not be stuck in a collapsing pocket. Hyde did a counter by letting the defense over run the play, then cutting back for a long gain. They did execute screens, which countered the blitzes, although CJB needs to work on lofting the ball better. Maybe he should have done a pump fake so OV could not anticipate the pass. That TE pinching in the DE so CJB could roll out, then running down field to give an easy target, worked almost every time. I even think I saw a read option, something he has called twice in 2 years. They even put men in motion so they were at full speed at the snap of the ball.
    .
    KS had his players focused and prepared. They played clean, with discipline, and the play calling was innovative and unpredictable. I liked how he made adjustments and coached to his player’s strengths.
    .
    Now that the Seahawks are enduring a lot of attrition, too, hopefully this next game will be competitive. Right now, I think it is a winnable game, with their O line woes and Sherman out.

  26. Sorry guys,
    not ready to jump with both feet on the band wagon yet.
    Questions:
    Are CJ and OL ready for the Seahawks defense?
    Can Hyde run against the Seahawk DL?
    Can the 49er defense stop Wilson?
    If no to 2 or 3 questions we will be in for a long day.
    As I live in north Il I wouldn’t count the Bears game as a win. Bears offense sucks except for the running back. The QB isn’t consistant as a rookie but very accurate when given the time.
    Bears defense is very tough we will need strong OL protection

    1. Points well taken.. Even with a wounded LOB they are a huge upgrade from what they saw out of the NYG’s.. Think the key offensively for the 49ers is whether they can run or whether Shanny can use the pass to set up the run. Seattle is stout on the run. Their secondary is hurt but good enough to cover SF if SF cannot run the football..

      Defensively they need to pressure/contain Wilson and play an aggressive pick/turnover game in their secondary.

  27. Great win!! More importantly the culture has changed, which was numero uno on Kyle and Johns to do list. Tim Ryan today on KNBR, who attends every practice, says this team doesn’t practice like your normal 1-9 team, that the togetherness, enthusiasm and overall focus has never waivered. Gone are the recent years of divisiveness and malaise. The locker room yesterday was as if they won a playoff game! Kudos to KS and staff!
    Having said that, keep things in perspective and continue to have patience. It was the NY Giants.
    On a side note, Kaep will continue to hold the dubious record of the longest losing streak by a SINGLE QB (9 straight loses) in Forty Niner history! He can prop that one up with being the only QB in Forty Niner history to lose a SB! Ya gotta love it! LOL!

  28. Highlights from around the Internet:

    49ers RB Carlos Hyde averaged 4.9 yards per carry AFTER contact, with 84 of his 98 rushing yards coming after contact.

    LB Reuben Foster had nine total tackles, four stops, a QB hit, and allowed just 12 yards in coverage on three targets.

    Adrian Colbert played all 66 defensive snaps in his first-career start. He recorded a game-high 2 passes defended and had one monster hit.

    And an observation:

    If you look big picture at the 49ers, the new regime is accomplishing tasks more valuable than wins in Year 1

    -Acquired Jimmy G
    -Developing 9 rookies on the field
    -Players have bought into Kyle
    -Defensive scheme is sound
    -5 losses by 3 pts or less
    -Will pick top 5 in the draft

  29. After 10 games we all should have a pretty good idea of the talent we have. If the 9ers end up with a top 3 pick and can’t trade back who should they draft? I believe the other 2 picks will be QBs so they should be able to draft the best non QB in the draft.

    1. Niners should trade back to around 10 and garner more picks, and select Orlando Brown from Oklahoma.

  30. Grant…I think your game grades are spot on. Beathard earned a ton of respect for how well he bounced back after a literal beating by the Cards. We’re really beginning to see why Shanahan drafted him…he’s smart, tough as nails and fearless. The experience he’s gaining now is great for him and the team. Agree, Blair and Colbert were the defensive stars yesterday. They both made game-changing plays. I also agree that Saleh may just have found his FS of the future. Adrian has the size, speed and toughness characteristic of a high-impact FS, something we haven’t had in quite some time. Our much-maligned OL controlled the LOS yesterday…and played their butts off. Still want to see Lynch sign a couple of the top UFA interior OL and draft a top OT and OG/C for depth and development. The stronger this group becomes, the more potent Coach’s offense will be. As Joe Staley said, this felt better than winning the NFC Championship. Still a long way to go to get back to being a playoff contender, but this was a very good first step.

