Fred Warner makes history in the 49ers' dreadful loss to the Jaguars

One of six undefeated teams remaining in the NFL coming into Week 4, the San Francisco 49ers joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Los Angeles Chargers, and Indianapolis Colts in taking themselves off that list on Sunday afternoon with a 26-21 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Truth be told, the Niners had no business being in this game, as they put forth a putrid performance from an overall standpoint, which we'll break down in just a moment.

If there's anything positive to take away from this embarrassing defeat—and there really weren't many things for San Francisco fans to get excited about—it was the play of four-time first-team All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner, who seems well on his way to earning a fifth nod.

Already with 30 total tackles under his belt coming into this matchup, the 28-year-old added another eight to his total on Sunday, six of which came in unassisted fashion. And in forcing a Travis Hunter fumble late in the third quarter, Warner now has 17 forced fumbles in his career, thus breaking himself out of a tie with the great Hall of Famer Patrick Willis for the most in 49ers history.

Sadly for San Francisco, however, it ultimately meant nothing, as Jacksonville recovered the ball and hit a 44-yard field goal on the very next play to take a 20-14 lead. Nevertheless, it was a big moment for Warner, who looks like a legit Defensive Player of the Year candidate through these first four weeks.

But again, that moment was one of few positive things to happen for the Niners in this contest.

While Brock Purdy threw for 309 yards and two touchdowns in his return after missing the last two weeks with a case of turf toe, he also threw a pair of interceptions and lost a fumble late in the game that effectively sealed the victory for the Jaguars.

Throw in the Luke Farrell fumble to start the second quarter, which the Jags turned into a touchdown on the first play of the ensuing possession, and Sunday marked the first time in nearly two years that the 49ers have committed four turnovers, the last instance coming on Christmas Day in 2023 in a 33-19 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

And with Jacksonville's Parker Washington returning a punt 87 yards for a touchdown late in the third quarter, this game also marked the first time San Francisco has allowed such a score since Tarik Cohen took one 61 yards to the house for the Chicago Bears on Dec. 3, 2017. The difference there is that the 49ers won that game, 15-14.

The Niners won't get to dwell on this loss long, as they'll kick off Week 5 this Thursday night with a battle for first place in the NFC West with the Los Angeles Rams.