San Francisco 49ers quarterback Sam Darnold (14) runs with the ball against the Los Angeles Rams in the first quarter of their NFL game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
SANTA CLARA – Consider this a two-week notice for the 49ers, who have that much time to fix new worries before entering the NFC playoffs as the No. 1 seed.
Sunday’s end result, a 21-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, doesn’t even rank among the 49ers’ concerns, since they were locked in as the top seed a week earlier and thus stashed most of their stars.
No, their first task in this regular-season finale was to avoid injuries, and that promptly failed once defensive end Clelin Ferrell got carted off with a knee injury, from a non-contact pursuit on the sixth defensive snap.
Their next task was to build confidence and momentum. The opposite ensued for rookie kicker Jake Moody, who first missed a 38-yard field goal off the upright, then also sliced a point-after try after making the first 60 PATs of his career.
One bright side is the 49ers got extensive work for their backups, as most regular starters got pulled by halftime or did not suit up as a precaution, which was the case for quarterback Brock Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey. Tight end George Kittle (back spasms) and linebacker Dre Greenlaw (knee tendinitis) got scratched before kickoff.
The 49ers (12-5) now enter a bye week, and they await the lowest remaining seed from next weekend’s wild-card round, after which they’ll learn whether Levi’s Stadium will open again for business on either Saturday, Jan. 20 or Sunday, Jan. 21.
If the 49ers win that playoff opener, they’d host the NFC Championship Game on Jan. 28, with the winner going to Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas on Feb. 11.
The Rams (9-7) could be that opponent. They also are playoff-bound, by the strength of seven wins in eight games since their bye. Sunday’s win snapped a nine-game, regular-season losing streak to the 49ers.
The NFC’s other playoff teams: No. 2-seed Dallas Cowboys, No. 3 Detroit Lions, No. 4 Tampa Bay Bucs, No. 5 Philadelphia Eagles, No. 6 Rams and No. 7 Green Bay Packers.
Here are the need-to-know essentials from Sunday’s Week 18 show:
STARTER CARTED OFF
The risk-vs.-reward debate of playing starters came back to haunt at least one player: Ferrell got carted off with a knee injury, which appeared to occur on the sixth snap. His left knee buckled while in non-contact pursuit of Ronnie Rivers’ 5-yard run up the middle, with 4 minutes left in the first quarter.
If Ferrell is sidelined into the playoffs, expect Chase Young to step into the starting lineup for the first time since his October trade from Washington. Young, a fourth-year veteran and pending free agent, played throughout Sunday’s game. He entered with just 2 ½ sacks and six quarterback hits in his first eight games with the 49ers, after five sacks in seven games for the Commanders.
Ferrell played 45 percent of the defensive snaps entering Sunday’s game, and although he had just 3 ½ sacks, he had two sacks and five quarterback hits the past four games.
KICKER’S RED FLARE
Moody will enter his first postseason under extra scrutiny, after missing a 38-yard field-goal attempt, then also slicing a point-after try to snap his phenomenal 60-for-60 start. Once Moody reached the 49ers’ sideline after his ensuing kickoff, he received a couple of encouraging pats on the shoulder pads, took a swig of water, then chatted with holder Mitch Wishnowsky.
When Moody’s 38-yard field-goal try clanked off the right upright, it channeled memories of his 41-yard miss on a potential winner in Cleveland, in the 49ers’ first loss in Week 6. Sunday’s miss made him 21-of-25 on field-goal tries this season (2-of-3 from 50-plus).
Moody was kicking in the 49ers’ sideline net, hoping for a potential last-minute reprieve, but Darnold fumbled on a sack to foil that comeback.
Moody was 3-for-3 on field goals in each of the first three games, went 1-for-3 in Cleveland, 1-for-2 in the following loss at Minnesota, then successfully hit his next 10 before Sunday’s miss.
STELLAR SCORING DRIVES
The 49ers produced 75-yard, clock-consuming touchdown drives on their first two possessions, scoring on 1-yard runs by Elijah Mitchell and Sam Darnold. Those drives took 12 and 16 plays, and 7 ½ minutes and 10 minutes, respectively.
