Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel shakes hands with San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan after the 49ers 33-17 win over the Miami Dolphins at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sunday, Dec. 4, 2022. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
SANTA CLARA — Here is how the 49ers (8-4) graded in Sunday’s 33-17 home win over the Miami Dolphins (8-4):
PASS OFFENSE: B
Jimmy Garoppolo’s season-ending foot fracture came on the opening series, on a third-down sack he battled to minimize as two defenders rode his back. Enter: rookie Brock Purdy. He successfully managed their fifth straight win, and he completed 67.6 percent of his passes (25-of-37, 210, two touchdowns, one interception). Purdy dared to throw into tight windows, particularly to Deebo Samuel. But the rookie also wandered his way into three sacks (and he rolled his way out of others, to his credit). Christian McCaffrey (eight catches, 80 yards) was a tremendous asset, and his touchdown catch gave the 49ers a 17-10 halftime lead. Samuel chipped in 58 hard-earned yards on six catches. Brandon Aiyuk (five catches, 46 yards) and Third-And-Jauan Jennings (two catches, 34 yards) helped out. George Kittle (two catches, 22 yards) had a holding penalty late that made Robbie Gould’s fourth and final field goal stretch to 48 yards.
RUN OFFENSE: C+
McCaffery finished with 66 yards (17 carries), but there wasn’t much room to roam against a stacked box. He had to reverse course for a 30-yard gain that set up Gould’s final field goal. Rookie Jordan Mason averaged 6.4 yards per carry (eight carries, 51 yards) and looks like the undisputed No. 2 rusher behind McCaffery, who said of Mason: “He runs so hard. He can run any run. He’s a great spark for us. And obviously he’s an incredible special teams player as well, which doesn’t go unnoticed.” Ty Davis-Price dressed but did not get a carry. Kudos to Purdy for converting on a fourth-and-1 sneak-and-spin on a second-half opening drive that netted a field goal.
PASS DEFENSE: A-
The 49ers nabbed a season-high three interceptions (Jimmie Ward, Deommodore Lenoir, Fred Warner), and while they were in the right place at the right time, Tua Tagovailoa was wilder than expected. Out the gate, however, the 49ers allowed a 75-yard touchdown pass to ex-Niner Trent Sherfield on the opening snap. Then they rattled Tua Tagovailoa the best they could, all while Tyreek Hill racked up 146 yards on nine catches. Nick Bosa preyed on the Dolphins’ backup tackles to notch three sacks and take the NFL lead with 14 ½ this season. Drake Jackson did a nice job breaking up a fourth-quarter pass, and the 49ers’ only other hit on Tagovailoa came from Arik Armstead in his long-awaited return.
RUN DEFENSE: A
The Dolphins simply elected not to run, for the most part. Ex-Niners Raheem Mostert (30 yards, seven carries) and Jeff Wilson Jr. (3-yard carry) were non-factors. Mostert’s longest run went for 8 yards into 49ers territory midway through the fourth quarter, when the 49ers led just 23-17. Dre Greenlaw had a team-high eight tackles.
SPECIAL TEAMS: A
Robbie Gould’s four field goals (in as many attempts) weren’t gimmies. He scored from 47, 43, 36, and, 48, with that final one being the most clutch with 2:08 remaining to make it a two-score difference (26-17). Tackles came from George Odum (two), Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles and Sam Womack. Ray-Ray McCloud’s longest returns went for 31 yards (kickoff) and 20 yards (punt).
COACHING: A
Nevermind the chess match between Kyle Shanahan and his former right-hand man, Mike McDaniel. Sure, there was some cool gamesmanship and play calls. But Shanahan excelled to keep his team composed and focused in the wake of Garoppolo’s season-ending injury. Shanahan also won both of his replay challenges, the latter of which negated a fourth-down conversion catch after he saw the replay first on the stadium’s video board. Now comes way more heavy lifting in the coaching department to get a rookie quarterback poised for a playoff run.
Originally published at Cam Inman