Maiocco’s report card: Grades in much-needed win over Seahawks originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SEATTLE — This seemed a little more like it for the 49ers.
Oh, sure, there were some tense moments along the way, but the 49ers took care of business with a 36-24 victory over the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night at Lumen Field.
The victory pulls the 49ers into a tie atop the NFC West with the Seahawks.
Both teams have 3-3 records on the season. Arizona (2-3) can pull into a three-way tie with a victory Sunday at Green Bay.
“It was every bit a must-win without it technically being a must-win,” 49ers All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams said.
The 49ers get mostly high marks across the board in this one. The lone blemish was on special teams, where they did some good work but also gave up a huge momentum-changing play.
Here is the 49ers’ report card from their Week 6 victory over their division rival:
Rushing offense
Jordan Mason was having a big night before leaving the game with a shoulder injury. He finished with 73 yards rushing on nine carries.
Rookie Isaac Guerendo finished strong. His 76-yard run with 90 seconds remaining virtually clinched it. One play later, fullback Kyle Juszczyk put it out of reach with a 6-yard touchdown run with 1:17 remaining.
The offensive line had a strong day, as the 49ers gained 228 yards and a touchdown on 33 rushing attempts for a 6.9-yard average.
Grade: A
Passing offense
Brock Purdy, coming off a rough game in a loss to the Arizona Cardinals, returned to stellar form against the Seahawks.
Purdy completed 18 of 28 pass attempts for 255 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. His passer rating was 129.3.
The 49ers were rolling with a 76-yard touchdown pass to Deebo Samuel, then Purdy found George Kittle on two scoring passes in the second half to stave off a spirited Seahawks comeback attempt.
The offensive line kept Purdy well-protected in the pocket. He did not allow a sack.
Grade: A
Rushing defense
The Seahawks made it a point to try to get their running game going, but Kenneth Walker III had very little room to run against a very active 49ers defensive front.
Walker had just 32 yards rushing on 14 carries. The Seahawks managed just 52 on 20 rushing attempts for a measly 2.6-yard average.
Linebacker Fred Warner led the way with 11 tackles, while Ji’Ayir Brown, Malik Mustapha and Sam Okuayinonu had tackles for loss.
Grade: A
Passing defense
The 49ers got big contributions from a couple of rookie defensive backs, as rookie safety Mustapha and cornerback Renardo Green came up with timely interceptions.
The 49ers did not have the services of cornerback Charvarius Ward, who went through a workout before the game and could not go. He was listed as questionable with a knee injury.
Nick Bosa generated 14 pressures, tied for most pressures in a game over the past four seasons (when Bosa had the same number against the Rams in 2022), according to NextGen Stats.
The Seahawks’ top receiver, DK Metcalf, caught just three of his 11 targets for 48 yards.
Grade: A
Special teams
The 49ers’ special teams surrendered another huge play when Laviska Shenault took a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. The play was a big momentum swing after San Francisco extended its lead to 23-3 early in the third quarter.
But the 49ers also did some good things on special teams. They forced a turnover in the first half that led to three points.
Darrell Luter came up with a nice play on kickoff coverage to force a fumble. Rookie Tatum Bethune made the recovery.
Kicker Matthew Wright, filling in for Jake Moody, made all three of his field-goal attempts, hitting from 25, 41 and 35.
Grade: C-minus
Coaching
Coach Kyle Shanahan and defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen both came through with good plans, and their players executed for them.
The 49ers had solid plans across the board, as they rolled up 483 total yards and did not turn the ball over. Kittle commended Shanahan for sticking with the outside zone run even when the team went through a stretch in which the yards did not come easily.
And the 49ers improved in the red zone in the second half. The 49ers settled for field goals in their two red-zone possessions in the first half. But they got it going after intermission, going 3-for-3.
The 49ers generated three takeaways on defense and special teams.
Sorensen’s defense tied the pass rush with the coverage on the back end at a very high level.
Grade: A
Overall
The 49ers completely wiped out the sour taste of their loss to the Cardinals in Week 5 with a bounce-back victory over the Seahawks.
Now, the 49ers enter their mini-bye and return to action on Sunday, Oct. 20, with a marquee matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs, who will be coming off their bye week.
Grade: A
