The San Francisco 49ers had the NFC Championship in their hands and couldn’t hold on to it.
San Francisco took a 10-point lead into the fourth quarter after Jimmy Garoppolo connected with George Kittle on a 16-yard touchdown completion.
Los Angles responded with a touchdown drive of their own to cut the lead to 17-14, and that’s when the wheels came off for San Francisco.
Jimmy Garoppolo hit Elijah Mitchell for 21-yards to start the 49ers possession, then connected with Deebo Samuel on a screen for 12-yards. After Mitchell burst through the middle of the Rams defense for 9, San Francisco faced second and one at the Rams 44.
A 49ers rushing attack which had been so good all year long would not be able to pick up the first down with back to back runs. Mitchell would get dropped for a loss of one on second down, and then Kyle Juszczyk was stopped for no gain to force a San Francisco punt.
On the Rams first play of the following possession, Matthew Stafford threw a deep pass down the middle and safety Jaquiski Tartt played it perfectly, but instead of coming down with the interception the ball bounced off his chest and fell to the ground.
The drop gave Matthew Stafford a second chance, and he made San Francisco pay. On the next play Stafford found Odell Beckham Jr all alone down the left sideline for a gain of 29. A personal foul penalty on Jimmie Ward gave Los Angeles an additional 15 yards and the Rams reached the 49ers 18 before having to settle for a 40 yard field goal to tie the game at 17.
With the game in the balance, Los Angeles got the pass rush going, hitting Garoppolo on first down to force an incompletion and flushing him out of the pocket on second and third down as well to force a punt
Los Angles was then able to move from their own 39 down to the San Francisco 20 on the right arm of Matthew Stafford and Matt Gay hit the field goal from 30 yards out to give the Rams a 20-17 lead and the victory.
Here are the answers to the five questions asked on Saturday:
- Can the 49ers run the ball? NO
Since the start of 2019 the 49ers have a 23-1 record when they attempt at least 30 runs in a game. On Sunday against Los Angeles, they had 19 called run plays.
The Rams defense was outstanding, holding San Francisco’s rushing attack to only 2.5 yards per rushing attempt.
While the Los Angeles defense did a good job of shutting down the 49ers rushing attack, their offense played a large role as well. The Rams ran 42 offensive plays in the first half to only 20 for San Francisco, more on that below.
- Can the 49ers defense get to Matthew Stafford? NO
The 49ers pass rush was not able to get to Matthew Stafford like they were in week 18, sacking the Rams quarterback twice and recorded nine hits on 52 drop backs. This allowed Stafford to carve up the 49ers defense, completing 31 of 45 attempts for 337 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
Stafford was particularly lethal on third down, helping the Rams convert for a first down or touchdown on 11 of 18 attempts.
Not only did those conversions extend drives, but they also allowed Los Angeles to keep the ball away from San Francisco’s offense and their running game.
Stafford’s leading targets were Cooper Kupp and Odell Beckham Jr. The duo combined to bring in 20 receptions on 25 targets for 255 yards and two touchdowns.
In addition to Kupp and Beckham, tight end Kendall Blanton had a big role in the success of the Rams passing attack. Blanton caught all five passes thrown his way for 57 yards, and more importantly, all five of his receptions resulted in first downs for Los Angeles.
- Can the 49ers defense stop the run? YES
The 49ers defense held Los Angeles to only 70 yards on 29 carries, but those totals don’t show how important the rushing attack was for the Rams, especially in the first half.
This was particularly evident on the Rams 18-play, 97 yard drive which led to the first touchdown of the game. During that possession the Rams were able to pick up 38-yards on 9 rushing attempts. Those runs helped Los Angeles drain 9:33 off the clock.
Los Angeles came into the game having held the ball for an average of roughly 35 minutes in their first two playoff games. On Sunday night their commitment to the run and ability to convert on third down allowed them to hold the ball for 35:39.
- Will the 49ers be able to protect Jimmy Garoppolo? YES, until the end of the game.
The 49ers offensive line did a good job of protecting Jimmy Garoppolo for most of the game, but once the game was tied and the threat of the run game was gone, they couldn’t get it done.
