Not much good in bad 49ers loss vs. Chiefs
Things didn't go to plan for the San Francisco 49ers in their highly-anticipated Super Bowl rematch against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 7. Despite scoring the first points of the contest, the 49ers found themselves trailing 14-6 to Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs at halftime.
Anytime the 49ers created any sort of momentum, a turnover stunted San Francisco's chances of taking any control in the contest. After pulling within two points in the third quarter, a pair of interceptions from Brock Purdy helped the Chiefs rattle off 14 straight points to secure a rather dominant 28-18 win over the 49ers in Santa Clara.
With an underwhelming loss to the Chiefs, the 49ers fell to 3-4 to start the 2024 campaign. Following their 28-18 loss in Week 7, here's some of the good and all of the bad from Sunday.
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Bad: Injuries
Heading into Sunday's contest, the 49ers were missing key playmakers Christian McCaffrey and Jauan Jennings. By the end of the game, Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk were also sidelined for the 49ers.
Samuel played three snaps in the first half before being ruled out due to an illness against the Chiefs. Yet, before halftime, the injury bug continued to bite the 49ers.
After being helped off the field in the second quarter, Aiyuk was carted from the sideline to the locker room before halftime. Aiyuk appeared to be pointing at his knee as he was carted off the field.
Following the game, Kyle Shanahan told reporters that the 49ers feared Aiyuk has suffered an ACL injury.
Bad: Brock Purdy
Brock Purdy struggled on Sunday against the Chiefs, posting his first three-interception performance of the 2024 campaign. Purdy finished the game with 212 yards on 17-of-31 passing with a trio of interceptions. The former Iowa State Cyclone finished with an season-low 36.7 quarterback rating
Facing Steve Spagnuolo's press coverage, Purdy's timing appeared off, missing multiple throws and being on different pages from his pass catchers. Purdy never was able to string multiple throws together or connect for an explosive play until it was too late.
Even on a big gain late to rookie Jacob Cowing, Purdy underthrew what looked like could be a walk-in touchdown. After a 41-yard gain to Cowing, Purdy threw an interception in the endzone three plays later.
Bad: Kyle Shanahan vs. Steve Spagnuolo
Connected with Brock Purdy's struggles was the coaching battle between Kyle Shanahan's offensive approach and Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. After Spagnuolo appeared to control their matchup in the Super Bowl, the Chiefs defense got the better of Shanahan and the 49ers offense again on Sunday.
Facing constant tight-man coverage throughout the game, the 49ers struggled to get anything going offensively on Sunday.
While Purdy struggled through the air, Jordan Mason and the 49ers' rushing attack was held in check against the Chiefs. Mason finished the game with 58 yards on 14 carries, his lowest mark of his 2024 breakout campaign.
Good and Bad: Malik Mustapha
Through most of the game, rookie safety Malik Mustapha was a bright spot for the 49ers' defense. The rookie brought a sense of physicality to the 49ers secondary. Mustapha showed off his big-hitting ability with a pair of powerful tackles. Each of Mustapha's big hits provided a spark to the 49ers defense and got the crowd going at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara.
Yet, Mustapha's performance will likely be defined by one play.
With the 49ers trailing by only two points, San Francisco's defense pushed the Chiefs to fourth and goal from the one-yard line. Instead of taking the field goal, Andy Reid elected to go for it on fourth down.
On fourth down, Patrick Mahomes scrambled up the middle for a one-yard touchdown. On the way to the end zone, Mahomes ran over the 49ers rookie safety.
Good: Ricky Pearsall
Bad: Run Defense
Bad: Special Teams
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Not much good in bad 49ers loss vs. Chiefs