Sunday’s game against the Saints 49ers defense. Not only did he keep a clean sheet in four games in the second half, but he also won 13-0 in his first shutout of the season. The offense really struggled, but they never turned the ball over again and did enough to get past the Saints’ offense.
With the 49ers on a four-game winning streak and ending November undefeated, let’s take a look at the positives of the five winners and one loser.
Winner: Consecutive Winning Streak
This also qualifies as the “Winner: DeMeco Ryans” section. The Ryans defense extended their winning streak to four games in a row by not allowing a second half point in a Saints shutout. The defense was the definition of Bend, but it didn’t break, especially in the second half, but held the Saints’ offense to his first zero point game since 2022.
The defense wasn’t the only one extending the streak, as Jimmy Garoppolo pulled off a clean sheet on Sunday to extend his no-interception game streak to four.
There were some near-intercepts throughout the game. Most notably Alonte Taylor’s interception return for a Garoppolo touchdown in the third quarter that was called back by Chris Harris’ illegal contact. In Garoppolo’s no-intercepts game on Sunday, the 49ers improved his record to 7-0 in a season in which Garoppolo threw no interceptions.
Winner: Goal Line Stand
Neither a clean sheet nor a shutout in the second half would have been possible without a close game in the second half. New Orleans made his three consecutive drives to come within San Francisco’s 25-yard line, and the drives resulted in zero points for him.
The Saints started the run on a 12-play drive that ended late in the third quarter with a missed Will Lutz 48-yard field goal. They then dropped the ball on the 49ers 1-yard line on another 12-play drive, with Talanoa Hufanga making the play of the game and Alvin Kamara fumbled on the goal line.
After Greenlaw held Kamala long enough for Hufanga to knock the ball out, the ball was recovered by Dre Greenlaw. The 49ers offense went three-and-out following a fumble that returned the ball to the Saints.
With 6:18 remaining, the defense went big again with a 13-0 lead. They gave the Saints a fourth goal at the 4-yard line when Nick Bosa made a perfect jump (perhaps early on) on the snap to sack Andy Dalton, ending the drive and putting the ball back on the ball. I was able to push into crime. The fourth down turned out to be the final play of the game for the Saints offense.
Winner: LB Fred Warner
There was little Fred Warner didn’t do to the Saints. The linebacker filled the stat sheet against New Orleans on Sunday, finishing with seven tackles, two pass deflections, a quarterback hit, and a forced fumble. It was felt early on as it forced us to fumble on the opening drive of . It was recovered by Samson Ebcum and became an early field goal for the 49ers offense.
Winner: WR Jauan Jennings
It was an interesting game for the offense, scoring only 13 points, but Jauan Jennings stood out with his best performance of the season. He finished with 6 receptions on 7 targets (both season highs) for 49 yards and a first touchdown. Four of his six receptions were third downs and three of the four were first downs.
His numbers were boosted by the 49ers’ final drive before halftime having receptions for 13, 12, 1, 2, and 5 yards, and acrobatic touchdown catches on shortest.
Garoppolo targeted Jennings with a pass and Saints safety Tyran Mathieu was able to put the ball in the air, but Jennings tracked and got the ball, bouncing both feet and putting the 49ers down. 10-0 at the end of the first half. Jennings was Garoppolo’s third-down security all season long, and the receiver turned it into a big game on Sunday.
Loser: Kyle Shanahan vs. 4th down
Let’s start with the good news. Shanahan at Sunda he tried two of his 4th downs but one in the first quarter Christian he converted with McCaffrey’s run. However, it was Shanahan’s mistake that prevented the 49ers from converting.
With the ball at the Saints 1-yard line and 3:06 left in the second quarter, the 49ers offense scored the fourth goal in a shotgun formation. Garoppolo took the snap and turned to Brandon Ayuk and George Kittle, but the Saints sniffed it out and forced Garoppolo to make a decision to try to cross the goal line, but was stopped by several Saints tacklers. .
The 49ers usually put Garoppolo under center in their power formation in one-yard-out situations, so it felt like a situation Shanahan might have thought too much about, but not here. Ultimately, Cole didn’t make much of an impact for his 49ers and was able to score minutes behind, but Shanahan’s decision-making on his 4th down remains questionable.
Winner: Kyle Shanahan vs. Challenge
Shanahan deserves credit for his bravery in the second quarter and potentially turning the tide of the game. Tasom Hill gave Chris Olave his 30-yard gain and moved the Saints offense to within his 10-yard line for the 49ers, who maintained his 3-0 lead. He was ruled to be a catch after Olave took a few steps before being knocked down by Tashaun Gipson, but the ball popped out as Olave fell to the ground.
The Saints attempted to rush to the line, but Shanahan threw a red flag before the snap. was judged to be The challenge was questioned by many, but Shanahan proved correct and the Saints were forced to make three plays afterward, negating the big play.