With the game tied at 17, Garoppolo would be hit while trying to throw on first down and the ball would fall incomplete. On each of the next two plays the Rams were in the 49ers backfield and Garoppolo had to escape pressure before throwing incomplete.
On the next possession, Garoppolo was again pressured on first down leading to his pass being knocked down by Greg Gaines, then pressure on second and third down led to a loss of two when Garoppolo tried to dump it off to Jauan Jennings and the game clinching interception as the quarterback just threw it up for grabs trying to avoid a sack.
Garoppolo would finish the game 16-30, 232 yards with two touchdowns and one interception, but it was a tale of two halves for the signal caller.
In the first half, Garoppolo completed 75 percent of his attempts for 133 yards and a touchdown, but in the second half he could complete only eight of 18 attempts with a touchdown and interception.
- Can the 49ers hold on to the ball? YES
Both quarterbacks would throw an interception in the game. The biggest play of the game for San Francisco may have been the one that wasn’t caught.
The curse endures…The NFC Championship Game and the 49ers season end with a loss to the detested Rams. Forget a Super Bowl as long as the hapless York family remains in charge. After 23 years of ownership without a Super Bowl win, everyone once and for all should recognize them for what they are and always have been–losers.
Thanks Jack for your outstanding reporting and commentary this season. God willing, see you again in September.
And how did York contribute to this loss?
I agree. It was Jimmy G and of course brick hands J. Tartt. Still can’t believe he dropped that gift INT. What a LOSER !!!!!
49ers season came down to QB play, and Jimmy Garoppolo couldn’t deliver – NINERSWIRE
The 5 mistakes Kyle Shanahan made to keep his 49ers from Super Bowl LVI: #3 Leaving Trey Lance on the bench – Touchdown Wire USA TODAY
Kyle Shanahan’s decision to go with Jimmy this season, instead of the more talented rookie, was the ULTIMATE example of coaching scared, IMO! And it’s a decision that should forever haunt Kyle Shanahan, or at least until he finds a way to get his football team over the hump, and win a championship!
Bottom line: Sean McVay got it right this season, moving off of Mathew Stafford, while Kyle Shanahan got it wrong, sticking with the same QB who cost him a Super bowl in 2019!
Sure it’s just coincidence but striking how similar your commentary is to that of Grant Cohn’s, who surprised many tonight by giving Jimmy a D, not an F, for his performance.
He thinks he is smarter than everyone else, sure sounds like little Conehead!
Sounds more like Grant on meth.
Kyle Shanahan’s narrow mindedness cost this talented team another potential Super Bowl, IMO. Here is a quick reminder of Kyle’s fatal personality flaw:
“The 49ers set up the Rams’ game-tying field goal drive in the fourth quarter of the NFC Championship Game with a punt in Rams territory on fourth-and-2. Kyle Shanahan never even considered going for it.”
“Shanahan admitted after the game that he was never thinking of going for it, even when he sent the offense onto the field to attempt to get the Rams to jump offside.”
“We were never thinking about going for that,” Shanahan said.
“Shanahan should have thought about it: A two-yard gain would have given the 49ers first-and-10 at the Rams’ 43-yard line, and they would have been only a few more yards from getting into range for a Robbie Gould field goal.”
So why didn’t he think about it?
“WE JUST DIDN’T WANT TO,” he said. “We were up three points and didn’t think it was the right decision.”
In other words, he (Kyle) coaches scared, and apparently it’s an engrained personality flaw. What a shame!
And Deebo got ONE touch in the entire 4th QTR! Deebo deserved better! Niner fans deserved better!
“And Deebo got ONE touch in the entire 4th QTR! Deebo deserved better! Niner fans deserved better! “ What has that got to do with you? You not a fan but you are delusional.
“Sounds more like Grant on meth.”
That’s gold, Rib, gold!
Delusional
There is just something really off with a guy saying the same GD thing in post after post after post.
The big turn around came when Ward got a 15 yard taunting penalty for taunting.
That was so infantile and unprofessional, it cost them the game.
I showed that their mindset was on trying to show the Rams instead of focused on winning.
When the big game comes, you got to be ready.
What a shame
This was neither Wards nor Tartts finest hour, for sure. There were a lot of hands involved in this loss.
The pain mitigated somewhat by the pratfall of the Chiefs and their boy wonder. 49dimwit, that is what a real choke job looks like.
