Jimmy Garoppolo bounces back, 49ers beat Chiefs 27-17

The San Francisco 49ers beat the Kansas City Chiefs 27-17 in what was their dress rehearsal NFL preseason bout. Niner Noise recaps the game, including one quarterback’s strong performance.

If there is one San Francisco 49ers preseason game to consider useful in evaluating the overall team, this is the one. NFL preseason Week 3 is the dress rehearsal for most teams, including the Niners. Both the starting offense and starting defense played the first half, ending up with a 13-10 lead after two quarters.

From there, the backups took over, and in the very end, two Jeff Wilson touchdown runs put the 49ers ahead for good, resulting in the final score of 27-17.

The win keeps the 49ers undefeated in exhibition so far this year, but no one was paying attention to the scoreboard. All eyes were on quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo after his dud of a performance against the Denver Broncos last Monday. Once questions began pouring in about Garoppolo’s ability, national pundits heaved on the criticism, with the Patriots color-commentator calling Jimmy G “one of the worst practice quarterbacks [the Patriots] have had” (h/t ProFootballTalk).

The pressure was on, as Niner Noise’s Peter Panacy talked about here.

Luckily for all, Jimmy G did not disappoint. Garoppolo finished the game 14-of-20 for 188 yards, a touchdown and a 116.3 passer rating.

That was 116.3 points better than what he did last week.

Garoppolo was a little rusty to begin, throwing behind receivers on the first drive. But he was cashing in completion, and in the second drive, he unleashed two beautiful throws. The first went to wide receiver Richie James and the second was a touchdown pass to running back Matt Breida:

Garoppolo led five drives in the first half, with three of them resulting in points, one being a 3-and-out and the other a failed fourth-down attempt early in the game. In a real game, that’s points on four out of five drives. Not bad at all.

Now, this isn’t to say Garoppolo is perfect. His decision making wasn’t perfect, throwing the ball to wide receiver Dante Pettis in triple coverage, and his early passes came out a bit wobbly. But all in all, following one of the worst conceivable outings for a QB, Garoppolo showed that he still has what it takes.

In non-Garoppolo related news, the 49ers displayed the same tendencies they have shown throughout the preseason. The pass coverage was spotty, highlighted by Chiefs running back Damien Williams beating defensive end Solomon Thomas on a wheel route for a touchdown. Both cornerbacks Ahkello Witherspoon and Richard Sherman had rough patches against the vaunted Kansas City attack.

However, apart from one play where Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes somehow evaded four players and ran almost 30 yards behind the line of scrimmage to eventually gain eight, the defensive line continued to show out. Missing edge rushers Dee Ford (knee) and Nick Bosa (ankle) once again, the starting pass rush wasn’t as lethal as it could be, but it managed to get some pressure.

The linebackers were graced with the playing debut of Kwon Alexander, and boy, did he make his presence felt. Showing no trepidation, Alexander got involved in many plays as early as possible.

Finally, the offensive weapons of the 49ers, both starters and backups, made themselves known. Breida, apart from catching the touchdown from Garoppolo, was electric as a runner, averaging 6.3 yards per carry. Wilson had the aforementioned two touchdowns, showing great strength and power.

Over at wide receiver, Deebo Samuel got some run with the starters, and he made his presence felt, establishing a good connection with Garoppolo quickly. Wide receiver Richie James continued his solid preseason with another good game, hauling in all his four targets for 66 yards.

The offensive line did struggle a bit again, prompting some concerns about protection, but overall it was a great game for the 49ers.

If this is the baseline of what to expect from the 49ers, anticipate a great season.