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Maiocco Observations: 49ers Escape With Victory Against Seahawks on TNF originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SEATTLE – This is ridiculous.
The 49ers showed, once again, that they can’t have good things.
Good things, in this case, mean seemingly comfortable second-half leads against division opponents.
But a rookie and a couple of his big players came forward to avoid another embarrassing defeat.
Rookie cornerback Renardo Green intercepted Geno Smith, who appeared to be on the verge of leading the Seattle Seahawks to a huge comeback. And Brock Purdy and George Kittle teamed up for their second touchdown of the game, as the 49ers held on to win 36-24 on Thursday.
Coach Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers have turned double-digit leads into an art form. And it looked like they were on their way to doing it again until some late-game heroics.
Of course, it was too early in the season to call it a must-win game.
But that’s how the 49ers decided to approach their Week 6 game against the Seattle Seahawks.
The 49ers played with urgency and set the tone early, but couldn’t maintain the momentum for four quarters.
San Francisco entered the game winless against NFC West opponents, losing to the Los Angeles Rams and the Arizona Cardinals. In both losses they blew double-digit leads in the second half. The 49ers started the week 0-3 against the NFC.
Here are three takeaways from the 49ers’ Week 6 matchup against the Seahawks:
Red zone problems, solution
The 49ers put together a big opening drive of the game after taking control at the 3-yard line following an interception.
But the series ended like many others for the 49ers this season.
The 49ers entered the red zone and then stalled.
Matthew Wright, replacing the injured Jake Moody, kicked a 25-yard field goal.
The 49ers came in as one of the worst red zone teams in the league after being the best in the NFL a year ago.
They finally settled it early in the third quarter when Purdy made a notable throw to Kittle against tight coverage. Kittle, who celebrated his 31st birthday on Wednesday, made the catch and deftly put both feet infield for a 10-yard touchdown.
The pair teamed up again in the fourth quarter to extend the 49ers’ lead with a 9-yard scoring connection.
Purdy completed 18 of 28 passes for 255 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in the game. His passer rating was 129.3.
The 49ers went 0 for 2 in the red zone in the first half.
The 49ers found a novel way to avoid their red zone problems early in the second quarter when Purdy hit Deebo Samuel for a 76-yard touchdown.
Purdy gave the pass to Purdy deep down the field before Seattle safety Julian Love could reach it. Samuel escaped Love’s clutches and then outran Boye Mafe on the way to the end zone.
The 49ers settled for another short field goal after another miss in the red zone near the end of the first half.
Fullback Kyle Juszczyk was thrown out for a 3-yard loss on a Purdy screen pass on a third-and-11 play when left guard Aaron Banks failed to come out to block Seattle linebacker Jerome Baker.
Another special teams mistake
Special teams has been an adventure for the 49ers this season.
And they found another way Thursday night to give their opponent a big boost.
This time, the 49ers allowed only the second touchdown in the NFL this season under their new kickoff format.
At that point, the 49ers had a 20-point lead. The Seahawks ended up getting back into the game.
Laviska Shenault, who earlier in the game gave the ball to the 49ers on a fumbled kick return, found an opening and took it 97 yards for a touchdown.
Jalen Graham had the best chance to stop Shenault, but he just put a shoulder on him and didn’t finish as he ran through the first wave of would-be tacklers.
Up to that point, the Seahawks had managed just three points and trailed 23-3 and seemed to have little chance.
The kick return for a touchdown is just another big play the 49ers have allowed on special teams this season.
In a loss to the Minnesota Vikings, the 49ers allowed a blocked punt that led to a touchdown. The following week, the Rams converted a fake punt and had a long punt return to go a long way toward their victory over the 49ers. The 49ers also lost a fumble on a kickoff against the New England Patriots.
Mustapha stands out, injured in his second start
Rookie safety Malik Mustapha made a considerable impact in his second NFL start before leaving the game late in the first half with an ankle injury.
He did not return and now his status for the next few weeks is in serious doubt.
While there, Mustapha stood out.
The Seahawks moved down the field without much resistance on the first drive of the game before Mustapha was in position to get a takeaway deep in 49ers territory.
Mustapha took advantage of quarterback Gino Smith’s throw on a pass intended for Tyler Lockett at the 2-yard line. His momentum carried him out of bounds after a 1-yard return.
Mustapha showed the versatility to play deep in coverage and also made a mark near the line of scrimmage when he was partly responsible for a three-pointer in the first half when he stopped Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III for a pass. 3 yards. loss on a first down rushing attempt.
Mustapha, a fourth-round pick out of Wake Forest, figures to be in the starting lineup for a while.
The 49ers placed safety Talanoa Hufanga on injured reserve this week due to a torn ligament in his right wrist. Hufanga will miss at least four games.
George Odum replaced Mustapha and made a nice play deep down the field in the second half to break up a potential big play by DK Metcalf.