The future’s so bright we gotta wear shades. Proud of this team and their effort.
Lots of reasons the 49ers lost this game. You can point to many different plays – some more glaring than others. The thing I go back to is the 49ers only rushed the ball 20 times. When the 49ers were good this year they rushed the ball 35-40 times. Shanahan let the Rams defense dictate his game plan. When that happened this year the 49ers lost. To me it all goes back to the 49ers not being able to beat a stacked box in the run game and then not being able to make a defense pay for stacking the box in the pass game. The 49ers were able to overcome glaring weaknesses on offense and defense to have a strong year. In the What IF category, what if Verrett stayed healthy. What if the 49ers drafted Sam Cosmi or Creed Humphrey instead of Aaron Banks to remake their O-line. For me, I look at how the 49ers were able to cover up a very weak right side of the O-line and very weak CB play and still make the NFCCG. I thoroughly enjoyed this team this year even with a certain level of frustration.
Did KS ever call a play action rollout during this game? That’s basically our bread and butter off of the run. But I can’t remember them actually running that play.
Patriot. I agree with your thoughts. It feels bad right now since we lost but despite some weaknesses in some areas we still made it to the NFC total game and barely lost it. The vast majority of teams would give anything to get to were the Niners got to. I think the future for this team is extremely bright with Kyle and John. I see mostly winning seasons for a long time.
Jimmy Garoppolo went 3 for 9 for 30 yards and INT in 4th quarter. In 6 playoff starts Garoppolo has a 28.0 Passer Rating in the 4th quarter, ranking dead last among 69 QBs w/ 30+ 4th quarter passes in playoffs since 1991
WOW. It’s no wonder SportsCasting posting this ominous headline just a little over one week ago:
“Jimmy Garoppolo’s Fourth Quarter Curse Could Spell Doom for the 49ers Against the Packers”
It’s almost as if we are clairvoyant, isn’t it?
Psychosocial symptoms:
Excessive agitation
Excessive irritability
Psychosis
Prolonged manic episodes
https://www.sonorabehavioral.com/addiction/meth/symptoms-causes/
Yep.
When it comes to a certain portion of the 49ers fanbase, there is one quote I heard a long time ago in particular, that really rings true in regards to the Jimmy Garoppolo divide amongst the fans:
“Sometimes your heart needs more time to accept what your mind already knows”
I don’t remember who is ultimately responsible for this enlightening quote, but I do know that there is a significant portion of the Faithful fanbase who, for whatever reason, refuse to see Jimmy Garoppolo for who he truly is in the biggest moments, when the lights are inevitably the brightest, and the consequences of every single snap are amplified ten-fold.
@49Reasons
Your schtick is tiresome. You only show up after a loss. You don’t give the 49ers credit for beating the NFC East and NFC North champions at their homes in the playoffs. You don’t give the 49ers credit for going further in the playoffs than the Bills, Buccaneers, Titans, and Patriots. The 49ers were one of the 4 best teams in the NFL this year and all you can do is spew negativity. I actually feel a little bad for you. Your existence must be such a shell of unhappiness and hatred. Maybe you should give up the NFL and focus on your mental health. For me, my faith does a lot to help me keep things in perspective. If you are a believer, maybe skip sports and spend time talking to God. Might make you happier and a more joyful person to be around.
In defense of Jimmy G, Kyle and the 49ers organization put him in a very difficult position this season. Jimmy essentially became a “LAME DUCK” or “DEAD MAN WALKING” after the 49ers drafted Lance at the end of April. I would call this decision Kyle’s “original sin”, but the fact of the matter is it was Jimmy’s own poor play in big games, as well as his utter inability to stay healthy, that prompted the 49ers to move on from Jimmy in the first place. It’s like the old saying goes – “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me” …..
That said, Jimmy did handle an impossible situation with exceptional professionalism. I wouldn’t exactly call Jimmy the consummate pro though, because he never takes responsibility when he does play poorly, and it’s his inability to self reflect, and “self correct”, that is the catalyst for his lack of growth on the football field.
