The 49ers went out in a disappointing way, likely ending their 2024 season.
The San Francisco 49ers had their playoff hopes teetering on the brink of elimination the past few weeks, but there was still a glimmer of hope that they could find an improbable way to pull off a last-minute run to reach the postseason, be it via the division title or a wildcard spot.
Well, those hopes were crushed on Thursday night, as the 49ers lost 12-6 to the Los Angeles Rams on a rainy day at Levi’s Stadium, falling to 6-8 on the year and an ugly 1-4 in divisional play.
Offensively, San Francisco was non-existent, as they got virtually nothing working in the running back, while quarterback Brock Purdy failed to reach 160 yards for the third time in four games.
Defensively, the 49ers did well enough to neutralize Los Angeles’s offense, forcing three field goals in the red zone, but it wasn’t enough in the loss.
Here are three quick takeaways from the 49ers 12-6 loss to the Rams.
Offense sputters again
While a lot of the talk has been around the defense and first-year coordinator Nick Sorensen, it’s been the offense that has been the issue time and time again. And that continued on Thursday.
Yes, there were rainy conditions, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that San Francisco punted six times in the first half, getting just one field goal.
After complaining on social media about his lack of touches this past week, despite the 38-13 win over the Chicago Bears, wide receiver Deebo Samuel was used early and often, getting six touches in the first half.
Those six, which included four targets and two rushes, led to just 19 total yards, with Samuel’s longest play of the night going for just six yards. Samuel finished with the 19 total yards on nine touches, dropping a major wide-open pass in the second half that could’ve very well gone for a touchdown.
It’s been a disappointing year for the top receiver, who has been ineffective running routes downfield and has struggled to be efficient with his touches. But, it wasn’t just Samuel who struggled to connect with Purdy.
Wideout Jauan Jennings had just two catches on nine targets, while rookie Ricky Pearsall had one catch for 16 yards on four targets, seemingly getting open late in the game when Brock Purdy threw his lone interception to a double-covered Jauan Jennings.
The chemistry and camaraderie with the receivers just wasn’t there today, which has been a story all year long with the 49ers since the loss of star receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
Add that in with a largely ineffective rushing attack that produced just 3.3 yards per carry and you get an offense filled with All-Pros generating just six points on the night.
Control of the game
In my keys to win, I highlighted the importance of stopping the run, as the 49ers had struggled to do so all season long.
The Rams hadn’t been a strong rushing team this year in terms of efficiency, but lead back Kyren Williams came into the game with the second-most carries of any back in the NFL, topping 20 carries six different times this year.
Well, he was used as a workhorse once again and allowed Los Angeles to control the pace of the game with 29 carries for 108 yards. The Rams weren’t necessarily efficient, but ran the ball 38 times for 142 yards, while controlling the time of possession with over 35 minutes with the ball.
That led to the three red zone opportunities, which were long, extended drives that ultimately did result in field goals, but were tiring for the defense.
That was especially seen at the end when the 49ers had a number of chances to get the ball back for one final possession after Purdy’s interception, but couldn’t get off the field with the Rams going on a 12-play, 69-yard drive to leave just 11 seconds left for the 49ers offense.
It wasn’t pretty, but Los Angeles did what they needed to do to win the game.
Wrap up the season
As mentioned above, the season playoff hopes are essentially gone now with another loss, as the 49ers fall to 6-8 on the year.
It was a season of disappointment from many different angles for the 49ers, who will have a lot of questions to answer this offseason about a number of their key players, as some major moves could be on the horizon.
Like many different games this year, this one came down to a lack of finishing. The Rams scored three field goals in the final period alone (yes, one came after a long drive that killed most of the third quarter), and the 49ers had no response.
If anything was an epitome of how the season went, just look at veteran linebacker De’Vondre Campbell putting his teammates at risk by electing not to play, despite suiting up in one of the weirder situations in recent memory.
Overall though, the 49ers wanted to run it back one last time after missing out on their best opportunity to win a Super Bowl last year and it backfired. Now, it’s back to the drawing board, where they’ll have to really hit on another draft to jumpstart their retool.