49ers vs. Bills: Live In-Game Thread & Analysis for San Francisco

The San Francisco 49ers visit the Buffalo Bills in Week 6. Colin Kaepernick gets his first start at quarterback since Week 8 of the 2015 season. Niner Noise has your live in-game thread and updates for the red and gold, so follow along and comment.

The 1-4 San Francisco 49ers took on the 3-2 Buffalo Bills at New Era Stadium on Sunday, October 16 in a Week 6 matchup kicking off at 1 p.m. ET.

Head coach Chip Kelly’s squad had dropped four straight games since their opening Week 1 victory over the Los Angeles Rams. Offensively, the Niners were ranking dead last in the league with just 4.5 yards per play.

With limited options, one of Kelly’s changes was to insert Colin Kaepernick at quarterback over former starter Blaine Gabbert.

Gabbert’s struggles certainly mandated the change. But it’s hard to buy into Kaepernick being a significant upgrade. Regardless, he’d be going up against a Bills defense ranked No. 5 in the NFL with just 87 points allowed.

While all eyes would be on Kaepernick, perhaps the bigger story would be whether or not San Francisco’s 31st-ranked run defense could contain Buffalo running back LeSean McCoy.

The Niners have been torched by opponents’ tailbacks ever since they shut down Rams running back Todd Gurley. And the lack of run defense has been a primary reason the 49ers’ record stands where it is.

Could San Francisco’s run defense resemble more of what was seen in Week 1?

Niner Noise has your Week 6 thread right here. Stay along with us as we break down the action and provide live updates. And be sure to add to the discussion by scrolling down to the bottom comments section.

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First Quarter

The 49ers started on offense. And Kaepernick received his fair share of boos from the opening snap.

Despite a promising start to the drive into Buffalo territory, the Niners couldn’t manage to get past the Bills’ 40-yard line and were forced to punt.

Buffalo started from its own 13-yard line. San Francisco did force a 3rd-and-long, but Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor managed to scramble for a key first down. And McCoy managed a huge run, after Buffalo received a facemask penalty.

Yet defensive end DeForest Buckner managed to recover a forced fumble, generated by fellow Niners DE Arik Armstead. A great break for San Francisco.

San Francisco took over with great field position at the Bills 28-yard line. And Kap managed to complete a key 14-yard pass to wide receiver Torrey Smith on a 3rd-and-13 play. Yet the Niners were pushed back after a holding call against rookie guard Joshua Garnett and back-to-back tackles for a loss.

The Niners settled for a 33-yard field goal from kicker Phil Dawson to take a 3-0 lead.

Buffalo opened up its second offensive drive with a 20-yard completion from Taylor to Charles Clay, targeting 49ers cornerback Rashard Robinson. Two more plays, and the Bills were in San Francisco territory.

And McCoy was able to punch it in to the end zone on a four-yard rush by McCoy.

How would the 49ers answer back?

Second Quarter

Kaepernick and the Niners had possession to start the second half.

And it didn’t take long for Kap to hook up with Smith for a 53-yard touchdown strike — the longest passing play thus far on the Niners season.

The Bills started the subsequent drive at their own 25-yard line. And, not surprisingly, McCoy was able to gash the Niners defense for 38 yards and deep into San Francisco territory.

McCoy, of course, found the end zone again to retake the lead for Buffalo.

San Francisco started the next drive deep in its own territory. And a few nice passes from Kaerpernick got the Niners to midfield and eventually into Bills territory. The Niners tacked on a 43-yard field goal from Dawson to cut the deficit to one point.

Could the 49ers defense hold against the run on the following stand?

Well, giving up a 22-yard run to McCoy on a 3rd-and-20 didn’t help things. San Francisco’s run defense continued to be putrid. And Buffalo continued to move the ball effectively on the ground as the two-minute warning hit.

McCoy took a nasty clean hit by 49ers linebacker Nick Bellore at the 31-second mark, which is never a good thing. The running back was able to walk off the field under his own power.

Buffalo settled for a 40-yard field goal from kicker Dan Carpenter.

Third Quarter

The Bills opened up on offense in the second half after outgaining San Francisco 249 to 191 yards in the first two quarters. And McCoy was cleared to return after suffering a first-half knee injury.

Penalties hurt Buffalo and pushed its offense back in the wrong direction, which led to the Bills’ first punt of the day.

Kaepernick and the 49ers started their first drive of the second half with a handoff to running back Carlos Hyde, who hadn’t been getting much over the course of the game.

But a false start against right tackle Trent Brown forced San Francisco into a 3rd-and-long situation, which eventually led to a punt.

Thankfully, the Niners defense responded and forced a second Bills punt.

San Francisco took over at its own 5-yard line, after a 49-yard punt by Buffalo punter Colton Schmidt.

Kaepernick was nearly taken down in the end zone for a safety but managed to evade pressure and pick up a 49ers first down.

But that was about it for the Niners offense, and San Francisco had to punt yet again.

The Bills answered with a punt of their own, as the 49ers defense clamped down after halftime.

San Francisco entered this quarter with just one third-quarter touchdown on the season. And the first 10 minutes looked as if this trend would continue. But Kaepernick picked up 29 yards on a QB scramble on third down, which was only the second Niners conversion of the game thus far.

Yet the 49ers couldn’t convert on 4th-and-1, and Buffalo took over at its own 41-yard line.

And the Bills finally broke through on a 30-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Justin Hunter, whom Buffalo signed just over a week ago.

Kaepernick helped engineer a drive into Bills territory, thanks to a couple of QB scrambles.

Fourth Quarter

The Niners faced a 3rd-and-long as the fourth quarter opened up. But Kap underthrew wide receiver Jeremy Kerley, which led to a 47-yard field goal from Dawson.

Buffalo started at its own 25-yard line. And San Francisco gave up another third-down conversion despite a 3rd-and-8 scenario facing Taylor and Co.

Missed tackles, missed tackles and more missed tackles led to McCoy’s third touchdown of the game.

To make things worse, the Niners fumbled the following kickoff. Insult to injury for San Francisco, as things continued to fall apart.

Following a pass-interference call against safety Eric Reid, Buffalo only added to its lead with a touchdown pass to receiver Robert Woods.

San Francisco’s second-half crumbling only resembled what has largely been seen almost all season long. Poor tackling, a lack of run defense and problematic schemes are all elements which have haunted the 49ers since Week 2.

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Oh, and the Niners had to punt again following their next offensive drive.

And that defensive stand ended with yet another Bills rushing touchdown. That made for 21 Buffalo points in the fourth quarter. Nothing is going well or right for this San Francisco squad.

So the 49ers fall to 1-5 on the season, and some major changes will be needed if the Niners expect to ever get back on track.

Final: 49ers 16, Bills 45

Next: 49ers vs. Bills: 5 Keys for a San Francisco Week 6 Win

All statistics, records and accolades courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com, Sports-Reference.com and ESPN.com unless otherwise indicated.