The Press Stories
New Oranges – A Super Dome took a 10-0 lead to enter the 49ers angle for an upside. For the first time this season they had live viewers to fuel them.
Exit at the unexpected time of Drew Breeze due to a rib injury, 49 people must have lived it in Big Easy.
Instead, the 49ers murmured two balls, quarterback Nick Mullens struggled to renew the offense, and a short-arm team retained its third straight loss, this time 27-13 in style to the NFC-leading Saints.
This was, in the end, the path the 49ers (4-6) expected.
“I thought big time was an opportunity for us today,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “We should have taken the lead in the second half. Couldn’t get anything. Not much out of the run game today, those (four) turning points killed us.”
Mullens’ play will be highly scrutinized because it comes with a job description and failed potential scoring drives due to his two interruptions.
Without a running game to help him, and several first-string players injured, the Saints are unlikely to keep pace with those who played in the quarterbacks for this offense, including Breeze, Super-Sub Days Hill and second-half starter James Winston.
“We flew an opportunity there,” Shanahan added.
The Muffet Bunds guarded the closet of 49 players, and the Saints’ return of one punt in the first quarter sparked the day’s trend.
Here are the ups and downs you need to know:
The run game grew: Jericho McKinnon had only 13 yards in his first 13 innings and could be recovered after a pitch by Rahim Mostert in the opening role. McKinnon averaged 1.8 yards per car (18 attempts, 33 yards).
To make matters worse, McKinnon’s bass defense stumbled on several occasions when he returned with a kickoff in the 14-yard line, leaving him with a nerve-stinger injury.
Worst of all, 49 players missed another injury again: Jayamigal Hasty’s player ended the season with 10:32 left when he broke his left collar bone. He suffered a 5-yard loss after catching a checkdown pass from Mullens.
Mostard (ankle), Devin Coleman (knee) and Jeff Wilson (ankle): 49 players entered without their first three Russians. Shanahan expects Mostert and Coleman to return for the Nov. 29 game at the Los Angeles Rams.
Mullens months: Mullens’ two interceptions were big enough to harm the second half comeback.
The third-under lollipop defense was taken over by Malcolm Jenkins in the third quarter to disrupt the movement in the Saints region. It was mentioned on their post game video screens as Saints Game-Game.
Mullens’ grand final was a blurry pass to Kendrick Bourne, with Patrick Robinson remaining 2:25 in the final zone.
Mullens batted several passes in a row, and he finished 38 for 247 for 247 yards with a touchdown of 68.6. Mullens, who was hampered by a quadriceps injury, came out on top in the final quarter of the third quarter with C.J. Beathard replaced him with Richie James on the deep track.
Special Teams OOPS: The 49ers ‘special teams got off to a hot start with the recovery of Marcel Harris’ muffled bat. But then the 49ers gave a 75-gauge kick return.
The worst has not yet come. The 49ers ’tied the ball in the second quarter of their 21-yard line when Trent Taylor called for a fair catch and hit Ken Webster when he hit the ground. James returned in the fourth quarter, leading to the Saints’ final touchdown, with James being the last 49 players to leave the bench after the final seconds had expired.
Exit Breeze: Breeze’s final throw lifted his NFL record to 565 touchdown passes, but it came at the end of the first half, not the fourth. A rib injury knocked him out in half an hour. Although he was not fired, he was fired from a job in the second quarter of Kentavius Street, where officers first dismissed it from a job, which officers unequivocally dismissed.
Breeze was 13th at 8 for 76 yards with a single touch. When James Winston and Daisy Hill started alternately in the quarterback in the second half, Breeze pushed the pace with his hands on his hips sideways. Breeze, with 4:19 remaining in the third quarter, finally put on a hat.
Winston was 10 for 6 in the 63-yard relief.
Great start: Mullens’ 4-yard touchdown pass not only gave Brandon Ayuk a 49-0 lead 7-0, but the 75-yard drive took 7 minutes and 17 seconds to start the game. Mullens was 7 for 6 at 47 yards. Improving this flow was a St. Penalty (CJ Gardner-Johnson lowered his helmet into Kendrick Bourne) and Mullens ‘singular imperfection, which was almost Jenkins’ interference.
Overall, IUC has a career target of 14 times, seven catches per 75 yards.
Big Grab: The tight end saw Jordan Reid catch a hand above the ground for a third down pass, and Reed advanced for an 8-yard gain, one yard down from the first. After that athletic maneuver, Reed headed for the 49ers oxygen tank. He finished with a season-high 62 yards for five catches.
Lead Killers: The 49ers ’10-0 lead has evaporated because of a series of negative issues. It started with a 75-yard kick return, which set a 49-yard field goal. Then, after a muffled punt returned and after a muffled official call that destroyed the layoff of Kentavius Street, the Saints even pulled into Alvin Camara’s 2-yard touchdown run.
The street demanded a harsh penalty after plowing the 29-yard line of 49ers in Breeze. Three plays later, Camara took the toss from Breeze and scored.
The 49ers were unable to respond to those scores before half-time, with McKinnon losing 2-yards at Saints 43 in the fourth and 1st attempts, with 1:50 remaining in the half. Saints’ Answer: Another Camara Touchdown, 17-10 in a 3-yard catch.
Mr. Third Town: Rookie defender Javon Kinla came in twice to beat the Saints for the third time. In the first half, he made a pass defense, and in the first series half an hour later, he made an early win, which denied Daisy Hill a third and 2nd shift.
Paul Hawks: With two series (and a muffled punt), the Saints had just 2 yards, 3 points and 2:29. After giving up a 75-yard kick return, 49 players fell down, forcing the Saints to reach the 49-yard field goal. The highlight of the series was Kinla’s third down pass defense and DJ Jones overcoming Alvin Camara for a 6-yard loss.
Safe change: Following a foot injury that ended the Djokovic wrestling season in the last game, Darvarius Moore joined Jimmy Ward as the 49ers’ opening defender. Moore played deep in the free defense and was close to ward action – maybe too close in a play in which his win knocked Tre’quan Smith out of the game.
With two career interruptions, Ward dropped to 3rd in the second half.
As for Moore’s start, Marcel Harris has been Dart’s replacement for the past 2 1/2 years. Harris came into the special teams and recovered a muffled bat in the first quarter, delivering the ball near midfield to 49 players. Harris recovered from a second setback in the fourth quarter, and Aziz al-Sher played a hybrid line-up to replace some.
Defenders Jonathan Cyprian (femur) and Jared Madden (quadriceps) were injured in the special squad.
Farmer 49ers: Linebacker Juan Alexander had four docks, a 5-yard welcome to Emmanuel Sanders and everything that came in the first half.
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