But the fact of the matter is – it really all goes back to what I was saying during the pre-season. I believe Kyle made a fatal decision which ultimately doomed the 49ers before the season even started. The 49ers simply spent too many resources on Lance to then sit him behind an underachieving, middle of the road QB who had already proven himself incapable of getting the 49ers over the hump, even when healthy. The cost of this “COWARDLY” decision not only hurt the 49ers chances this season, IMO, but also put the team in a tough situation going into the early portion of next season. In other words, Kyle potentially doomed his team’s Super Bowl chances not only this season, by riding a QB he knew he couldn’t trust, but also risked getting off to another slow start again next season, as Lance works thru his “inevitable growing pains.”
But that’s ultimately who Kyle is as a HC. He’s stubborn, and narrow minded to a fault, and he coaches scared. That’s the main reason why Kyle “can’t coach himself out of a paper bag” when his team has a double digit lead late late in the biggest games. And that’s a real shame because Super Bowl windows don’t usually stay wide open for very long, and if the 49ers get off to another slow start next season, they could be potentially WASTING two seasons, back to back, despite having the most talented roster outside of the one position Kyle has been unable to solve – the Quarterback position!
DEEBO SAMUEL DESERVED BETTER!
BTW guys, just so you know I am not exaggerating, Jimmy Garoppolo had, once again, one of the three LOWEST grades (42.5) of all of the 49ers offensive players last night, according to PFF!
I hope we can all agree that …. THAT’S SIMPLY NOT GOOD ENOUGH!
You’re not good enough by a long shot. Any chance you could change the subject someday? How about something you actually know a little about.
Great Season. Congratulations to the Niners and fans.
1. Tart’s dropped pick was a blunder but it is not what cost us the game. The Niners had two possessions after that and went 3 and out on both. The Rams scored 13 unanswered points in the 4th quarter. Let’s consider Tart’s play a pass breakup and move on.
2. We need to find a ball hawking / bone crushing safety next year. We’ll see if Hufanga can play that role. We also need at least one corner who can lock down a #1 receiver in man coverage.
3. They were crashing the gaps with LB and Safety to stop the run. I recall at least 2 plays in which old man Weddle stopped Mitchell for a loss. It seems like Kyle should have been dialing more play action.
4. No excuses . Jimmy did not play great. He overthrew wide open Kittle on the first play of the game and his errant pass to wide open Aiyuk caused him to step out of bounds. He was ineffective to say the least in the 4th quarter.
5. Offseason action items : Trade Jimmy and use Jimmy salary to extend Bosa and Deebo. Parag might have to get creative with the contracts. Fix the right side of our O Line. Draft S and CB . I am sure they will find a DT/DE in the 5th or 6th round we were not expecting.
6. Major prediction for 2022 season: Jordan Mathews will almost make the team at least twice next year.
I agree Rollo. Still a great year and congrats to the team and the faithful.
The Niners had two possessions after that and went 3 and out on both.
This to me is my biggest disappointment. The offense had scored a combined 3 pts the entire playoff in the 4th quarter! And that 3 pts came in the last 5 seconds of the GB game. Too many weapons on that side of the ball to not produce when the game is on the line.
It seems like Kyle should have been dialing more play action.
This was a head-scratcher to me. Ram’s selling to stop the run but where was the play action????
Major prediction for 2022 season: Jordan Mathews will almost make the team at least twice next year.
This is too funny!
The same thing happened in the Superbowl. Chiefs scored 14 points in the last 9 minutes and the Niners scored 0. We need to focus and concentrate on putting a complete game together.
The same thing happened in the Superbowl. Chiefs scored 14 points in the last 9 minutes and the Niners scored 0
And getting outscored 19-0 in the 4th in the SB against the Patriots. KS offense has now given up the most lead in the SB and Conference finals history. I hope he can bring us that elusive 6th ring and change the narrative that he cannot get it done on the biggest stage.
Kyle in 4th quarter of last 3 playoff losses as head coach/OC:
2021 vs Rams: outscored 13-0
2019 vs Chiefs: outscored 21-0
2016 vs Patriots: outscored 19-0
That’s 53-0 !
Brutal.
Thanks Mood.
And BTW, just so you know, pointing out these facts doesn’t make you a hater! It’s simply acknowledging the reality of the situation.
