Game grades from 49ers Week 1 domination over Steelers

The 49ers took care of business and then some, opening up their 2023 season with a 30-7 win over the Steelers. Niner Noise hands out grades from the contest.

With the start of a new NFL season comes all the uncertainty of what it will entail, and that was true even for a team as talented as the San Francisco 49ers are.

Week 1 is an especially weird time, and even though the Niners were slight favorites heading into Pittsburgh, many national pundits predicted a Steelers victory.

Well, San Franciso answered almost all the questions asked of them, racing out to a 20-0 lead before halftime and eventually finishing the game with a 30-7 victory. The 49ers defense held the Steelers without a first down until the final two minutes of the first half. The Steelers finished that half with a long touchdown run, but the Niners responded with a quick strike touchdown courtesy of Christian McCaffrey.

From there, it was just running out the clock.

Perhaps most promising for the Niners, they did not play a perfect game. Some offensive inconsistencies, poor blocking at times, penalties, and a couple of defensive possessions where everything seemed to go wrong. All of that flared up, yet San Francisco dominated. It is a hallmark of a good team to win well even when everything is not perfect.

With a new season also comes new grades. So let's take a look at how to grade the 49ers' performance.

49ers Offensive Grades

The 49ers came away with 30 points, and beyond a couple of small issues, it was a truly dominant performance by Kyle Shanahan's side, starting at QB and extending all the way down.

49ers Rushing Offense

The 49ers rushed for 188 yards on 34 carries, averaging 5.52 yards a carry (even with the less efficient runs near the end of the game adding to the tally). But the way the Niners ran the ball was the most important. Beyond the McCaffrey splash play, it was a consistent attack at the line, always getting 3 to 4 yards a carry and slowly moving the chains.

That type of play is efficient, and when you add an explosive play that San Francisco is so capable of bringing out, that's the type of run play the 49ers need.

If there is anything to quibble about, it would be the usage of the running backs. Christian McCaffrey dominated the touches, even in garbage time. The key for the Niners having a productive rushing attack all year is managing CMC's touches and integrating the other backs more often, keeping everyone healthy and adding necessary changes of pace.

Elijah Mitchell's 10 yards on five carries just won't cut it.

Grade: A

49ers Passing Offense

San Francisco's passing offense was absolutely electric, except for when Steelers edge T.J. Watt had one-on-one rushing opportunities against new right tackle Colton McKivitz.

Watt is on the short list of best edge players in the NFL, and the 49ers won't often have to face a player of his caliber. That said, Watt absolutely blew up some offensive plays. And if it wasn't for the Niners' overall play,he could have swung the game toward the Steelers. With Watt finishing with three sacks and two forced fumbles. one of which he recovered, McKivitz's performance in pass blocking was a major issue.

Outside of that, though, the 49ers passing offense was phenomenal. Brock Purdy's final stat line is not as pretty as his play was, as he always seemed to get the ball to the right spot and attacked the intermediate parts of the field. There was never a bad decision or a truly errant pass.

He was helped by Brandon Aiyuk, who took the final step towards becoming an absolute elite No. 1 receiving option in the NFL by hauling in eight receptions for 129 yards, two touchdowns (including a highlight-reel pass and grab), and just getting open on every single play. Aiyuk is the 49ers' best pure receiver, and he showed it. Deebo Samuel was less productive than his counterpart with only 55 yards, but he was also solid, and overall the passing offense fired on all cylinders.

Now, just to get the blocking on the right side under control.

Grade: A-

49ers Defensive Grades

The 49ers defense had a couple of drives where things got a little leaky, but beyond that, they were more than exceptional, and they combined solid play with explosive turnovers to shut down the Steelers offense.

49ers Rush Defense

The 49ers completely shut down the run. The box score reads 10 rushes for 41 yards, mostly coming on Najee Harris's 25-yard scamper at the end of the first half, but that does not begin to explain how dominant the rush defense was. It was not just that they stopped the Steelers when rushing the ball, but they played so well against the run, that Pittsburgh completely abandoned it altogether. No NFL team wants a 4-to-1 pass/run ratio, but the 49ers dominance made the Steelers one-dimensional.

It was a group effort as always, with the defensive line funneling backs to the linebackers who cleaned it all up.

Grade: A++

49ers Pass Defense

The 49ers played solidly against the Pittsburgh passing offense. The box score reflects more of the garbage time drives the Steelers mustered. It was a combined effort again with the defensive line's pressure keeping Kenny Pickett from making any longer throws, and the coverage was sufficiently sticky on the shorter-level passing concepts.

The pass rush in particular was dominant. Embattled second-year player Drake Jackson exploded for three sacks, new addition Javon Hargrave added one of his own and the 49ers defensive line was on the ball throughout the game, finishing with five sacks and disrupting several more plays.

The Niners secondary was opportunistic. Charvarius Ward grabbed an interception when Diontae Johnson slipped, and Talanoa Hufanga picked off a deflection by Fred Warner, but there were moments where things seemed looser than necessary.

Part of that came on the Steelers' only touchdown drive as both Ambry Thomas and Deommodore Lenoir played soft coverage that allowed the Steelers to march down the field, and Lenoir in particular had a couple of costly penalties that allowed the Steelers to really make the drive work. Against the Steelers, it did not cost them.

But this has been an issue for San Francisco for the last few years and CB2 play was not exactly comfortable for the future.

Grade: B+

49ers Special Teams and Coaching Grades

49ers Special Teams

A good start for the 49ers specialists. Mitch Wishnowsky pinned the Steelers inside their own 10-yard line on three different occasions, and Jake Moody notched a perfect debut, going 3-of-3 on field goals and 3-of-3 on extra points.

The 49ers' return game also sparked in the game. Ray-Ray McCloud' s wrist injury comprised him slightly but he still gained positive yardage on every punt.

The only negative was the kickoffs from San Francisco. Jake Moody's injury put Mitch Wishnowky in charge, and there was no guarantee that he would get the ball into the end zone. The Steelers almost broke a couple of returns, which is the whole reason Moody was drafted with his leg to avoid kickoff snafus like the ones in this game.

It was disappointing to see the 49ers have not improved there yet, but perhaps things will get better when Moody is the one kicking things off.

Grade: A

49ers Coaching

A rather undisciplined game from the 49ers, as they finished with 11 penalties for 85 yards. That is not really a reflection of the head coach Week 1 but perhaps just the rust heading into a new season. Kyle Shanahan and Steve Wilks' gameplans worked to perfection, though, with the exception of the two-minute defense and a few too many solo blocks on T.J. Watt, but the 49ers did what they wanted to do otherwise.

Shanahan's game management also deserves praise. Often considered for being too conservative, Shanahan went for it on fourth down to open the Niners' 2023 season, and it resulted in a touchdown.

Having such a good team should allow a coach to be more aggressive like that, and it was good to see Shanahan take that next step.

Grade: A

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