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            49ers hold off late Cardinals push: Jimmy Garoppolo heats up, raises Super Bowl ceiling

We're transportation you our massivegest takeaways of the 49ers' big convert Arizona…...

The urban center 49ers square measure 8-0 on the season and this latest 28-25 convert the Arizona Cardinals (3-5-1) is also the foremost spectacular nonetheless. Why? as a result of they did not have to place confidence in their top-ranked defense to squeak out the win. Instead, it absolutely was quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, United Nations agency tossed for 317 yards and 4 touchdowns within the win. With him taking part in at this level including their defense, urban center is not just trying sort of a excellent team, however a bonafide Super Bowl favorite.

As for the Cardinals, they showed tremendous fight during this game to push the 49ers to the brink, however ultimately their ignorance on the sideline evidenced too pricey.

Scroll on right down to browse our biggest takeaways from this pairing.
Why the 49ers won

San Francisco's defense wasn't flustered once the gap score by Arizona and quickly remembered they're the No. a pair of unit within the NFL in DVOA. The Cards were forced to punt on four straight drives following that gap touchdown and also the Niners eventually found success obtaining once Kyler Murray, United Nations agency was despoiled thrice and on the endure an oversized portion of the night.

After that they had associate degree uncharacteristic of string of early penalties to begin the sport (including a horse-collar penalty by Dee Ford on a third-and-9 on Arizona's gap drive that will have forced them to punt), San Fran vie a lot of discipline and easily let their talent win out.

Offensively, Jimmy Garoppolo and his supporting solid paid in on important downs and took advantage of Arizona's mistakes. 3 of Garoppolo's four touchdowns came on third down and also the alternative came on fourth. That fourth-down score came once Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsburgy known as a timeout right before his defense stopped the 49ers at the goal-line. rather than going into the room with the score knotted at fourteen, Garoppolo hit Emmanuel Sanders for a fast score.

Speaking of Sanders, he took another step in his familiarity with the Niners offense. In his second game since returning over from the Denver Broncos, the veteran receiver caught seven passes for 112 yards which score, whereas showing some very nice chemistry with Garoppolo. That trust was on full show with around four minutes to play within the fourth quarter. once Arizona simply completed associate degree 88-yard touchdown and a two-point conversion to bring the sport at intervals 3 points, the 49ers were facing a third-and-11 from their own 48-yard line. it absolutely was there once Garoppolo looked Sanders' method and came up with a 16-yard catch. urban center was ready to still drive and kill the mandatory clock to forestall a doable Arizona comeback.

Why the Cardinals lost

As we tend to illustrated on top of, Arizona's defense merely could not get off the sphere because the Jimmy Garoppolo and also the Niners offense born-again eleven of their seventeen third-down opportunities on the night, and 4 of these conversions went for touchdowns.

Offensively, the Cardinals did not get a lot of of production from their talent position players outside of back Kenyan Drake. In his Arizona debut, Drake ran for one hundred ten yards and a touchdown, whereas catching all four of his targets for fifty two yards. He accounted for 162 of the Cardinals' 357 total yards, which does not even tell the complete story as Andy Isabella's 88-yard touchdown soft those numbers.

While he vie nice, it is a very little regarding thereforemeone|that somebody} so inexperienced was the middle of Arizona's offense and not a player a lot of seasoned within the system.

Of course, the apparent reason for why the Cardinals ultimately fell to the 49ers on weekday night was for the most part thanks to Kliff Kingsbury's call to decision a timeout on fourth-and-goal right before interruption. which leads United States into our Turning purpose for this pairing.

Turning purpose

After increasing 7-0 on their gap drive, the Cardinals merely could not keep their foot on the gas within the half. Arizona was ready to force the 49ers to travel three-and-out on consecutive drives to begin the sport, however could not take full advantage of it. KeeShean Johnson born straightforward|a simple|a straightforward} initial down pass to begin their third drive of the night and 2 plays later Kyler Murray lost Christian church for one more should-be easy conversion.

From there, Arizona was forced to punt, urban center started their next drive primarily at mid-field, and drove right down to even the score at seven, the primary of 3 nonreciprocal touchdowns to conclude the primary [*fr1].

That final touchdown evidenced to be the foremost too bad for Arizona as head coach Kliff Kingsbury known as a timeout simply before what would are a fourth-and-goal stop at the one. in real time following that miscue, Jimmy Garoppolo completed a fast touchdown to Emmanuel Sanders to travel up by 2 scores.

Arizona was ready to build a game of it late and convey it at intervals 3 points, however that known as timeout to later facilitate them score a touchdown by Kingsbury evidenced too closely.

The costume fits: 49ers square measure Super Bowl contenders

Kingsbury had to second-guess himself thereon one.

Are the Cardinals second-guessing their structure call last spring? That was once they selected to draft quarterback Kyler Murray over Nick Bosa with the primary choose of the 2019 draft. Arizona’s call allowed Bosa, the present defensive player of the week, to fall to the 49ers, United Nations agency chosen him with the second choose.

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Though Thursday’s game might are beaked the Bosa Bowl, it wasn’t extremely a vote thereon draft call. Arizona principally contained Bosa, WHO didn’t record a sack and had one tackle. Murray vie well, was au fait and was — from time to time — good. He’s young and small, however conjointly quick and proficient and nobody is aware of what the long run holds. The Cardinals attempt to build around him.

The distinction with the 49ers’ draft is that, although their record disguised it last season, they were near to already being engineered. Adding Bosa all over up being the law officer piece that helped unlock the greatness of the defensive position, that has been assembled over the years. That defensive line’s artistry, in turn, unharnessed the secondary. the general stout defense took pressure off the offense.

It’s all clicking into place and with hebdomadally, the team’s confidence grows and chemistry solidifies. Thursday’s game wasn’t the prettiest performance, however weekday games seldom square measure. the right record at the top of the night was enticing enough.

“I wouldn’t say we tend to expected to be here,” Garoppolo same. “But we’ve got an honest cluster here. we are able to heal up and build a run at this issue.”

Halfway through the season, the 49ers still don’t recognize what it’s prefer to lose, finally recognize what it’s prefer to beat Arizona and have learned what it’s prefer to survive a tricky game on the road.

Midseason report: That’s no rival costume they’re carrying. That’s the $64000 issue.