SANTA CLARA — Coach Kyle Shanahan might have been one of the few people who did not envision the 49ers experiencing some struggles to open the season.
“I’m with our team every day,” Shanahan said, following the 49ers’ 32-19 victory over the New York Jets on Monday night at Levi's Stadium.
“Our guys have been awesome. At practice, they’ve been very focused.”
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The 49ers had a disjointed offseason with left tackle Trent Williams and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk missing every practice in training while going through contract issues.
Sure enough, the 49ers had a three-and-out on their first offensive possession of the game.
But as far as rough starts, that was that.
Then, the 49ers scored on eight consecutive possessions — with six field goals and two touchdowns — to pull away.
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Here is the 49ers’ first report card of the 2024 NFL season:
Rushing offense
Even without Christian McCaffrey in uniform, the 49ers’ run game did not skip a beat. Jordan Mason stepped into the starting lineup and produced like a star against a stout Jets defense.
Mason carried 28 times for 147 yards and a touchdown. He never had that many carries or yards in any game during his four-year career at Georgia Tech.
Wide receiver Deebo Samuel saw a little more action than usual as a ball carrier. He had 23 yards and a touchdown on eight rushing attempts.
The 49ers averaged 4.7 yards per carry, as the offensive line controlled the line of scrimmage.
Grade: A
Passing offense
Quarterback Brock Purdy might have been dialed in as much as usual but he still managed to put together an efficient game.
Purdy distributed the ball to six different pass-catchers.
Wide receiver Jauan Jennings had five catches for 64 yards to lead the way. Samuel added five catches for 54 yards.
Purdy completed 19 of 29 passes for 231 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions. His passer rating was 89.9.
Grade: B
Rushing defense
Jets running back Breece Hall is one of the most versatile threats in the NFL, but the 49ers completely neutralized him on Monday night. San Francisco's defensive line clogged things up in the middle, and already appears to be drastically improved from a year ago.
Hall gained just 54 yards on 16 rushing attempts for a 3.4-yard average.
Defensive tackles Maliek Collins and Javon Hargrave controlled the line of scrimmage.
Linebacker Fred Warner and Collins generated a takeaway in the first quarter. Warner forced the fumble and Collins recovered it.
Grade: A
Passing defense
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Jets’ passing game could not get much going against the 49ers. Rodgers completed 13 of 21 pass attempts for 167 yards. Leonard Floyd had the 49ers’ only sack in the game.
Deommodore Lenoir made a high-level play when he broke up a Rodgers pass intended for Garrett Wilson. The ball deflected to linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, who came up with his first career interception.
Cornerback Isaac Yiadom broke up a fourth-down pass intended for Wilson in the fourth quarter to close the door.
Rodgers’ only touchdown came after Floyd jumped offside and the 49ers’ defense seemed to stop, which gave Rodgers an opening to hit Allen Lazard for a 36-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
Grade: B-plus
Special teams
Kicker Jake Moody got his season off to a fantastic start, going 6-for-6 on his field-goal attempts. Moody made kicks of 51, 31, 53, 23 and 42 yards.
The 49ers also did well on kickoffs, as the Jets did not start a drive past the 30-yard line.
Rookie return man Jacob Cowing handled all three punts flawlessly, averaging 7.5 yards on two returns with one fair catch.
Grade: A
Coaching
First-year defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen had things dialed up to face Rodgers, Hall and the rest of the Jets' offense.
Shanahan made the point during the week that there would be no secrets among the coaches. Shanahan is familiar with the defense of Jets coach Robert Saleh, and Saleh knows all about Shanahan’s offense.
Other than a trick play in the first half, neither team did anything out of the ordinary. Shanahan and defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen put the 49ers positions to play fast and make plays, and that’s what happened.
Grade: A
Overall
Shanahan pointed out that it was not perfect. But it still was pretty darn good for the first game of the season.
The 49ers settled for more field goals than they wanted, so the offense will want to cash in more of those scoring opportunities.
But, all things considered, this was a thorough and decisive victory against a team that is desperate to return to the postseason for the first time since the 2010 season.
Grade: A
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