49ers vs. Titans live blog

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo warms up before an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans Sunday, Dec. 17, 2017, in Santa Clara, Calif. (AP Photo/John Hefti)

SANTA CLARA — This is the live blog for the 49ers’ Week 15 game against the Tennessee Titans. I will update this frequently with information and analysis from the press box.

1:08 Here are the 49ers inactives:

  • WR Max McCaffrey
  • CB Greg Mabin
  • S Antone Exum Jr.
  • LB Pita Taumoepenu
  • DL Leger Douzable
  • DL D.J. Jones
  • DL Ronald Blair

1:23 The Titans win the toss and defer. The 49ers will receive the opening kickoff.

1:34 Robbie Gould makes a 38-yard field goal after a 12-play drive, and the 49ers lead 3-0. Jimmy Garoppolo completed 5 of 6 passes on the drive. On first-and-10 from the Titans 29, Kyle Shanahan called an empty formation and Brandon Fusco gave up a sack. No reason to go empty in that situation. Next play, Garoppolo overthrew an open Marquise Goodwin who was running a corner route.

1:38 Shanahan did a good job calling pass plays into the shade on the first drive. In earlier home games, Shanahan would call passes that went from the shade to the sun. He’s learning.

1:40 On third-and-12, Marcus Mariota throws a four-yard pass to DeMarco Murray, and the Titans go three-and-out. The 49ers will win this game if they continue to force Mariota to throw for first downs on third down. He has been terrible on third downs this season.

1:49 On third-and-4 from the Titans 29, Tennessee rushes five defenders. Garoppolo throws over the middle and Karl Klug bats the ball down at the line of scrimmage. Gould makes a 48-yard field goal, and the 49ers lead 6-0.

1:51 Aldrick Robinson injured his head during that drive. He is questionable to return.

1:58 On third-and-2 from the 49ers 43-yard line, Mariota completes a 21-yard pass to Rishard Matthews. The Titans will face first-and-10 from the 49ers 22 when the second quarter starts.

2:03 Titans kicker Ryan Succop makes a 40-yard field goal, and the Titans trail 6-3. Delanie Walker dropped a pass in the end zone on first-and-10 from the 49ers 22. The 49ers are lucky he didn’t catch that pass.

2:22 On third-and-goal from the five, Garoppolo scrambles to his right and hits tight end Garrett Celek for a touchdown. 49ers lead 13-3. That was a 17-play drive.

2:24 During that drive, Garoppolo lobbed a pass into double coverage as he took a hit, and Goodwin jumped and caught the ball between both defenders. Great play by Goodwin. He has four catches for 55 yards.

2:28 Mariota completes a pass over the middle to Delanie Walker, Brock Coyle strips him and Adrian Colbert recovers at the Titans 46.

2:42 On third-and-goal from the 10, Garoppolo scrambles to his right, throws back to his left and bounces the ball in front of Kendrick Bourne. Gould makes a 28-yard field goal, and the 49ers lead 16-3.

2:48 On second-and-goal from the four, Delanie Walker beats Adrian Colbert for a touchdown catch. Titans trail 16-10.

2:51 End of the first half.

2:58 Jimmy Garoppolo may be tipping plays. Watch his head when the 49ers run the ball. He doesn’t survey the secondary before the snap.

2:59 The 49ers gained four yards on 11 carries in the second quarter.

3:15 On third-and-five from the 49ers 13, Elvis Dumervil chases Mariota out of the pocket and forces Mariota to throw the ball away.

3:16 Succop makes a 31-yard field goal, and the Titans trail 16-13.

3:22 On third-and-4 from the 49ers 34, Trent Taylor drops a pass over the middle. The Niners punt.

3:39 On first-and-10 from the 49ers 24, Solomon Thomas jumps offside. Next play, Mariota completes a 12-yard pass to Eric Decker, who beats Dontae Johnson, of course. The Titans will face first-and-goal from the seven when the fourth quarter starts.

3:43 On third-and-goal from the eight, Rishard Matthews beats Brock Coyle for a touchdown catch. The Titans lead 20-16, and have scored 17 unanswered points.

3:53 On third-and-11 from the Titans 22, inside linebacker Wesley Woodyard blitzes and sacks Garoppolo. Carlos Hyde whiffed in pass protection.

3:54 Gould makes a 50-yard field goal. The 49ers trail 20-19.

3:59 On third-and-seven, Mariota misses Delanie Walker, and the Titans go three-and-out.

4:10 Garoppolo leads the 49ers to the Titans 14-yard line in two plays. Kendrick Bourne made a 54-yard field goal. At the 14, Matt Breida committed an illegal bock in the back. Next play, Marquise Goodwin commits an offensive pass interference penalty.

