49ers-Rams Week 5 TNF Recap

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2:17Max seven toppings. Six for pan and New York style crust. Minimum purchase required for delivery. Prices participation delivery area and charges may vary. Stafford gets under center at the 11-yard line. He takes it. He turns. He gives to Kyron Williams. He gets packed. I think he's short, Tim. I think he's short. And the 49ers storm the field. It is all over. The 49ers have won it in overtime here in L.A. What an unbelievable win. And Hydroma finishes in favor of the MASH unit, the 49ers, and they earned it.

2:51Patrick Claybon:The MASH unit, 49ers, do get it done. We'll put an asterisk on that earned because the Rams made a lot of mistakes. Welcome in to NFL Daily Thursday Night Football Recap. Patrick Claibon here with Nick Shook, joining you for the comfort of our homes in a game that was in my adopted home of Los Angeles, California, where the 49ers should come up with an improbable win against the Rams, But Matthew Stafford falls to one in four at SoFi against Kyle Shanahan and these 49ers. Good to see you, man. What a finish. What a game.

3:23Nick Shook:Yeah, good to see you, too. I'm trying to think about one in four at SoFi against Kyle Shanahan. That one game he won would have been the NFC Championship game on the way to their Super Bowl victory.

3:31Patrick Claybon:I believe so. I'm going to check that while we do this. But yeah, the one being a doozy. The one that mattered the most. But the other ones. Yeah. There are some weird ones in there. And this was one of them.

3:42Nick Shook:Yeah, this was definitely weird. I mean, I feel like this was a bit of a marathon. It was an odyssey of sorts. I felt like I needed a nap after it was over. And it was also a fantastic chess match, I think, of two coaches from the same tree. And again, another great example of why we wish we could have every game in Prime Vision, because it just opens up what you can see. And what you could see there was them both using their approaches, whether they're going to come in in tight formation and try to capitalize outside the numbers, whether they're going to motion a lot, whether they're going to capitalize on one defense suddenly switching to man in the fourth quarter and victimizing you with Devontae Adams with some potentially illegal slash illegal screens, like setting some natural rubs, all sorts of different things.

4:22Nick Shook:It was just back and forth chess match. Chess piece moved here, another piece moved here. Felt like I was sitting in a park and guys are making a move and hitting the clock. Like it was a fantastic back and forth, a really entertaining game. got weird at times the finish a little anticlimactic uh depending on who you were rooting for i suppose but um a doozy of a thursday night football game that may make us reconsider the state of the nfc

4:45Patrick Claybon:west yeah absolutely again a game that i thought was going to be a rock fight shook i was going to be like 15 to 12 ultimately they're going up and down the field and so let's look at the history on those chess moves uh and start this game with there's there's dealing and then there's how mac jones started the game on the first two drives he completed 11 of 13 passes one to jake tonjes for a touchdown another one where coming into this game considering the injuries and the way kendrick born had played foreshadowing for what we'll discuss as the game goes on uh i thought this was going to be all cmc and it started with a touchdown pass to christian mccaffrey and uh let's let's watch it listen love the matchup mccaffrey's got right now max jones throws

5:37Patrick Claybon:All Niners at that point shook, and when the call can see the matchup on the goal line, and everybody knows, you know, you don't want to be out there all alone with 23. Surprise, surprise, the results of the touchdown.

5:49Nick Shook:Yeah, yeah, it's a very standard rollout play that you run on the goal line. You just hope to create enough of a crease that your defender's never going to catch up, and undercut that play. And of course, that's what happened. But it really set an early shocking tone that the 49ers were able to grab a 14-0 advantage. It felt like they had prepared perfectly for what they were going to deal with in terms of disadvantageous circumstances. Not having Brock Purdy, not having Jawan Jennings, not having Ricky Pearsall, and being forced to play with Mac Jones, who, by the way, a couple weeks ago, suffered a knee injury that he was dealing with against the Cardinals that limited him in that game.

6:21Nick Shook:Now, they didn't need him last week, but they certainly needed him tonight, and he needed his inner strength to be able to get through this game. So it was really important for them to get off to that hot start. They basically realized we're going to take what the defense gives us. We're going to move down the field efficiently. And I think it caught the Rams by surprise for almost two full quarters before they could kind of regain their bearings and figure out how are we going to counter this. And that's when the chess match really began.

