The 49ers paid dearly for the services of running back Christian McCaffrey and it won’t be known in a week if the transaction has been beneficial to them, but yesterday the bet proved to be extremely profitable against the rams.
In their 31-14 victory over their West Division rivals, the Niners used their new toy in spades. McCaffrey, acquired last week from the Panthers, pulled off a hat trick in his own unique way.
He first distinguished himself in a special way on a surprise play when he threw a touchdown pass to Brandon Aiyuk. The touchdown brought the score to 7-7 and restored the confidence of the team, which had just suffered a long streak of more than nine minutes from the Rams.
In the third quarter, McCaffrey gave the 49ers a first-time lead 17–14 when he caught a pass from Jimmy Garoppolo in the end zone.
The triple crown was completed when he ran into the end zone on one yard in the fourth quarter.
Sign that the feat is nothing trivial, he became the third running back in history to throw a touchdown pass in addition to registering a touchdown and another on a reception. Only the immortals Walter Payton (1979) and LaDainian Tomlinson (2005) had done so.
A whole weapon
For the 49ers, it’s a dream start to this new marriage. They had to hand over four draft picks to the Panthers to get their hands on head coach Kyle Shanahan’s every wish.
The risk remains huge due to McCaffrey’s injury history, but if he stays healthy, he will quickly become a smoking gun for Shanahan and general manager John Lynch, who dared.
The team is well equipped to attempt a breakthrough in the fully open National Conference. When McCaffrey is reunited with Deebo Samuel, who was on the sidelines yesterday, Shanahan will be able to get creative at will and the attack will become frankly difficult to stop despite Garoppolo’s limitations.
That said, even Garoppolo was terrific yesterday, completing 21 of his 25 passes, including two for touchdowns. Not a quarterback in the rich history of the 49ers at this position had completed 84% of his passes since the illustrious Steve Young, in 1997.
Garoppolo obviously has nothing to do with Steve Young and that’s exactly why the staff gave itself every chance to go a long way by paying out for McCaffrey.
He responded with 94 yards rushing and 55 receiving, having touched the ball 27 times. Knowing that he is barely arriving in his new environment, it is a colossal start after his first acclimatization match last week.
The Rams in trouble
For their part, the Rams are far from resembling the champions of the Super Bowl last February. For the fourth time this season, they have scored 14 points or less. It happened only once last season.
The aerial game seems too much based on Cooper Kupp, who was also injured late in the game. He came back to the bench walking, but it will be a situation to watch closely.
Matthew Stafford, meanwhile, was limited to 187 yards, his lowest total since joining the Rams last season.
The 49ers have now won their last eight regular season games against the Rams. Their 4-4 record earns them second place in the division, behind the amazing Seahawks, who also won. The Rams are crumbling in third place.
Nothing is played yet, but the Rams seem to run out of solutions. Will they strike a blow by tomorrow’s trade deadline? Possible, but it will take more than one player to right the boat.
Winners
The Eagles
The Eagles tie the best start to the season in their history at 7-0, which they also did in 2004. Their draft trade for receiver AJ Brown is a genius. Brown gained 156 yards on six receptions, including three touchdowns.
Tua Tagovailoa
The Dolphins overcame two 14-point deficits against the Lions and Tua Tagovailoa shone with 382 yards and three touchdowns. Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle each passed the 100-yard mark.
Derrick Henry
Without their quarterback Ryan Tannehill, the Titans did what they do best, give the ball to Derrick Henry. The carrier responded with 219 rushing yards and two touchdowns. It was his sixth career game with over 200 yards and two touchdowns.
Tony Pollard
This week, many will say that Tony Pollard should be the number one carrier for the Cowboys, ahead of the highly paid Ezekiel Elliott. However, it is an obvious fact that has been obvious for a long time now. He proved it again with 131 yards and three touchdowns.
Bill Belichick
The head coach of the Patriots signed his 325th career victory (including the playoffs). Here he is alone in second place in history ahead of George Halas. All that remains is to join Don Shula, who sits on top of his 347 victories.
losers
Zach Wilson
The Jets quarterback continues to sow concern about his abilities to be the long-term answer. Wilson threw three interceptions, two of which were just awful.
The Raiders
The Raiders didn’t cross midfield with just 3:15 to go. They were shut out and only gained 183 yards against the Saints defense without Marshon Lattimore.
The Lions
The discourse on valiant competitive Lions will have to change one day. The defense is abysmal and unable to protect an advance. It’s been nine games in a row that this unit has conceded at least 24 points. There is no improvement in Detroit.
Davis Mills
The Texans quarterback isn’t solely responsible for his team’s troubles, but it’s becoming increasingly clear that the team will go for their long-term point man in the next draft. Mills is capable of playing well, but his ceiling seems rather low.
The Giants
There’s no shame in losing to the Seahawks in the hostile environment of Seattle, but it was a great opportunity to show that the Giants really had to be taken seriously. The jury is still out on their case.
Monday Showdown | week 8
bengals, Cincinnati, 4-3
Division rank: 3
Joe Burrow
- 15 tds | 5 ints | 2097 yds
Offensive: 11e
Defensive: 10e
browns Cleveland, 2-5
Ranking in the division: 4
Jacoby Brissett
- 6 tds | 5 ints | 1584 yds
Offensive: 6e
Defensive: 16e
5 Games of the week
The Panthers mess up
The Panthers seemed convinced they had beaten the Falcons on their last offensive play. On a “Hail Mary” pass, PJ Walker joined DJ Moore in the end zone to make it 34-34, but Moore celebrated by removing his helmet. The gesture earned 15 penalty yards on the conversion kick and Eddy Pineiro missed his attempt from 48 yards. Both teams went into overtime and Pineiro missed another kick. The Falcons, they did not miss their shot.
A hero in London
For once, the attack helped the Broncos’ cause in London against the Jaguars. A Latavius Murray rushing touchdown gave the Broncos a 21-17 lead with 1:43 to go. It was still plenty of time for the Jaguars, but on his first pass attempt, Trevor Lawrence saw his relay intercepted by K’Waun Williams, who took a dive. The Broncos needed a defensive hero and Williams made the big play. It should be noted that he tore ligaments in his wrist early in the season and is still playing. A very big game!
Parsons wins
The Cowboys manhandled the Bears and their star linebacker Micah Parsons took the opportunity to score his first touchdown in fine fashion. Trailing 35-23, the Bears tried to sound the reply, but runner David Montgomery fumbled the ball after catching a midfield pass. Parsons recovered the fumble on the ground and soon realized no one had touched him before getting up to make a thunderous return to the end zone. He was a running back in his old high school life. We’ve understood why.
Costly mistakes
The Cardinals had several chances to catch the Vikings in the fourth quarter, but repeatedly shot themselves in the foot. When they made it 28-26, punt returner Greg Dortch fumbled the kickoff. The Vikings then scored a short field touchdown. Then, an interception by Kyler Murray and a loss of the ball on a failed fourth try caused their death. The final highlight came on a quarterback sack from Harrison Phillips.
Lockett’s redemption
Seahawks receiver Tyler Lockett went through the gamut of emotions in his team’s win over the Giants. Early in the game, his fumble deep in his zone allowed the Giants to score an easy touchdown two plays later. In the fourth quarter, he dropped a bomb that would have earned the Seahawks a touchdown. The usually reliable-handed veteran, however, made up for his blunders by catching a 33-yard pass from Geno Smith that became the game-winning touchdown. Nice personal revenge!