4:11 Gould makes a 48-yard field goal. The Niners lead 22-20.

4:26 Succop makes a 50-yard field goal with 1:07 left. Titans lead 23-22.

4:31 Gould makes a 45-yard field goal and the 49ers win 25-23. Stay tuned for my post-game Periscope report, game story and grades.

This article has 231 Comments

  1. Shabby has my first 15 scripted plays for this week. Now it all comes down to execution. Make me look good today Shanny!

  2. Today the 49ers take another step. Shanahan is treating this like a playoff game. The team will be fired up. Garoppolo will lead the team to victory.
    Ten – 16
    SF – 23

    1. I’m optimistic as well but that front against our OL minus TB has me a bit worried… LETS GO NINERS!!!

  3. Off topic….

    Here’s an idea: instead of the frankly quite dull overtime rules that NFL has at the moment, teams should play some kind of ‘penalty shoot out’ based around onside kicks. Each team gets to have five attempts at an onside kick. Whichever team successfully converts the most, wins. It would be a ton more entertaining.

    Goodell, if you’re reading this (and I know you are, Seb told me) please consider this suggestion for next season.

  4. Witherspoon is active. I was wondering if he was going to be make it after getting hurt last week.

  5. Rams leading Seahawks 13-0 with 10 mins into 1st quarter. Already sacked Russell Wilson twice!

  6. No coverage here in the LOU… anybody know if Taylor is OK after coming up gimpy from the punt return?

      1. Don’t be jealous because you’re a 300 pound hobbit. Have you seen ? ‘s thigh muscles?

  7. I know we have Malcom Smith on IR right now. But there is no way you guys can feel comfortable about Reuben Foster having a full career.

    He is a good player and he plays hard. But sometimes the best ability is availability.

  8. Why must they always flashback to the kneelers well after the game has started? They do this consistently every single game. If the players want to kneel then fine, but the NFL goes out of their way to promote it by making sure everyone sees it. And gotta love that camera angle looking up trying to depict them as some sort of noble gods. Far left propaganda at it’s best.

  9. Wow. Seven different receivers in one game. Can anyone imagine any of our last few QBs doing that in a game. Or even a season.

  10. Jesus, you see Goodwin steal that INT from the defense. Wow, he’s so different than what he was in Buffalo.

    1. Niner receivers are catching balls from JG that they would drop from Hoyer and CJ. JG really does elevate the teams play

  11. It’s amazing what a difference a competent QB can make. Of course we’ll hear, all week, about how stupid anyone liking Garoppolo is along with strawmen about how we’re already enshrining him in CAnton.

    1. It’s early on but your generation is finally getting a taste of how it used to be back in the day…and why us old timers have such high expectations for our Niners.

      1. ‘Back in the day?’ You mean losing. Three playoff appearances from 1946 through 1980. You mean dropping the deuce against the Cowboys in those three playoff games.

  12. Lil Shanny’s done a good job of scheming to get mismatches with Safeties trying to cover receivers today.

    1. Play calling has been great keeping Titans defense guessing.
      Add the fact Jimmy G throws it on a rope.
      He’s the real deal!

      1. And a good oline to protect Jimmy to get Goodwin open. Jimmy is trusting him to be in the right spot rather he is open or not. Imagine if he was being truly protected. It can only get better

  13. 16 first downs already? How do you stop this Garoppolo kid? He can’t be this good ….. can he?

  14. Per Matt Barrows:
    With 1:41 left in the half, Jimmy Garoppolo is 18-26 for 189 yards with a passer rating of 102.9.

    1. Well that’s obvious, we have a patchwork offensive Line, not to mention a bunch of backups

  15. Well that’s obvious. We have a patchwork offensive line. Not to mention a bunch of backups

    1. Nothing to do with adjustments. We are playing with backups. Eventually you guys will understand that. This team is looking better than they have all season, with a bad oline. But Jimmy has them looking respectable

  16. Titans werent gonna just roll over, we have to go get this one…..these guys are playing for their playoff livelihood. This is exactly what every single player, fan, and niner exec been waiting for, thoroughly enjoying this ball game.
    Headed to Levis on Xmas eve with the kiddies, any tips on parking, traffic, etc would be appreciated. Not familiar with the area, or the stadium. Go Niners!

  17. YORK GAVE THIS SEASON AWAY BEFORE THE SEason BY NOT USING ALL THAT MONEY TO FILL HOLES ALL OVER THE FIELD.

  18. 1 point game in 4th qtr vs a playoff squad, what more could we ask for…besides a dub. Tenn ballhogn 2nd half, someone needs to make a play on def. This drive is pivotal for momentum…..crowd needs to wake up and make some ruckus!
    We got the ball bk before I could post this, dopeness…..can off get in the endzone tho……

  19. The “evaluation” period is over for me.
    Jimmy G really is carrying this team in so many ways.

  20. Theres no way the 49ers can rely on Reuben Foster and playing healthy for the 9ers in the years to come.

    The dude is just to fragile. He may hit hard but he is what us video game nerds call a GLASS CANNON.

