5 biggest concerns stemming from 49ers epic win vs. Saints
By Peter Panacy
The San Francisco 49ers managed to pull off an incredible Week 14 win over the New Orleans Saints, but there are some notable worries stemming from the victory.
Yes, a statement game for the San Francisco 49ers, who went into a hostile Mercedes-Benz Superdome in Week 14 and took down the top-seeded New Orleans Saints in an epic, back-and-forth contest and walking away with a 48-46 road win to send the Niners to an 11-2 record.
This win shakes up the NFC standings, too, as head coach Kyle Shanahan’s squad can secure the No. 1 overall seed if it wins out.
Pulling off this win over the Saints was a crucial step in that hopeful process.
The nature of this 49ers win says a lot about the team and where it’s at. In what felt like a true playoff-atmosphere game, the Niners absorbed a late fourth-quarter punch when the Saints recaptured the lead with less than two minutes remaining. But then quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo found tight end George Kittle for a 39-yard catch and run, which was aided by a facemask penalty against New Orleans. Kicker Robbie Gould then connected from 30 yards out with time expiring to give the 49ers a win.
On a day when the Niners defense was vulnerable, Garoppolo and the offense answered the call, even coming from a 20-7 deficit earlier in the game.
That said, there were plenty of concerns from this contest, which Shanahan and Co. will have to address over the final four weeks of the regular season.
And likely into the playoffs, too, as some of the worries could carry over into the postseason. Here are the five biggest concerns stemming from this game.