29 Sep Notes and Pieces From the 49ers Victory

After a stressful and angst filled game against the New York Giants, the 49ers not only beat them, but they dominated the team on both sides of the ball.

Coming in, players on the 49ers stressed their anxiousness and worry about having to play on Met-Life stadium for the second week in a row. After last week’s slew of injuries to players on both sides of the ball, the team came out relatively healthy for once.

An injury to Jordan Reed in the first half didn’t slow down surprising star QB Nick Mullens, as he threw for 343 yards and 1 TD. It was a superb performance from the offense, as Kyle Shanahan, who was missing a multitude of players, was able to generate 36 points from what many felt was the JV team.

Arguably the biggest takeaway from this game was how well the depth pieces performed. Mullens completed passes to 10 different receivers on the day, including 5 catches from rookie wideout Brandon Aiyuk.

Aiyuk had his best day as a 49ers, and was really the best offensive player on the field. Not only did he catch the ball 5 times for 70 yards, he also carried the ball 3 times for 31 yards and a rushing TD.

Aiyuk was the bright spot for an offense that was shredding a Giants defense that came in ranked as a top-10 unit according to DVOA. Needless to say, the 49ers took care of business against a team that played just as poorly as the New York Jets the previous week.

As for the 49ers defense, the unit was able to stymy Daniel Jones all afternoon.
For the day, Jones completed 17/32 passes for 165 yards and no TDs, he did have 1 INT which was forced by Fred Warner, who has been playing like one of the best MLB’s in the league.

Warner has been playing like a man on a mission, but the big story was the entire defense’s efficiency against Big Blue.

The team was able to hold the Giants to 225 total yards of offense. They also allowed the Giants to convert on 3rd down 4 of 10 times, a very good clip for a team starting a good amount of backups. They also forced 4 total turnovers (1 INT, 2 Fumbles, 1 turnover on downs).

Even without Nick Bosa and Dee Ford, the defensive line rotations got the job done. Men such as Javon Kinlaw, Kerry Hyder, Jr., and Dion Jordan were all over Jones throughout the game. The line performed admirably against a very weak offensive line, but the overall performance was astounding to say the least.

After this dominating performance, the 49ers need to continue this stretch of solid football to compete with the rest of the NFC. Next up: A Sunday Night Football matchup against the 0-3 Philadelphia Eagles.