5 winners and 4 (sort-of) losers from 49ers' grind-it-out win over Broncos

For a little over two quarters, it sure seemed as if the San Francisco 49ers' win streak to open up the season would come to an end, as the pesky Denver Broncos seemed to sustain lengthy drives while frustrating head coach Kyle Shanahan and quarterback Brock Purdy for large degrees.

Thankfully, the Niners took advantage of some costly Denver penalties and injuries, coming alive in the third and fourth quarters, while coordinator Raheem Morris' defense kept the Broncos from gaining any sort of real momentum.

San Francisco won 24-14, improving to a perfect 4-0 amid the stifling heat at Levi's Stadium.

It was far from perfect, but the 49ers were arguably facing their biggest test of the season. And, despite the adversity, they managed to win convincingly enough to justify the hype.

It's time for winners and losers from the showdown.

Well... "kind of" losers.

Winners and so-so losers from 49ers' victory over Broncos

Winner: DB Siran Neal

Special teams ace Siran Neal can now fully be forgiven for letting a punted ball by the Arizona Cardinals go off his foot for a turnover the week prior.

After all, generating a special teams takeaway of his own against the Broncos effectively turned the tide of the game, shifting any momentum away from Denver and fully into the Niners' favor:

Neal isn't a player who'd typically get a lot of love under any circumstance, but he arguably made the play that changed the course of the contest.

Sort-of loser: Kyle Shanahan

Setting a franchise record for most regular-season games coached by a single coach in 49ers history, Shanahan has plenty of reasons to be proud. Combine that with the fact both he and his squad demonstrated resiliency, plus getting the win, and that's all that ultimately matters.

However, Shanahan appeared to either be coaching scared or out of his rhythm over the first two-plus quarters, and it was obvious to anyone watching San Francisco's offense that something simply wasn't clicking.

Still, the 49ers got the win. That's all that matters.

Except for one thing. Shanahan lost fullback Kyle Juszczyk to a knee injury. And while it's not believed to be a serious ACL injury, the versatile fullback could easily miss several games, joining the long list of injured Niners.

And Juszczyk is such an integral piece of Shanahan's system—a potentially major loss on that front.

Winner: Raheem Morris

The Cardinals' 30 points in Week 3 might've been something of an anomaly, but Morris' defense now appears to routinely frustrate and shut down opposing offenses at will and without the flash of frequent interceptions or sacks.

Allowing 14 points to a Denver offense that staged two impressive second-half comebacks already this season is pretty remarkable, especially considering fringe defensive linemen like Sebastian Valdez and Keion White were the only ones to register hits on quarterback Bo Nix.

No sacks, no interceptions and a few too many missed tackles. Yet Morris routinely gets way more out of his defense than anyone would've reasonably expected entering the season.

The Niners offense has gotten a ton of credit already. It's time to give the defense its due.

Sort-of loser: Special teams

Whether it was kicker Eddy Pineiro's blocked field goal at the end of the second quarter or wide receiver Deebo Samuel's muff, special teams didn't look particularly pretty. A 37-yard kick return by Broncos running back R.J. Harvey is a bit problematic, too.

That said, Neal's standout play pretty much erased special teams as being a massive problem from Sunday's showdown.

Winner: QB Brock Purdy

For the first two quarters, Purdy also looked completely out of sync, tossing far too many incompletions than fans have grown accustomed to this season.

For the second two quarters, Purdy looked much more like the MVP-candidate type who'd help carry the offense with some critical playmaking instances, including finding tight end George Kittle on a screen-like catch-and-run grab that went 56 yards and into the end zone for the touchdown that pretty much iced the affair:

Purdy wasn't challenging Denver's defense way down the field all that much, even after the Broncos lost cornerback Patrick Surtain II to injury. Most of the quarterback's passes were of the short- and intermediate-range variety, which is fine.

What ultimately matters is Purdy continuing his red-hot start, which is now an 11-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

Oh, and he still hasn't been sacked yet.

Sort-of loser: S Malik Mustapha

It's pretty evident now third-year safety Malik Mustapha is not on Morris' list of favorites, effectively having lost his starting gig to second-year pro Marques Sigle.

Except Sigle came out of the game with an ankle injury, which could open the door for Mustapha to seize more chances.

With a pass breakup like this, perhaps Mustapha isn't as bad of a loser as originally thought. Sort of?

Winner: WR Deebo Samuel

Sunday's game would've been dramatically different if it wasn't for Samuel's efforts, and anyone questioning whether or not he's "washed" effectively had that put to rest despite his one muff on special teams.

Indeed, Samuel has been a vintage 2021 version of himself, notching a whopping 44 yard on just three rush attempts, then finding himself wide open for one of Purdy's two touchdown throws.

While Samuel only had 26 yards receiving on five targets, that versatility is precisely what San Francisco hoped to get out of the veteran, at best.

Simply put, Samuel is delivering wherever he's tasked to deliver, and that makes the 49ers offense that much more dangerous.

Sort-of loser: CB Upton Stout

Nix and the passing game largely centered on going after nickel cornerback Upton Stout, and that appeared to be the Broncos' best means of moving the ball through the air.

With several completions given up, Stout's passer rating allowed when targeted certainly will rise after Week 4, and he looked a lot more like a fresh-faced rookie than the typically confident defender fans have grown used to this season so far.

Interestingly enough, though, Stout's exit because of a shoulder injury forced reserve cornerback Jack Jones into the game, and Nix went after him for his lone touchdown pass to wide receiver Jaylen Waddle.

The 49ers are notably better with Stout on the field despite his not-so-great performance.

Winner: TE George Kittle

Aside from simply recording the crucial touchdown that effectively put the game out of reach for Denver, Kittle's score set a franchise record for most touchdowns by a tight end.

Yes, Kittle's score was the 56th of his career, passing former Niners legend Vernon Davis for the most at his position.

Additionally, Kittle now ranks fourth all time in San Francisco receiving touchdowns, trailing only wide receiver Gene Washington (59), wide receiver Terrell Owens (81) and, of course, wide receiver Jerry Rice (176).

Kittle already cemented himself as one of the 49ers' all-time greats long ago, but he might be putting himself into the franchise's 10 best ever.

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