    Hits hard breaks fast.

  21. Failure to get in the end zone is killing them today. Red zone offense is pretty much a disaster.

  22. BTW, all the whiners and haters can suck my ****. Quit your stinking whinging. We’re not even rebuilt yet and can win. And if we’d have had Garoppolo at the beginning of the year instead of Grant’s favorite QB — Hoyer — we might be sitting at 7-7 not 4-10.

  23. JG!!!! Yeah, that’s exactly the sort of performance against a good D that convinces front offices to pony up the big dollars.

    Still need to cut out the mistakes in the red zone, but this offense is infinitely better with JG under centre.

  24. I know Goodwin’s performances were improving before JG got here, but he now has 24 receptions for 319 yards the past three games. That is more than just a WR growing. That’s what a good QB can do with a WR that creates space.

  25. Seems there are some haters voting in the poll, more votes for Niners to win 1 or 2 games next year than 11 games.

    1. I believe that’s the poll left over from last year.

      Come on Grant, how about a new poll? Like will JG throw for 300 against the yikes Jags next week.

  26. The Niners are not a real good team yet, but they are now not a bad team.

    Does anyone have a problem with the Niners giving Jimmy G a big Contract now?

  27. Jimmy G has learned so quickly. These games will prepare him for the offseason, camp and next year’s season.

  28. That was fun. We got to see Shanny work his magic against LeBeau. 7 scoring drives. And without a running game.

    Garoppolo was so cool and clutch on the last two drives. He was directing the offense again. This is a huge win.

    Pay Jimmy!

    1. The fact he was able to get the passing game operating so effectively without the support of a running game was huge. Imagine what this offense could be like with a good OL opening holes for the running game and Garcon back.

      1. And Jimmy knowing the entire playbook. Jimmy is already playing well in Shanny’s offense. It took Ryan a full year. Jimmy could be a future MVP if we address the areas you mentioned. Goodwin looks like a #1 WR. Goodwin, like Garcon, can make tough catches. The TEs are being schemed open. This team has a bright future.

    2. We have a running game. Just not one that is very effective against the #5 run defense. Few are.

  29. Jimmy G is the real deal man. And maybe we need to cut Kyle Shanahan some slack too. WRs were wide open and Jimmy G hit them in stride. He looks like Matty Ice back there and he doesn’t even have a true #1 WR like Julio Jones. I wasn’t a big fan of CK7, but he should be in the league. I think they should bring him back as a back-up to Jimmy G. Mayne Kyle can figure out how to use him right.
    I still hate the Yorks and the new Star Wars movie (Sorry nerds!) but it looks like next year is going to be really interesting in the NFC West. Rams look good and Seahawks are coming back to earth. Might have been worth it to suffer through Tomsula and Chip Kelly to finally have an offensive minded HC with a good QB he knows how to make throws.

      1. He’s definitely got the special sauce man. When he sees the pressure he doesn’t blink and just knows exactly where to throw it. Or he slides in the pocket to make a throw.

        1. Once the NFL marketing machine grabs a hold of him Niners will be the league darlings. Look for a lot of prime time games on the schedule next year.

        2. Crab
          Yeah, my wife’s work colleague, an ItalianAmerican and Niner Faithful, is all agog about him. So fo’ sho’, chicks dig him.

        1. Lol! He already sent a tweet out about how he keeps tipping his head…yeah so a “solid” C on the way! :)

  30. Obviously, another game ball for Jimmy G. The Titans made the 49ers offense one dimensional, and LeBeau threw the kitchen sink at Jimmy G with just about every exotic type of zone blitz imaginable, and Jimmy made them pay! Special shoutout to Robbie G, another flawless, clutch kicking performance.

    A few players of mention:

    Marquise Goodwin continues his ascension as a dangerous receiving weapon. He’s the most valuable skill position player on this team, outside of the QB position. He may even have eclipsed my man Pierre Garcon. We’ll see next season.

    Hello Kendrick Bourne. Another talented young player who seems to be developing into a player. I liked him coming out of college, although he needed time to develop. Good blend of size, speed, and hands.

    Celek-Time for another big game! Get healthy Garrett Celek!

    And, of course, Reuben Foster! The hardest hitting ILB in the NFL! That man simply punishes ball carriers!

    DeForest Buckner. What a BEAST!

  31. I’m sure there must be a reason, but I’ve never understood why the game time blog lists time of day,which is apropos of nothing, versus time on the game clock, a key part of the narrative. Can anyone enlighten me?

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