“We must be willing to accept the truth of who somebody is, even if it’s not the person that we had hoped them to be” – Confucius
“Shanahan’s lack of trust in his offense hurt the team when it mattered the most” – Kyle Posey
“In the final 12 minutes of the NFC Championship game, the Niners, an offense stacked with talent, couldn’t muster a single yard!”
Kyle Posey wrote another poignant article today, IMO, over at SBNATION, titled –
“Shanahan’s lack of trust in his offense hurt the team when it mattered the most” – by Kyle Posey
“In the final 12 minutes of the NFC Championship game, the Niners, an offense stacked with talent, couldn’t muster a single yard!”
That’s not hyperbole!
It’s one thing to have a playoff run where TWENTY NINE offensive possessions ended in only FOUR touchdowns. It’s something else entirely when, in the biggest game of the season, the 49ers literally couldn’t muster a SINGLE YARD of offense over the FINAL 12:00 minutes of the game, while Deebo Samuel got ONE lousy touch throughout the ENTIRE 4TH QTR!
Kyle put on an absolute clinic when it comes to coaching scared, IMO, or coaching not-to-lose, or however you want to phrase it.
The bottom line is – Kyle choked …. again, only this time he choked from the beginning of the Niners’ 2021 training camp, and finished his choke-job in the 4th QTR of the NFC Championship game, in EPIC fashion!
Meanwhile, Sean McVay and Les Snead took the bull by the horns this season, and they went for it! Their guts led directly to their glory, and it’s only fitting that it’s McVay’s RAMS, NOT Kyle’s 49ERS, who are headed to the Super Bowl.
But again, just to be clear …. I am NOT blaming Jimmy G.
“JIMMY IS WHO HE IS”, to use that useless tautology.
But we all knew that. The problem I have is that Kyle knew it, but he failed to do something about it, despite spending a franchise record amount of draft capital in order to change the team’s fate at QB.
That’s like spending a fortune on a mistress, but still going into a marriage knowing full well that you and your new wife are totally incompatible, and then wondering why your rocky marriage didn’t last, after it ended in a divorce!
And the thing is …. even if the rams had come up short this season. At least they went for it. I’d rather go for it and lose, than be conservative and cross my fingers that it’s enough to win. That’s not the way champions are made!
And the Rams? they are going to be champions because they went for it, starting back in January, while Kyle was afraid to do the same. The Rams recognized that, if they wanted to win a super bowl, that they needed a different QB, even though they got to trhe super bowl with Goff. On the other hand, Kyle knew his team needed to do the same thing, despite getting to the super bowl with Garoppolo.
And what did Kyle ultimately do, despite trading for a young phenom at QB, because he knew he had to get better at QB to win it all? He ran it back with a QB whom he didn’t trust, and I personally think that’s the most pathetic way to go out!
If Garoppolo is a choker, and he is, without a doubt, how is Kyle Shanahan NOT also a choker, when he’s the one who decided to roll with the choker, despite moving mountains in order to replace the choker, because he knew he doesn’t have what it takes not to choke?
Bill Walsh must be rolling in his grave!
NFL.COM – “NFL Championship Sunday winners and losers: Joe Burrow and Matthew Stafford meet the moment
Losers:
#8) JIMMY GAROPPOLO
“More “Oh, jeez, Jimmy” throws, especially toward the end. The problem with Garoppolo is that he is an obstacle. To his credit, he handled this past year with grace and aplomb, operating admirably with his hand-picked replacement on the roster. But there’s a reason why the Niners wanted to make a change at the quarterback position — and will do so this offseason. Jimmy is class. He played hurt. He’s a starting quarterback in the NFL. But it’s just over in San Francisco. The writing’s on the wall. In permanent ink.”
#9) KYLE SHANAHAN
“Kyle not calling a timeout before the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter, thus allowing valuable seconds to wind off the clock, was infuriating for Niners fan. Kyle apparently passing on Tom Brady in favor of Jimmy G leads the league in infuriating. And Kyle then trading up for Trey Lance to replace Jimmy G … Well, that didn’t really work out in Year 1. Being fair, Lance could take the job and run with it in Year 2. And all things considered, Kyle still led the 49ers to the NFC title game, logging road playoff wins at Dallas and Green Bay. He made Deebo Samuel one of the stars of the season, unlocking the wideout’s full potential with creative usage down the stretch. But, man … When you blow a 10-point, fourth-quarter lead on Championship Sunday, everything’s gonna be viewed with a critical eye. I was shocked when Shanahan didn’t go for it on fourth-and-2 at the Rams’ 45-yard line with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Niners were clinging to a 17-14 lead — they needed to re-shift the momentum. But Kyle punted the ball away, and the 49ers proceeded to give the game away.”