6:44Patrick Claybon:Yeah, and one of those finding their bearings was a simple toss play from Stafford to Blake Corham. It gets credited as a Stafford fumble, but Blake got caught looking for his future instead of the football. And it results in a turnover that the 49ers are able to enjoy that CMC touchdown off. So at that point, 14, nothing again, Mac Jones is dealing. And Kendrick Bourne catches a couple of drives on the draft on catches, a couple of balls on the drive. And then there's a third down where he just puts one on the turf and there's life for the Rams. They come back and score on a drive where Stafford uses Ferguson on third down hits Kyron Williams for a 13-yard scorer.

7:22Patrick Claybon:From that point on, we have a really solid middle of the football game for both teams.

7:27Nick Shook:Yeah, and that was when I feel like, like you said, new life and really an opportunity for them to get back into this game. What's funny too is there was another sequence where the Niners had a chance to potentially go up 21-7, and instead they are limited to a 17-7 lead. Actually, they kick a field goal. They could have gone up 24-7. They kick a field goal to make it 20 to 7 and that was like one of those shifting points where you're like they get in the end zone here this game might be over and instead the rams bow up and stop them but it was those those flash points within this game where it just like the the tides just rise and fell or rose and fell throughout this game and and yeah that it's it's interesting because another thing that developed throughout this game that i thought really changed the flow of it was the trench play i know that's like my thing right but early on early on the the niners are destroying the Rams in the trenches.

8:17Nick Shook:They're getting great surge. They're doing whatever they want. They can't get pressure on Mac Jones. They're allowing him to get those balls out quickly. And then by the second half, the Rams realized we have to change the way that we're approaching this game. We have to move Jared Verse into the A-gap. We have to mug him in the A-gap and just confuse what Mac Jones is looking at. And that's another point in the game in which it really changed. But yeah, the Rams needed that first entry back into this game for it to even be an entertaining contest.

8:43Patrick Claybon:Yeah, there was, as we get into the second half, Nate Landman. Great night for him. We love calling him Landman. Makes great play on a third down where the 49ers ultimately had a fourth and one deep in their own territory. Kyle Shanahan goes for it. But then as they get a little farther down the field, Landman makes that play. And then the ensuing drive is all Stafford to Devontae. This is that connection where, you know, there may have been some bogut illegal screens out there to kind of free up Devontae, you know, at this point, the second half. But you really saw that connection really start to get going in the middle part of the second half.

9:25Patrick Claybon:And it leads to a touchdown. But but Cardi comes out. The extra points no good. and we all put a pin in that one because it just felt like at that point uh that would have given the rams a one-point lead like this this is going to come back and absolutely brutalize

9:41Nick Shook:yeah yeah the rams were kind of peeking around the curtain with their failure in the detail department uh there would be there was a sequence earlier in the game where they had three drops in a row that killed one of their drives quorum dropped one of the flats kyron williams dropped one that would have been a first down they were missing tackles pretty consistently they're just the little detail things they were not doing well and then the ugly head rears itself again and that is their field goal unit has not been consistent when it comes to blocking this season they that was their fourth kick blocked this season we know what happened in philly with the two kicks blocked they had one blocked against the titans this one keeps it a tie game and makes us all realize oh we're in for one now instead of a one point advantage we are firmly in the potential overtime zone which is exactly what we ended up getting but yeah it was the details it was the details And also on that drive, I love the way that this game unfolded because for most of the night, the Niners are playing zone.

10:36Nick Shook:And for some reason, they go to man in that drive. And Adams just completely torches them. It's just Stafford and Adams. Like he's running great routes. He's separating from a rookie corner. We've got a dime from Stafford over the middle in between two defenders to Adams who broke free from another defender. And I think even Herbstreit mentioned on the call, he's like, now they're suddenly running man and it's killing them. And I don't think they did it very long. In fact, according to NextGen, they only ran man coverage on 10 total defensive plays, and I can see why. But it was a great opportunity for the Rams to get back in the game and for Sean McVay to quickly identify that and work in tandem with his quarterback to get Devontae Adams open, which opened up the rest of their offense.

11:10Nick Shook:Because for a while, too, Pukunakua was not a major factor in this game, and that all kind of changed in the second half.

