49ers Dominate Down Under: 3 Takeaways From The Niners’ Win Over The Rams

Let’s slow the “super team” chatter around the Los Angeles Rams. Just for now. Australia was not good to the Rams, who looked tired and sloppy in their season-opening loss to the San Francisco 49ers. The Niners took total control of the game, largely by controlling the line of scrimmage. By the fourth quarter, the Rams never really knocked on contention — slipping deeper and deeper into defeat. It’s important to remember that Week 1 lies. In other words, there’s a long, long season ahead. And this game — which took place roughly 8,000 miles from Los Angeles — won’t tell us everything we need to know about either team. But there’s no denying it: the 49ers looked dominant. And the Rams looked … dominated. Here are my takeaways: It was brutal to watch rookie receiver De’Zhaun Stribling get carted off with an injury in the first half. That’s another injury to another young receiver — after wide receiver Ricky Pearsall headed to IR before the season started. But Purdy didn’t look shorthanded. Not in the least. Tight end George Kittle was back in action despite a quick return from his Achilles injury last year. Receiver Mike Evans looked like the chain-mover, with a touchdown or a first down on all six of his catches. In other words, Evans was everything that they hoped he’d be when they signed him for $42.4 million and three years. Even Deebo Samuel looked young again — like his old 49ers self — with contributions in the passing game (48 receiving yards), running game (12 yards) and on special teams (74 yards). Christian McCaffrey was, of course, outstanding. But it was rookie running back Kaelon Black who was the biggest surprise. He finished with 14 carries for 65 yards. And took the load off McCaffrey at this early phase in the season. In short, the 49ers offense looked awesome. It looked deep. It looked peak Shanahan, with a swath of weapons that should help Purdy play at a really high level — even when facing what everyone had expected to be the NFL’s defense (in L.A.). It looked built to last into January and maybe even February. For all the discussion about which team planned their travel correctly, both quarterbacks looked sluggish in the first half. In fact, they both threw brutal interceptions — in the same fashion … on back-to-back drives. Twins! Purdy threw directly at a dropping safety, Quentin Lake, in an attempt for George Kittle, but Lake picked off the throw easily. And then a few plays later, Matthew Stafford floated a ball toward receiver Puka Nacua and Renardo Green backpedaled into position for a pick. You can try all you want to avoid jet lag, but it always wins. That said, Stafford looked worse than Purdy. Stafford aired a few balls so high that they proved uncatchable. He forced a dangerous throw to Davante Adams near the end of the first half. And he looked completely stumped by the 49ers’ pressure, which they generated without having to send many blitzes. For the game, Stafford finished 15 of 25 for 155 yards and an interception. Even Rams head coach Sean McVay looked a little jet-lagged, calling a QB sneak on the goal line on fourth-and-1 in the third quarter. And very much unsurprisingly, Stafford, who is notoriously bad at sneaks, couldn’t convert. On the whole, it felt like the reigning MVP was processing at a slower clip than normal. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to get Aaron Donald into the mix on this defensive line? I thought there would be an embarrassment of riches. I thought the Rams defensive front would be unstoppable. I thought the hype was real. But Myles Garrett finished this game with zero sacks and zero QB hits — even with Purdy dropping back 34 times. Garrett’s pressure total was solid, up to five, per Next Gen Stats. But there’s no way he made the impact that he would’ve hoped. And that’s a real credit to Williams, the 49ers left tackle who was an absolute beast in pass protection against the guy who finished No. 1 in the “NFL 100” rankings. Near the end of the game, however, Netflix’s Tom Pelissero provided an interesting nugget. Garrett had been nursing a knee injury in training camp, which limited his practice reps and — perhaps — affected his conditioning in this game. To make matters worse, he was still dealing with a little pain from the injury. That’ll be something to keep an eye on. There’s a downside to the 49ers getting to Australia as early as they did. Now, they’ve got to go home and readjust to Pacific Time. But there’s actually good news. The 49ers will take on the Miami Dolphins, a team that looks like a clear-cut favorite (at least to me) to finish with the No. 1 pick. And then their Week 3 opponent is, frankly, another pushover. The 49ers will take on the Cardinals. So they might lose some sleep as they get their clocks right. But they’re not going to lose any sleep over their game plans. I have no doubt that San Francisco will start this season 3-0. All should be well for when the 49ers host the Broncos in the first week of October in Week 4. The Rams have a Monday night appointment with the Giants in Week 2. Hopefully, their emphasis on not acclimating to the Australian time change will help them feel ready for that matchup, because head coach John Harbaugh has New York feeling good about what the season has in store for the Giants’ young offensive core of quarterback Jaxson Dart, receiver Malik Nabers and running back Cam Skattebo. After this dud, I can’t imagine the Rams will show up with a shortage of energy.