  31. Great to get the first win, and actually look like a competent team in the process. The really impressive aspect for me was the ability to make some critical 3rd and long plays. That hasn’t been there all year. Usually a little set back kills a drive, but yesterday they were able to overcome that a few times and scored points as a result. And a lot of that success comes from keeping the QB clean.

    However, it was the Giants. The ability to protect the QB, extend drives and score points has been the aberration this year. Hopefully this is a performance they can build on, but season trends suggest this will be an outlier. Sooo, consider me happy for the win but not expectant of this being a sign of things to come.

  32. This was the first enjoyable game of the year. C.J. Beathard played a hell of a game and he deserves another start, that being said heard the Jeff Garcia interview this morning on the Game, and would like to to see Jimmy G take a drive or two to get his feet wet against the Hawks.

  33. Grant gave the receivers , RB’s , QB’s and TE’s excellent grades.

    This bodes well for the upcoming draft.

    It means we may not have to draft as many positions. ie, Hyde, the TE’s, WR’s, Ronald Blair & free safety, Colbert, played well enough to allow the 49ers to concentate on their O-Line and cornerbacks in 2018…We can always find another pass rusher or solid WR in free agency with 120 million in cap space.

  34. Grant Cohn Nov.5/17:

    C.J. Beathard isn’t starter material – that’s clear – but he may not be backup material, either. He misses easy throws even when he’s not under pressure. The 49ers should draft a quarterback at some point during the first three rounds of next year’s draft.

    Grant Cohn Nov.12/17:

    How can the Niners possibly bench Beathard after this performance? Jimmy Garoppolo can wait.

    You kill me man. Learn how to find a middle ground and you won’t look so stupid contradicting yourself so often.

      1. Sure except you’re basing this opinion on yesterday’s performance. The lesson you should learn is not to overreact and decide somebody’s career without having much to go on.

      2. Brisset has done pretty well in Indy and JG was ahead of him on BB’s depth chart. I suspect Jimmy is bright and capable. Now it may be apples and oranges because I don’t know what kind of system Brisset had to learn and adapt to while JG has a big change, but one might be encouraged. In that context I think he’ll play this season.
        In 2 weeks? I dunno. Beatherd performed when he had time, but nobody’s going to have time vs Hags.

  35. It was nice to get a win even if it was over a team that’s quit on it’s HC. The team can now feel good about themselves for awhile and not have to face the mounting pressure of an 0-16 season. Keeps the hounds in here at bay too.

  36. Matt Maiocco, or was it Kevin Lynch, was mentioning that they simplified the playbook for CJB.
    .
    I beg to differ. I think they had many various plays, and they turned him loose. They were not predictable, and kept moving the pocket so they kept the blitzes off CJB. They took shots downfield and attacked the edges, and the blocking was efficient and effective. There were no drops and the third down efficiency was impressive.
    .
    One good thing about JG coming to the Niners is that there is now competition. The competitive challenge brought out the best in CJB, and he responded with that first win. Maybe they should make all the rest of the games competitive.
    .
    Let CJB start, and as long as he can lead drives so they score, he gets to continue starting. Once they have to punt, or there is a turnover, JG gets to start and if he can continue to lead the Niners to TDs or FGs, he can continue to start. This would reward success and help with the assessments. CJB might like this arrangement because he would get to play, no matter what. JG might benefit by watching how CJB leads the team and which plays work best. JG needs and wants snaps, but he may not want to bench CJB. Since this is a lost season, experimenting with the offense using both QBs may help in the long term assessments.
    .
    If both QBs are mature, they should welcome competition. It might bring out the best in both of them.

    1. The 49ers played against a team that’s given up on its coach. In short, beat a real Seattle team, Rams team, sadly that’s only 2 decent teams while the 4 other teams are garbage with Hou losing their Qb on purpose.

  37. WHat lousy grades.
    QB F
    RB F
    WR, what WR? F
    TE F, scrubs can’t do the job
    Oline F
    Dline F
    Secondary F
    Special Team F
    Coach F
    Overall F
    Quality of the Giants, F, they threw the game to the 49ers on purpose, and I hope the Giant coach and Eli are THROWN OFF the team.

    49ers did not win that game at all when the opposition gave it to them. NFL should take away the Giants’ pick at no. 2 for throwing games on purpose.

  38. Agree with most of your assessments Grant. However, you make a big assumption in respect to Kittle and Celik. You make it sound like Celik playing instead of Kittle was the only variable . Using the same criteria you could say the same thing about Murphy in respect to Garcon and the other injured 49er wrs.

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