Pointing the same thing out over and over and over and over and over and over and over again, on multiple sites, in multiple threads may not make you a hater, but indicates a serious mania.
Do yourself and us a favor, step away from the internet for a while Reasons. You’ve said were going to, now do it this time.
I agree ricardo. I was thinking the exact same thing, but then I came to the conclusion that Kyle simply doesn’t trust Jimmy as a QB. We can conclude this because it seems glaringly obvious just how limited Jimmy is as a passer. Just look at his passing charts. He can ONLY complete passes consistently in one very small portion of the filed – within 15-20 yards downfield, BETWEEN THE HASHES! That’s it!
The thing is, that’s not good enough against the best teams. If it weren’t for the Packers Special teams last Saturday, the 49ers season would have ended sooner, because Jimmy if frankly just too limited as a passer.
Now, there are some fans who just don’t want to hear this, or are unwilling to accept the realities of who Jimmy is a a QB, but the facts speak for themselves. And what really kills me is that Kyle knew this before he signed on to running it back with Jimmy this season, so we really have to ask ourselves – was it worth it, or was it ultimately a waste of a season. And I guess there are only two ways to answer that question:
a) was making a deep postseason run that was ultimately doomed to come up short, worth it, knowing that Jimmy would likely revert to being the QB he’s always been in the biggest games?
or
b) since the ultimate goal has to be either winning the Super Bowl, or at least moving forward and getting better at every position in a tangible way – would anything short of that goal be viewed as ultimately coming up short?
I believe the answer is b)! The 49ers, outside of the QB position, were considered contenders before the season started. And the goal for every presumed “contender” has to be winning the ultimate prize, otherwise the chances of actually winning a Super bowl becomes almost unattainable in a self-fulfilling way.
IMO, Kyle chickened out. He and John were on the right track during the draft, but then at some point in between the draft, and the start of training camp, Kyle lost his conviction in himself. This is a HC/OC who had already coached a rookie quarterback into the postseason with a lesser talented team, and his play-calling boosted that rookie QB into not only being named Offensive Rookie Of The Year, but also being named to the Pro-Bowl! But Kyle obviously lacked conviction in his own ability to coach-up another rookie QB, and it’s a state of self-consciousness that seems to be holding him back as a coach, especially when it comes to holding onto double digit leads in the 4th QTR of the biggest games of his coaching career, and his cowardice is becoming his legacy!
I totally agree on the lack of Play Action passes. That was bizarre to me. The Rams crashing to fill run lanes was an invitation to pick them apart in the middle of the field on play action pass but that didn’t seem to be in the game plan.
Shanahan is one of the best offensive minds in football so I’m sure he had his reasons but it would be interesting to have him explain that.
From The Boston Globe — Is Shanahan A Genius Or A Goat Who Should Get The Boot???
“Shanahan did it again. The man who was the Falcons’ offensive coordinator for the 28-3 debacle, and the man who couldn’t hold a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl two years ago. The Niners again led by 10 entering the fourth quarter on Sunday, but were outscored, 13-0, by the Rams in the final frame. It was the largest fourth-quarter lead blown in conference championship game history.
You almost feel bad for Shanahan, but he brought this one on himself. He coached like he was scared in the fourth, opting to take a delay of game and punt instead of going for it on fourth-and-2 from the Rams’ 45-yard line. Sure enough, the Rams came right down the field for the game-tying field goal.
Shanahan also botched the clock at the end of the game, sitting on all three of his timeouts while the Rams whittled 90 seconds off and took it to the 2-minute warning. The Niners got the ball back with 1:46 left and one timeout, but could have had a much better situation.
It’s not a coincidence at this point. Shanahan gets weak in the knees in the fourth quarter…”
So you read a click bait headline from some guy whose never been on a football field and is trying to scratch out a living as a merited and you agree with him? And now you think your smarter than Shanahan. So funny.
