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49ers vs. Rams: The good, bad and ugly from 2017 finale

By Peter Panacy

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 31: Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers throws a pass against Blake Countess #24 of the Los Angeles Rams during the second quarter at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on December 31, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 31: Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers throws a pass against Blake Countess #24 of the Los Angeles Rams during the second quarter at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on December 31, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /
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The San Francisco 49ers pulled off their fifth-straight win, knocking off the Los Angeles Rams 34-13 in Week 17. Niner Noise looks at the good, bad and ugly from this NFC West contest.

The San Francisco 49ers wrapped up their 2017 campaign with a 34-13 blowout win over the Los Angeles Rams in Week 17, finishing with a 6-10 record and a full head of steam heading towards the offseason.

Granted, the victory was against the Rams’ backups. But it was still nice to see the Niners offense and defense function well enough.

Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo remains undefeated as a starter, as San Francisco completed a five-game winning streak.

San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers /

San Francisco 49ers

We’ll do things a bit differently this week, shortening the good, bad and ugly from the contest into a single article. With the regular season now behind us, most of Niner Noise’s focus in coming days will on offseason content.

But wins are always good, so let’s start there.

The Good

Aside from his fourth-quarter fumble, which didn’t really have an impact in the game, running back Carlos Hyde had himself a solid finish to the year. He rushed for 90 yards on 15 attempts and added two touchdowns in the process.

But No. 2 tailback Matt Breida was equally impressive, totaling 72 yards and an average of 6.0 yards per attempt. With Hyde a pending free agent, the Niners will have a tough decision what to do at this position.

Another pending free agent, safety Eric Reid, had a solid game, regularly in the backfield and finishing with a team-leading six solo tackles. But with free safety Adrian Colbert playing well, including Week 17, the Niners will have a bit of logjam in the secondary.

There won’t be a logjam at tight end, though, as George Kittle led all San Francisco receivers with 100 yards on four catches.

Kittle didn’t find the end zone, however, but wide receivers Marquise Goodwin and Aldrick Robinson did.

Check out Robinson’s 12-yard score below:

The Bad

Garoppolo had himself another decent day engineering San Francisco’s offense, although one could argue Week 17 wasn’t exactly his best performance.

The still-undefeated QB finished 20-of-33 for 292 yards and two touchdowns, but against two interceptions. Both picked off by Rams cornerback Kevin Peterson.

Garoppolo’s second appeared to be a broken route, where Peterson didn’t have to fight for the ball at all:

It’s not much to worry about, although Garoppolo would like to have those two throws back.

Rookie defensive end Solomon Thomas had some mistakes throughout, missing a handful of tackles and failing to set the edge on a number of outside runs. With a full offseason of work and development, though, Thomas should be just fine.

The Ugly

Goodwin’s hit. Enough said.

As Goodwin was coming over the middle on a crossing route, Rams safety Blake Countess hit the Niners receiver hard in the helmet, jarring the ball loose and sending Goodwin to the ground:

Goodwin was carted off the field with a concussion and later sent to the hospital. But at least he was able to give two thumbs up on his way out, so let’s hope all is OK.

San Francisco dealt with some turnover issues during the game — two interceptions and a lost fumble — which would have likely been a major problem had L.A. not rested its starters.

More from Niner Noise

But the overall result was solid enough, and the Niners can now look forward to what promises to be a great offseason.

Armed with a top-10 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft — the first of nine selections — along with nearly $116 million in cap space, the 49ers should be in an excellent position.

And we can’t wait.

Next: 3 reasons why the 49ers make the playoffs in 2018

But before that, we’d like to thank you all for making Niner Noise a part of your experience this year. Happy New Year, stay safe and let’s have a wonderful 2018!