The Monday Night Football of Week 10 of the 2021 NFL Season gave us the rebirth of the 49ers who, regardless of the situation of the year or the multiple injuries suffered, for the fifth consecutive time managed to defeat the Rams. Kyle Shanahan’s paternity over Sean McVay is ongoing and he has managed to revive the San Francisco campaign. This is all you need to know about it.
The 49ers are reborn against the ideal rival: Rams
It was already commented on the previous of this meeting, but if there was an ideal scenario for the 49ers’ 2021 season to take an interesting turn, it was precisely against the Rams, a rival they have perfectly measured and tonight at the MNF was no exception. With a final score of 10-31, San Francisco beat Los Angeles in Week 10 and the paternity of the HC Kyle Shanahan upon Sean McVay still stands.
After this score was completed, the 49ers have won five straight games against the Rams, which equates to the longest streak for either team since San Francisco also won five in a row between 2008 and 2010. In fact, since McVay turned head coach of Los Angeles in 2017, only the Eagles have been the others to have managed to win consecutive games (2017 and 2018).
In addition, another interesting section is that, including tonight’s result and going back to the 2020 season, the 49ers have a terrible 2-11 streak in games at Levi’s Stadium, but both wins were precisely against the Rams, which which confirms that, no matter the season or the situation in how the teams arrive, Shanahan has become an expert in beating McVay.
Offensive balance: key point for San Francisco
Focusing on what happened in today’s game, immense credit must be given to the offensive balance shown by the 49ers. The QB Jimmy Garoppolo he had 182 total yards for 2 TDs in just 19 pass attempts, his lowest amount of the year, but with an accuracy of 78.9%, the best of his season. This tells us that, although its use was not too much, it shone when it was needed.
However, if the team did not abuse the aerial game it was because in the terrestrial field the RB Elijah Mitchell keep dominating. The sixth-round rookie had 91 yards on 27 carries, and in the year he already accumulates 560 total yards, which keeps him as one of the 10 best running backs in the NFL in the field; perfect for a first year player. San Francisco discovered in the Louisiana graduate a real pearl that little by little will attract more attention in the spotlight.
In addition to the above, the WR Deebo Samuel continues with your dream campaign. This time he had 97 receiving yards and 1 TD, plus another 36 rushing yards and a touchdown. Thus, in the aerial yardage department he registers a total of 977 total yards, being the second best in the league, only behind WR Cooper Coup, whom San Francisco could not reduce tonight, however, did not charge a bill because they managed to minimize the Rams attack in other aspects.
End week 10 of the NFL with a 49ERS VICTORY ????#FTTB | #LARvsSF pic.twitter.com/Jo7bcl4ps8
– First and Ten (@Primeroydiez) November 16, 2021
Brilliant 49ers defensive performance
San Francisco entered this game with the second worst defense in the league in the field of interceptions, registering only 2 in the whole year, but that same amount was the one they got in only the first quarter of the game; the first resulted in a 93-yard drive for the first seven points on the scoreboard, and the second in a pick-six who led the 49ers 0-14 to gain a lead they never let go.
The unexpected hero of San Francisco’s early awakening was the S Jimmie Ward, who made both interceptions. To get a better idea of how surprising that was, Ward hadn’t intercepted a single pitch since 2016, before the Shanahan era on the team. In addition, he had only accumulated 2 since he began his career in 2014. But his best fourth as a professional helped the 49ers deliver one of the surprises of the week.
On the other hand, against the running attack they also managed to stand out, depriving the Rams to only 54 total yards, and the RB Darrell Henderson Jr. just 31; its worst amount so far this year. And finally, this meeting was also defined in the third opportunities, where Los Angeles only converted 3 of 10, while San Francisco 8 of 14, which earned them their fourth victory of the year.
Thus, after this meeting, the National Conference becomes even more closed. The 49ers go 4-5 and set the same record as the Vikings and Falcons, just half a game behind the Panthers, who, currently being the seventh seed, would own the last postseason berth in the NFC. For their part, the Rams fall to 7-3, and in a week where they had to take advantage of the Cardinals stumble, they could not finalize in San Francisco.
Can the 49ers make the postseason? Is Jimmy Garoppolo finally playing at a level above average? We read you in the comments below this article and on our social networks.
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