If the Rams win the Super Bowl, it will be the second time a team in the NFC West bet big on proven players to win a Super Bowl. At some point the Niners are going to have to spend some money. On proven CB’s. Instead of wasting draft picks.
Actually the Rams spent draft picks.
Proven? If Tartt doesn’t drop that gimme, the whole narrative changes doesn’t it? “Two costly INTs, one in the end zone (Niner “fans” would be losing their sh!t over that one) Rams paid a kings ransom in acquiring the QB that can’t get it done in the big game. FIRE SNEAD!“.
Well, one of the first round picks the 49ers gave up for Trey Lance is the 29th pick. To me, that’s a win in that trade. So the 49ers got:
Trey Lance.
Miami Received:
2021 first-round pick (No. 12 traded to Eagles to move up to 6 to draft Jaylen Waddle).
2022 first-round pick (Now #29).
2022 third-round pick (Pick #100)
2023 first-round pick
How many teams have ever drafted a QB in the top 3 picks and then made the Championship Game the next year? Joe Burrow comes to mind. If that’s Trey’s future then things are looking very bright for the 49ers.
Trey Lance is no Joe Burrow. Let’s not jump the gun. He’s good but if Shanahan uses Lance to run QB draws and sweeps we are doomed. If they don’t sure up that defensive backfield, we’re doomed.
Last Kyle has got to learn what his teams identity and make sure his play calling fits his team identity.
The future is bright. I don’t disagree with anything you’ve said. There’s some adjustments we have to make so we’re not trying to hide glaring holes.
Lance could be better than Burrow. We don’t know yet. Even with a limited sample size, my opinion is Lance is not great at QB Draws and Sweeps. He’s accustomed to running through defenders in a smaller college setting. He can’t do that in the NFL. Shanahan needs to figure that out quickly. Lance may be good at scrambling but I don’t like called run plays for him. Josh Allen seems to have something Trey Lance doesn’t have in the run game. Maybe it’s size. Maybe it’s just enough shiftiness to make defenders miss. Not sure why but Trey Lance does not possess the running skills of a Josh Allen or Patrick Mahomes.
How did Patrick do in the fourth quarter yesterday?
I have said this many times here, football is won in the trenches and the Rams won on both sides of the line of scrimmage. The Rams won that game far more than the 9ers lost. It was one hell of an entertaining year and should be an equally interesting off season. I never in a million years thought that the 9ers would get two 2nd round picks for A. Smith, lets hope we are just as pleasantly surprised with what we get for JG.
I was one of the biggest Smith advocates back in the day, but call it a string of inept coaching, misuse, bad luck sharing a roster with Kyle Williams, whatever, his resume stalled at two playoff appearances, 1 win, exciting as it was. That netted 2 seconds as you say. I can easily see getting that or more for Jimmy.
I agree we got beat in the trenches when it mattered most. It’s a surprise to some people on this blog that the other team always has a say in the outcome. It’s much easier to just trash your own team than actually become a little knowledgeable.
It was tough to watch Jimmy in the post-game presser last night. You could tell all the emotions that were bottled up in the spirit of professionalism were waiting to break out and he cut the presser short a bit to finally let himself deal.
Though he’s earned a hundred million and his play has been far from great, I just really feel for the guy. He’s super relatable, such an all round good guy and I was really hoping he could win on his way out. It would have been the ultimate send-off. And after the Chiefs lost the AFC Championship it was all of a sudden looking like a legitimate possibility that we could win the whole thing.
I love how all the players rallied around Jimmy late in the season.
It’s a tough pill to swallow- I can’t think of another guy you want on your side, and at the same time he sometimes holds you back from achieving your greater goal.
Last night was all Rams though. Jimmy had very little to do with the loss. I thought he hung in there and did what was asked of him. Unfortunately we lost battles on both lines late in the 4th and it was super clear the Rams players simply wanted it more and willed it to happen.
I have similar feelings about Jimmy. He’s gonna make somebody a great son-in-law. Imo, though, he had a lot to do with the loss. To put it in a nutshell, he had a QBR of 4.2 in the fourth quarter out of a possible 156.3.