11:16Patrick Claybon:Yeah, especially in the second half over on the Rams' defensive side of the ball. Braden Fisk had a good shot on Mac Jones in the red zone. on what ultimately was a scoring drop for the 49ers young uh as well as uh turner all got hits on mac jones that started to really accumulate on the quarterback at one point i wondered if his knee brace shook had actually stabbed him in the calf and that's what what was uh what he was reacting to is you know a burst lands uh on top of him and so the four the rams were able to get a stop so a tie tie game eight minutes to go in the third quarter a crucial third and one and it's back to those details you were talking about shook because davante and stafford are on different pages on an option route and they wind up punting the ball away and i wonder how you felt about that play call because i mean it's two vets uh two guys who maybe go into canton you just you take that l

12:10Nick Shook:with when you can get a chance yeah i'm so glad that you brought this up because that was the stretch in the game in which i felt sean mcveigh like many madden players for example fell in love with the pass too much. He went away from the run way too heavy in that stretch of time. And I think it was because it worked so well in the previous drive that they're like, let's just keep riding the hot hand. And there was a pass, I think, on that drive early in that sequence where he misses downfield where you're like, why are you taking a shot 15 yards down the field when it's first and 10? I guess I understand that if you're, you know, if the passing game is heating up, but second and third down, they're still throwing, they're still throwing, they're still throwing, and they just became unbalanced.

12:44Nick Shook:And I think that really pained them in that stretch and allowed uh because it was a back and forth that they they punted away pretty quickly the niners punted away pretty quickly there was a bit of a stalemate between the two sides where i felt they both kind of got out of their comfort zone out of their rhythm and had to reset and luckily they did

12:59Patrick Claybon:because it set up for a great final quarter yeah that final quarter after stafford and davante can't link up it's a spectacular punt so far is going nuts they're at the two yard line and then we get the mac jones drive shook the absolute mac jones drive which includes dump offs to cmc a couple of balls to Kendrick Bourne and Eddie P you know making a kick his eyes getting big as saucers he's talking to everybody just doing what Eddie Pinheiro does at this point but the Rams get the ball they have an opportunity and Alfred Collins the rookie out of Texas makes the play of the game on Kyron Williams at the goal line.

13:40Stafford takes gives Kyron Williams and he He is. Oh, wow. He fumbled it. The Niners are saying they got it. The play was shy of the line to gain. Wait for a signal. They're unpiling everybody at the one.

13:59The 49ers come out of there. Alfred Collins has the football. Oh.

14:06Patrick Claybon:And so with so many of these fumble situations, you know, You get the shot of Kyron Williams getting brutalized over, just doing it to himself. On the sideline, he's beside himself. I'm of the mindset, Joe, when Al Collins not only hits the ball there, he hits the ball in the follow-through. He essentially punches Kyron Williams in the face. That was just a great defensive play where it's not like Kyron Williams wasn't protecting the football. It's just a big man got a great shot on the ball in a big moment and also recovered it. Just a huge play by the way.

14:38Nick Shook:We all need to take a moment to thank Charles Peanut Tillman for his impact on the game. He's been retired for a while now, but it is evident in the way guys tackle every Sunday in every game. And this is the third time I can think of a running back getting the ball punched out in almost the exact same way on the goal line in the last two weeks. It happened to Ramondre Stevenson against the Steelers in week three. It happened to Braylon Allen against the Dolphins on Monday night at the end of week four. And now we go into week five and you see it in the first game of that week. and it's a crucial play because if he scores there, I think that game is largely over unless the Niners can find a way to get down the field, which I don't think they were going to be able to.

15:14Nick Shook:And this is just an example of how these Niners, all these injuries that they've suffered, like they are a walking, traveling mash unit. And yet somehow guys step up and make plays in clutch situations like that. It is an absolutely phenomenal tackle. One of the best plays you're ever going to see from an interior defensive lineman with the game on the line, coming in from behind and knocking out, and then also recovering it. And I think that it was so shocking in the moment, but it was also at the end of a sequence in which the Rams had all the momentum behind them. They were cruising down the field.

15:47Nick Shook:Stafford's hitting Adams. He's hitting Puka. Kyron Williams bounces a run that was supposed to go left to the right side for a 20-yard gain. They looked destined for the end zone. The Niners could not stop them. And with three feet between the Rams and the lead and possibly a win, the Niners find a way to respond and keep this thing a close game.

16:04Patrick Claybon:There was daylight between Kyron Williams and the end zone if Collins does not get that ball out. I'd like the case. Collins not only got the ball back, but he prevented the touchdown because Williams was going in. And, you know, those who believe in the mo might might ask why it did not provide the Rams with the touchdown, because you have to make the play. Yes, you have to do the things. The preceding plays can't make the subsequent play for you. and Alfred Collins understands that. And yeah, shout out to Charles Peanut Tillman, who recently left Cash Patel's FBI, not necessarily aligning with its vision for law enforcement.

