Game grades, analysis from 49ers narrow Week 10 win over Chargers

The 49ers didn’t wow anyone coming out of the bye, but they won 22-16 over the Chargers to get above .500, and Niner Noise hands out grades from the game.

For the first time in seemingly forever, the San Francisco 49ers came into a game healthier than their opponents. The devastating injury to cornerback Jason Verrett dampened the mood on the team, but the games went on.

Seeking a win in Week 10 on Sunday Night Football against a hobbled Los Angeles Chargers team to spring their second-half stretch run, the Niners nevertheless started off terribly.

A touchdown by the Chargers made quick work of the defense, an offensive drive stalled in the red zone, a fumble, and a blocked punt. And before you knew it, the score was 13-3 in favor of the Bolts. The 49ers managed to keep it within six points heading into halftime, and the second half brought a reckoning, at least eventually.

No one will confuse their second-half performance as dominant, but on national TV, it was an indication of the mentality of this 49ers team under head coach Kyle Shanahan: Run the ball, hit you hard, wear you down.

In the end, it was enough to walk away with a 22-16 San Francisco victory, as the 49ers improved to 5-4 to open up the second half of the season.

Here are the positional grades from the contest.

49ers Offensive Grades vs. Chargers

Quarterback

Jimmy Garoppolo played largely well in this game. There were ups and downs, yes, but the 49ers’ first touchdown drive was largely on the back of Garoppolo throwing with great accuracy.

For what the Niners should be expecting from him, 240 yards and a 1-yard QB-sneak rushing touchdown will do nicely.

Grade: B+

Running Backs

Perhaps the most surprising revelation of the night was that Elijah Mitchell, fresh off injured reserve, out-carried Christian McCaffrey.

It may have been a way to keep McCaffrey fresh while using Mitchell for the first time on the field, but the box score tells the story of Mitchell being exceedingly more productive, with 88 yards on 18 carries compared to only 38 on 14 touches for CMC.

That doesn’t tell the whole story, though. McCaffrey frequently created yards out of nothing with his elite vision, but in total, both backs did a good job with what the offensive line gave them.

Grade: B

Wide Receivers

Brandon Aiyuk is a few tweaks away from being a bona fide star at the wide receiver position. He again had over 80 yards receiving with six catches for 84 yards.

However, a fumble off a difficult situation and a brutally dropped touchdown are both just the minor things he needs to correct to be one of the best.

Aiyuk was backed by Jauan Jennings, who finished with 40 yards on four receptions, each of them more clutch than the last.

Fairly absent from the game was Deebo Samuel, who had only 51 all-purpose yards as there was an inability to give him the ball to let him work.

All in all, a decent performance by the unit.

Grade: B-

Tight Ends

The 49ers’ tight ends were silent this game, with George Kittle recording the only catch for 21 yards.

Not much more to say for the unit, they blocked adequately but weren’t called upon.

Grade: C+

Offensive Line

The Niners offensive line was good… except for the times it wasn’t.

That’s an obvious statement, but it well encapsulates how it worked. With the exception of Trent Williams and Aaron Banks, both of whom are consistently stellar, the O-line struggled to take down a beaten-up Chargers defensive line, which suffered even more injuries during the game.

At times it was passable, and the offensive thrived. At others, it was disappointing, and a Chargers team that could not handle the run was getting critical stops. It was a fine performance when it’s all said and done, but it was certainly not what the unit should have done against a struggling defensive line in front of it.

Grade: C

49ers Defensive Grades vs. Chargers

Defensive Line

Justin Herbert had only been sacked 10 times coming into the game, and San Francisco sacked him twice, and then it sacked the backup quarterback once for good measure.

While the 49ers’ pressure did not really mount up during the first half, when the game was on the line, the Niners’ pass rush was in Herbert’s face, even forcing the interception that sealed the game.

Grade: A-

Linebackers

Fred Warner continued his stellar play, Azeez Al-Shaair had a solid return to action, but Dre Greenlaw was all over the field. He finished with seven total tackles, six of them the solo kind, in just one half.

His ejection at the end of the first half was a bad call, but even before then, he had a pronounced coverage bust on the Chargers’ touchdown drive, and the flag is the flag.

Overall, though, he and the unit at large were active and aggressive.

Grade: B

Secondary

When the pressure wasn’t right in Herbert’s face, he was dicing the 49ers’ secondary up. Some of it was the byproduct of an elite quarterback doing elite things, but some of it was basic coverage busts (like on the Chargers touchdown) and just being beaten by a receiving core that was missing their two best receivers, Mike Williams and Keenan Allen.

Talanoa Hufanga’s interception and the overall line paint the secondary as having a dominant performance, but it was a work in progress.

Grade: B-

49ers Special Teams and Coaching Grades vs. Chargers

Special Teams

A blocked punt and a missed field goal mean, that despite solid work in the return game, both by Ray-Ray McCloud gaining extra yards and the coverage units keeping the Chargers with minimal gains, this was a dreadful performance by the special teams unit that hasn’t exactly shaped up all that much this year.

Grade: F

Coaching

The Niners came out flat coming out of a bye week, and that’s an indictment of coaching, but something that eventually sorted itself out.

The real issue was a growing trend with Kyle Shanahan: conservative calls on third and fourth downs.

The 49ers had 3rd-and-goal from the 1-yard line on three separate occasions, and they wound up with 12 points. For a team that had a clear advantage in the trenches, one touchdown on three tries is unacceptable. The most egregious decision was on 4th-and-2 with a minute to go in the game.

There’s a lack of aggressiveness San Francisco might have at times, something at odds with the roster’s violent nature on the field.

While this decision resulted in a win, not being willing to attack may cost the 49ers in the future.

Grade: C-