SANTA CLARA — Now what?
After a resounding 42-26 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday afternoon that some might say was a reality check, the San Francisco 49ers stand at 6-4 with little idea of what is possible the rest of the way.
The injury-ravaged defense cannot hold up against good teams, while the offense still doesn’t run the ball well enough or make big plays downfield. And no trade the 49ers could have made on Tuesday at the league deadline would have changed Sunday’s outcome or their outlook.
The Mac Jones era was fine, if he is indeed done after going 5-3 in his eight starts, but the offense has to better than that if it wants to beat good teams. Tight end George Kittle threw out the number “30” last week as far as what the offense needs, and he wasn’t wrong. And while coach Kyle Shanahan might have had a tough time benching Jones next week if the Niners somehow had swept the Rams, that won’t be a problem now if Purdy is finally good enough to go with his bad toe.
And he was healthy enough to be the backup quarterback on Sunday apparently. Shanahan said he’s talked to Purdy every Saturday about how the week of practice has gone and how the quarterback is feeling. And this Saturday, unlike the previous one, Purdy nodded yes.
“He could have gone, definitely,” Shanahan said. “I just decided to hold him and not put him in that situation.”
Purdy re-aggravated his case of turf toe in Week 4 after sitting out two weeks, and he has been out ever since — with weekly teases that he is getting better and has a chance to play. Shanahan was asked on Sunday if, at some point, he has to just put Purdy back in knowing that he won’t be 100 percent.
“Yes, it depends on how close to 100 percent he gets,” Shanahan said. “Our dilemma, or what we’re trying not to do, is put him out in the situation (that) we did versus Jacksonville … So, I do believe he’s closer and further along than what he was at that time. So hopefully we’ll have a chance this week.”
The Cardinals, who lost 44-22 to Seattle, in Arizona next week is a much softer re-entry place for Purdy than the Rams defense would have been. The same goes for the grass there, as opposed to the turf the last two weeks in Houston and New Jersey.
And there hasn’t been any rush since Jones has been so cool in the pocket and with teammates and playing so well. If Purdy’s backup was Brandon Allen like it was a year ago, the $265 million man would have been dealing with toe pain tolerance weeks ago.
The 49ers offense would get another boost from the return of receiver Ricky Pearsall, whose knee is better but still wasn’t up to running routes at full speed last week. Meanwhile, George Kittle has his best game — nine catches for 94 yards and an acrobatic, diving touchdown — since returning from a hamstring injury and backup RB Brian Robinson Jr. ran over people for a second straight week.
Christian McCaffrey had a rare “off” game with 96 yards rushing and receiving, while Jauan Jennings had six catches and a TD to try and make up for an early fumble. Jones somehow wasn’t sacked despite throwing the ball 39 times, completing 33 for 319 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
“It seemed like he played pretty well,” Shanahan said. “I thought he got rid of the ball, didn’t get caught with it too much, got the ball to the right spots and definitely gave us a chance to win.”
The defense, already behind the eight ball without Nick Bosa and Fred Warner, had no chance without first-round pick Mykel Williams and second-round pick Alfred Collins. The Rams came out throwing — the first four plays, and 23 times in the first half — because coach Sean McVay said “we wanted to set the tone.” It was 21-0 before fans’ nachos got soggy. The tone came in loud and clear.
Collins was the hero of the win last month against the Rams, but he injured his hip in the team’s weekly physical Thursday practice. The 49ers actually got decent pressure on Matthew Stafford — he was hit eight times — but tight ends ran free against their linebackers anytime Stafford needed them.
“I’m never going to just put it on one side of the ball, but obviously, we are wounded at D,” Shanahan said.
Luckily, in what’s been a recurring theme, the schedule is here to give the 49ers a hug. The Giants fixed a lot of their problems eight days ago, and now here come the Cardinals, Browns and Titans over the next four games. That’s a combined six wins. And the other team the 49ers face over that span is the 5-5 Panthers and the unassuming Bryce Young — at home, on “Monday Night Football.”
Are the 49ers going to be playing in the Super Bowl in their home stadium in three months? Probably not without Bosa and Warner. That’s just a fact of life and why general manager John Lynch didn’t make any desperate trades last week. But they have a nice four-game stretch coming up where they can create a new identity and maybe get some momentum going heading into the playoffs.
Kittle scoffed on his way out of the stadium Sunday night when he was asked about the small margin of error for the offense now. Especially if Purdy is back.
“I don’t think we need to be perfect,” he said. “Again, Mac Jones has been our quarterback for how many weeks? He’s our backup quarterback, and he’s been playing really, really well. We don’t have Ricky Pearsall. We don’t have Brandon Aiyuk. I missed five games. We have a bunch of guys out there who just love playing football …
“I don’t think it’s a pressure thing on us. … We just have to go out there and execute, not turn the ball over, do what we’re supposed to do, and our offense should score a lot of points.”