Maiocco's 49ers Report Card: Team grades in meltdown vs. Cardinals

SANTA CLARA — Defensive end Nick Bosa said he has not lost confidence that the 49ers are capable of great things.

But it was another great collapse for the 49ers on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals on a day at Levi’s Stadium in which temperatures hovered around triple-digits on the field.

“We had the game won and gave it away,” linebacker Fred Warner said following the 49ers’ 24-23 loss to the Cardinals.

The 49ers blew a 13-point halftime lead while falling to 2-3 on the season. Their early season record includes 0-2 within the NFC West and 0-3 in the NFC.

The 49ers are not setting themselves up in a favorable position for any of the tie-breakers.

But the 49ers appear to have a long way to go before playing at a level to suggest this is a playoff team.

Here is the report card from the 49ers’ Week 5 meltdown against the Cardinals:

Rushing offense

Jordan Mason had a good statistical game with 89 yards rushing on 14 carries, but he made a mistake that proved to be a crushing blow for the 49ers.

This punch out was perfection 🥊

📺: #AZvsSF on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/fOuVzPSJ6Y

— NFL (@NFL) October 6, 2024

The 49ers had their sights set on the clinching touchdown with approximately six minutes remaining when Mason was struggling for extra yards. 

Cardinals linebacker Jesse Luketa came flying in with an overhand punch that knocked the ball out of Mason’s grasp.

That play proved to be a crucial turnover that opened the door for the Cardinals to drive down for the winning points.

Grade: D-plus

Passing offense

The 49ers scored just one touchdown on their six red-zone possessions. That’s a complete fail.

Quarterback Brock Purdy completed 19 of 35 pass attempts for 244 yards and one touchdowns with two interceptions.

One interception came on a ball tipped at the line of scrimmage. The other came when the 49ers failed to pick up a blitz with the game on the line.

Thank you, Kyzir pic.twitter.com/qDoypKOOic

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) October 6, 2024

Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk was a bright spot, as he caught eight passes for 147 yards. Tight end George Kittle had eight receptions for 64 yards and a touchdown.

Grade: F

Rushing defense

First, the 49ers gave up a 50-yard touchdown run to quarterback Kyler Murray on a read option to open the game.

The 49ers appeared to tighten things up for the rest of the first half before getting pushed around in the second half.

Cardinals running back James Conner was a force in the final 30 minutes of the game. He gained 77 yards on 13 attempts as the 49ers’ front seven appeared to completely wilt in the heat of Levi’s Stadium.

Conner easily took in a two-point conversion attempt from 1-yard out to enable the Cardinals to win the game with a late field goal.

Grade: F

Passing defense

The 49ers did a good job against Murray, the passer. Murray completed 19 of 30 passes for 195 yards and one touchdown with one interception.

Bosa read a Murray screen pass perfectly late in the first half that led to a 49ers red-zone opportunity that netted just three points.

The 49ers did a good job on Cardinals rookie wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., who caught just two passes for 36 yards.

The 49ers did not get a lot of consistent pressure on Murray. Defensive end Leonard Floyd accounted for the only sack.

Sam Okuayinonu’s roughing-the-passer penalty on a touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter moved the ball to the 1-yard line, where the Cardinals decided to go for the two-point conversion.

Grade: B-minus

Special teams

Finally, it was the 49ers who came up with a big play on special teams.

Lineman Jordan Elliott blocked a field-goal attempt in the second quarter that Deommodore Lenoir scooped up and returned 61 yards for a touchdown.

The birthday boy makes a house call 🎉
pic.twitter.com/j7mbHitwhe

— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) October 6, 2024

The 49ers’ biggest special teams blunder came on the ensuing kickoff when Jake Moody did not get enough distance for a touchback. DeeJay Dallas returned the kickoff 39 yards, which got Moody into the action. He sustained a high-ankle sprain on the play and could miss multiple games.

Grade: A-minus

Coaching

Again, the 49ers let a big second-half lead get away against an NFC West opponent. In Week 3, the 49ers blew a 14-point lead against the Los Angeles Rams.

On Sunday, the 49ers let the Cardinals come back from a 23-10 halftime deficit.

The 49ers have not made the necessary adjustments on offense to capitalize in the red zone, and defenses continue to out-scheme the 49ers with their pressure packages.

The 49ers did score any points in the second half.

Grade: F

Overall

The 49ers are in serious danger of letting this season get away from them.

Yes, it’s only five game into the season. But the 49ers face the prospect of going 0-3 in the division with their short-turnaround game on Thursday night at the Seattle Seahawks.

The 49ers have flat-out blown their two division games. They have time to turn it around, of course. But they will not be able to win many games — or any games — for the remainder of the season if they continue to play like this.

Grade: F

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