Darnold was 5-for-5 passing (49 yards) on the opening drive, and he finished 16-of-26 for 189 yards with a touchdown and that final lost fumble. (The Rams answered that opening drive with a touchdown of their own, when record-setting rookie Puka Nacua caught Carson Wentz’s 19-yard scoring strike against first-time Pro Bowler Charvarius Ward’s coverage).
The 49ers’ third touchdown came much quicker for a 20-7 halftime lead. Darnold’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Ronnie Bell came with 11 seconds left in the half, and it capped a nine-play, 90-yard drive that took only 1:27. A 48-yard completion to Chris Conley vaulted the 49ers to the 11-yard line in the half’s final minute.
LINEUP JUGGLING
Only a few regular starters were safely stashed for the playoffs, most notably Purdy and McCaffrey. Scratched before kickoff, tight end George Kittle (back spasms) and linebacker Dre Greenlaw (knee tendinitis).
Left tackle Trent Williams got pulled after the opening series and was replaced by Jaylon Moore, who missed last game with a concussion and allowed a third-down sack of Darnold in this one. Wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel headed out to rest with the 49ers up 14-7 in the second quarter.
By the defense’s third series, linebacker Fred Warner was welcomed to the sideline, but Pro Bowl linemen Nick Bosa and Javon Hargrave remained in action to force a punt. The only potential defensive starter still around after halftime were Young and safety Logan Ryan.
With starting safeties Tashaun Gipson Sr. (quadriceps) and Ji’Ayir Brown (knee) inactive, the 49ers paired Ryan with Tayler Hawkins, whose NFL debut included a diving interception in the second quarter on a pass deflected by the Rams’ Tutu Atwell.
McCAFFREY RUSHING CHAMP
McCaffrey won his first NFL rushing title with 1,459 yards and the 49ers’ first since Joe “The Jet” Perry in 1953-54. Despite sitting out Sunday as a precaution after last game’s right-calf strain, McCaffrey won that crown by a 292-yard margin over the Tennessee Titans’ Derrick Henry. McCaffrey’s 272 carries were the NFL’s most until Henry had 19 carries (153 yards) in Sunday’s win over Jacksonville to end with 280 on the season.
PURDY’S HISTORIC SEASON
After setting the 49ers’ single-season record with 4,280 passing yards last game, Purdy did not even dress Sunday as the No. 3 emergency quarterback. He also finished first in franchise history with a 113.0 passer rating and an average of 9.64 yards per attempt. He ranked third with a 69.4 completion percentage and fourth with 31 touchdown passes.
2024 OPPONENTS SET
The 49ers’ 2024 opponents are set, beyond their NFC West home-and-away series with Arizona, Seattle and the Rams:
Home: Cowboys, Lions, Bears, Chiefs, Patriots, Jets.
Away: Packers, Vikings, Bucs, Dolphins, Bills.
SECOND-HALF FALLOUT
With five minutes left, the Rams took a 21-20 lead when Carson Wentz, starting in place of the idle Matthew Stafford, scored on a 12-yard touchdown run, then threw a two-point conversion pass to Tutu Atwell against safety Tayler Hawkins’ coverage. Ironically, Hawkins, in his NFL debut, had an interception off an Atwell deflection in the second quarter.
Cornerback Sam Womack III, after playing just 26 defensive snaps in six games, surrendered a touchdown catch in the third quarter, albeit on a third-and-goal gem by Wentz to Tyler Johnson. That capped a 10-minute, 17-play drive and cut the 49ers’ lead to 20-13, with Rams kicker Brett Maher missing the point-after kick in complementary fashion to Moody.
Once the 49ers’ offense got the ball with four minutes left in the third quarter, their only regular starters left were guards Aaron Banks and Spencer Burford. Burks, their starting strong-side linebacker, was still in with 10 minutes to go when he sacked Carson Wentz on fourth down, as deemed by a successful replay challenge from coach Kyle Shanahan.
