All the San Francisco 49ers needed Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys was a victory.

It didn't matter how they did it or how many they won by. They simply needed a win.

The 49ers got their victory, 30-24, and had a handful of other developments that will matter as the season rolls on. From the win, to rookies and a veteran shining, here are the six things that mattered most in San Francisco's fourth win of the season:

Had to get a W

There's not really a literal must-win scenario in the NFL in Week 8, but the 49ers were in something perilously close to a must-win Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys. They avoided falling to 3-5 and stayed in a tie for the division lead by getting a win and sitting at 4-4 entering the second half. San Francisco now figures to get running back Christian McCaffrey back after the Bye week, and they've given themselves a little bit of margin for error by snagging a win over the Cowboys.

George Kittle is still here

Making up for the loss of wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk isn't going to be easy, but it gets a little less difficult when Kittle plays like he did Sunday night. He posted six catches for 128 yards and a touchdown in the 49ers' win. More important than the numbers was his style of play. He was very good after the catch and looked more like vintage Kittle than we've seen at any other point this year. San Francisco's offense is at its best when Kittle is creating yards after the catch.

Rookies step up

RB Isaac Guerendo, cornerback Renardo Green, safety Malik Mustapha and WR Ricky Pearsall all had moments Sunday night. Guerendo stepped in after Jordan Mason went down with a shoulder injury and churned out 85 yards and his first-career touchdown on 14 carries. Green was excellent at corner and had terrific coverage on a first-quarter throw from Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott that was intercepted by S Ji'Ayir Brown. Mustapha didn't come up with a takeaway, but he did have a couple of nice tackles and came away with a sweet pass breakup in the end zone to prevent a touchdown. Pearsall caught all four of his targets for 38 yards, and churned out a 39-yard run on a jet sweep that helped set up the 49ers' game-sealing field goal. Getting contributions from this draft class would be a huge lift for San Francisco in the second half.

Red zone fixes

The 49ers went three-for-four in the red zone! That's a big deal for a team that was struggling in that area for most of the year. Their only red zone trip that didn't result in a touchdown Sunday was the final drive of the game where they took a knee to burn the clock. In their last three games the 49ers are 8-of-12 in the red zone when trying to score touchdowns. That 66.7 percent clip is just shy of their 67.2 percent mark that led the NFL last season.

Injury issues

RB Jordan Mason and WR Deebo Samuel both left Sunday's game with injuries. Mason was dealing with a shoulder issue and missed the entire second half. Samuel hurt his ribs late in the game and never returned. Perhaps the Bye week gives both players enough time to heal up and be effective in the second half of the year, but it'll still be worth monitoring closely.

No special teams mishaps

There were multiple opportunities for special teams to flip Sunday's game. Given the 49ers' penchant for special teams calamities and Dallas's terrific kick return unit, San Francisco seemed primed to get burned in that phase. They wound up keeping the Cowboys' electric kick returner KaVontae Turpin in check and didn't let the third phase doom them the way they have in other games. Any special teams hiccup might have been enough to turn the 49ers' win into a loss. They picked a good day for a strong special teams performance.

This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers rookies among 6 things that mattered most in win vs. Cowboys