Maiocco’s 49ers Report Card: Team grades in rebound win over Patriots

Maiocco’s 49ers Report Card: Team grades in rebounding win over Patriots originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SANTA CLARA – Defensive end Nick Bosa said if he hadn’t known better, he would have thought the building would burn down.

After two straight losses, the 49ers needed to get back on track after consecutive poor performances.

“We lost some people, but I haven’t lost faith in this group one bit,” Bosa said. “So I think we’ll be fine.”

The 49ers did quite well on Sunday with a 30-13 win over the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium.

It wasn’t a perfect game, of course, but it was more than good enough to break the 49ers’ two-game losing streak and even break their record of 2-2.

Here’s a look at the 49ers’ grades after their Week 4 win over the Patriots:

Rushing offense

The 49ers had success locally. Jordan Mason gained 123 yards and a touchdown on 24 rushing attempts.

Mason didn’t start. That honor went to Deebo Samuel, who lined up in the backfield on the first snap of the game.

As a team, the 49ers gained 148 yards on 32 rushing attempts, an average of 4.6 yards.

Quarterback Brock Purdy picked up a pair of first downs on third-down scrambles on the first scoring drive.

Grade: B-plus

Passing offense

Purdy didn’t have one of his better performances, but still made a lot of plays on downfield throws.

Jauan Jennings led the team in receiving yards with three catches for 88 yards. Samuel had three balls for 58 yards. His 53-yard catch was a big play for the 49ers early in the second half.

George Kittle made a remarkable 12-yard catch against triple coverage for a touchdown, giving the 49ers a 20-0 lead in the second quarter. He finished the game with four catches for 45 yards.

The offensive line provided excellent pass protection. Purdy was sacked once, but that came after a play that lasted nearly 10 seconds.

Purdy completed 15 of 27 pass attempts for 288 yards with one touchdown and one interception. New England defensive back Jabrill Peppers tackled Purdy in the end zone.

Grade: B

Rushing defense

The 49ers knew the Patriots would try to run the ball. They were prepared to make sure Rhamondre Stevenson didn’t get in trouble.

Stevensen gained just 43 yards on 13 rushing attempts. Defensive player Sam Okuayinonu forced a fumble, which Maliek Collins recovered.

The Patriots averaged just 3.0 yards on 24 rushing attempts.

The 49ers’ front four controlled the line of scrimmage. Safety Ji’Ayir Brown led the 49ers with eight tackles, while Fred Warner and De’Vondre Campbell each registered seven tackles.

Grade: A-minus

Appropriate defense

Warner got the 49ers going with a diving interception and a 45-yard return for a touchdown early in the second quarter.

Some of the lesser-known players on the 49ers’ defensive line had big performances in San Francisco’s first game without Javon Hargrave.

Defensive tackle Kevin Givens had a big day with a career-best 2.5 sacks. Collins added 1.5 sacks and Evan Anderson added one sack in his NFL debut.

The 49ers signed Anderson, an undrafted rookie out of Florida Atlantic, from the practice squad on Saturday to add depth.

Nick Bosa ended the game with a strip sack and a fumble recovery with less than three minutes left.

Grade: A

Special teams

Another week, another major special teams mistake. This error led to the Patriots’ only touchdown of the game, but did not cost them the game.

Rookie Isaac Guerendo botched the start of the second half.

Kicker Jake Moody made field goals of 22, 26 and 41 yards. His final kick gave the 49ers a 30-13 lead with 4:58 to play.

Mitch Wishowsky and the punt coverage unit averaged just 31.3 net yards on three punt attempts.

Grade: D-plus

Coaching

The 49ers didn’t have to do much in this game against an overwhelmed opponent. They did what needed to be done with their game plans on both sides of the ball.

The 49ers outgained the Patriots 431 yards to 216 in the game.

Third downs were key in this game and the 49ers were prepared for those packages. The 49ers converted 7 of 13 (53.8 percent) of their third-down opportunities, while the Patriots were only successful on 6 of their 16 attempts (31.3 percent) on third downs against Nick Sorensen’s defense.

Grade: B

In total

This was a good Week 4 game for the 49ers. They got the win and still have a lot to correct as they prepare to face the Arizona Cardinals in seven days.

The 49ers had two touchdowns called back due to penalties. They had six penalties for 43 yards. Their penalties included too many men on the field, illegal moves, ineligibility to play downfield and two illegal shifts.

They also had another big miss on special teams, but none of that mattered on the day.

Grade: B-minus