16:44Patrick Claybon:And so at that point, the 49ers get the ball back. Yay, congratulations. The problem is the Rams had all three of their timeouts and Kyle Shanahan with a quarterback who has struggled to get on and off the field shook uh at that point elects to be very conservative i also wonder how you feel about that series from the 49ers where they essentially ran about 12 seconds off off of the clock and got stafford the ball back around midfield yeah i mean the entire passing game the

17:12Nick Shook:whole evening was predicated on getting the ball out quickly but when you're backed up against your your own goal post you're on the one yard line the rams have no reason to respect the deep shot when they know that you have no room to navigate in the pocket and find something deep so they're going to play press coverage they're going to create tight passing windows and it wasn't until that third down when they got the ball out and got closer to well actually it was a prior drive but like they in these they were in this situation a couple of times because of great punts and then the great punt then the turnover and it wasn't until the third down after the great punt that they were able to throw the ball toward the sticks and in that situation why would I trust Mac Jones to do anything but hand the ball off three times and at least make them burn their timeouts punt the ball down there give him you know 60 yards or so to work toward to get into field goal range you know that their field goal unit's not good and exhaust them of their timeouts so that they at least have to move up tempo and feel the pressure of having to go no huddle in that sort of situation it made sense it's a tough situation to be in but at that point you're at risk management and with a three-point lead clinging to it on the road even though it was kind of a home environment it made the most sense to me even if uh it was definitely not aggressive

18:15Patrick Claybon:and so the the rams get the ball back uh there's a cardi uh field goal we go into overtime in overtime mac and cmc link up uh there's another completion to kindred born eddie p puts one through and we're thinking okay stafford and the rams get the ball back they have an opportunity to go and score and then we get the sequence that ultimately led uh to the game deciding play shook there was a we discussed before we got going here immediately after the game there's a third and short. They get not a lot of yards. It's a fourth and one, ultimately for the game. Sean McVay is calling the play immediately.

18:59Patrick Claybon:As soon as the receiver catches the ball, short of the line to game, the play calls immediately. Plays in motion, Kyle Shanahan calls timeout. They go to a different play. What do you think took place there between Sean McVay and Kyle Shanahan in that timeout because I think that timeout might have won them the game yeah I think it did too and

19:19Nick Shook:I think your theory that we discussed before is absolutely right that they were going to run the play that they ran repeatedly to Cooper Cup in the Super Bowl and they have a guy to do that they have two guys that they can you know team up to make that happen again in Devonta Adams and Pukunokua and I think they got the look that they wanted and Kyle knew again this goes back to being from the same coaching tree having so much experience coaching against each other he knew exactly what was coming and he was going to do everything within his power burn that last time out to stop it from happening right before his eyes and yeah i i agree because that timeout forced sean to think twice to come out and try to draw them offside and that didn't work and at that point it gets weird because you're like well i've already committed to going for it on fourth and one i've already taken the confidence out of my kicker's brain that i think that he can kick it even though it was a makeable field goal you're almost overly committed to it and you have to do it now you've already kind of sealed your own fate the call itself on fourth and short was very regrettable and that doesn't even come down to the results it comes down to the fact that you did not win the trench battle for most of the night save for when you had you know some improvisation on the part of your running back and their right side of their line gets completely caved in by michael williams and kyra williams as soon as i saw it from the snap the prime vision camera is directly over the plate and you can see the right side line just get caved in and i'm like as soon the ball snapped and they handed off i just went going nowhere not gonna get it and never had a chance and i think that that was when kyle and sean caught themselves in a staring match neither refused to blink and one of them paid the price for it and and these two have had some great ones

20:48Patrick Claybon:uh they've gone back and forth and it it reminds me last year uh shook when there was a hurt rams team they got an out of nowhere win against the 49ers the roles have reversed uh the 49ers got their revenge and they got a win and the rams will you know have a chance to go on the road and take on a hurt ravens team uh which you know a lot of folks dealing with injuries uh right now on october 12th and the 49ers are going to be on the road to take on the buccaneers on that same day um the extra rest needed after this one because they got the bonus football on thursday night with Al and Kirk on the call and Sam on the call for those of us ball knowers who are also watching on Prime Vision which is I mean before we say goodbye you guys gotta watch the Prime Vision version of the broadcast it's everything we wanted as children and we get it