It wasn’t pretty; In fact, it was very ugly. But for the second week in a row, the Broncos are victorious. Despite another tough situation for Russell Wilson and his offense, Denver got the best of the 49ers on “Sunday Night Football,” forcing three turnovers and a safety to secure an 11-10 win — just the second game in NFL history to do so. That point. A low-scoring affair puts the Broncos alongside the Chiefs atop the AFC West, while San Francisco falls below .500 in the NFC West.
Here are some highlights from Sunday night’s cross-conference show:
Why did the Broncos win?
Nathaniel Hackett has a defense that can (barely) save his completely hitless offense. Seriously, Denver’s “D” was tough from start to finish but long in the thick of things. Allowing one third-down conversion all night, the unit saw Jimmy Garoppolo sack including Bradley Chubb and Josey Jewell. A late-game pick sealed the win, and a quick pressure on Garoppolo earlier in the night forced the QB out of his own end zone for a fatal safety on the final score.
Less said about Hackett’s team, it’s better for errant throws, terrible defense and conservative calls that still plague them. But at least Wilson showed glimpses of his duel-threat by regularly connecting with Courtland Sutton (8-97) to set up the early score. Their production may not have been enough for a contender, but against a flawed and injured 49ers squad, it was enough.
Why did the 49ers disappear?
Losing left tackle Trent Williams in the third quarter didn’t help, but San Francisco’s issues ran deep. Everything set them up for victory on a night when Denver fumbled with the ball. But Kyle Shanahan’s offense, with Jimmy Gee at the helm, could only move the chains on third down, occasionally finding Debo Samuels or Brandon Ayuk in space but never connecting on blitz plays. Jeff Wilson averaged a healthy 6 yards per carry on the ground.
And Garoppolo, despite an efficient start and a few impressively accurate catches, has been locked in some bad spots, such as suddenly falling back out of the end zone for a safety or dropping a pick into triple coverage with the game on the line. Wilson’s own turnover, a fumble on their final drive, was deadly. So did the seven penalties that sent Wilson off four times and worried many.
turning point
Early on in the game, and Garoppolo’s unintended safety could have had a big impact on the final score, but in terms of game flow, Wilson probably rode the wave with a freestyle in the fourth quarter. On a third-and-10 key with 8:16 left and the Broncos down 10-5, Russ found Kendall Hinton on a nice 27-yard strike to help set up the game. tallying the team’s only touchdown of the night. Once Denver officially took the lead, the onus was suddenly on San Francisco to ramp up its offense.
The game of the game
On the move, Wilson’s dart to Hinton was the kind of play the Broncos are paying big money to deliver.
What’s next?
The 49ers (1-2) return home for another premiership matchup, this time against the rival Rams (2-1) on “Monday Night Football.” The Broncos (2-1), meanwhile, will look to stay above .500 by traveling to Vegas to rival the Raiders (0-3), who lost a narrow one against the Titans on Sunday.