After the 49ers took a 23-3 lead on the opening drive of the second half of Thursday night’s game against the Seahawks, the road team was set to kick off. With 10:07 left in the third quarter.
The 49ers didn’t kick the ball into or out of the end zone, however. Instead, the ball was put in play. Laviska Shenault, Jr. caught it at the Seattle three. And he went 97 yards for the score.
In the blink of an eye, the game changed. The score, with the extra point, moved to 23-10. The momentum swung, sharply. And the 49ers ultimattely had to sweat longer than they should have.
It’s possible Wright was supposed to put it in the end zone but didn’t hit it hard enough. (On some of his other kicks last night, Wright did put it in the end zone.)
Later in the game, after the 49ers turned a 29-24 lead into 36-24 with 1:17 left, the 49ers put the ball in play again. Dee Williams fielded the ball at the 12. The play ended with Wright making a tackle, and getting himself injured.
It was the second time this week that a San Francisco kicker was injured while making a tackle.
After the victory, coach Kyle Shanahan wasn’t asked whether he considered putting the ball into the end zone on either or both of those kicks. Those decisions, and their outcomes, become important data points for other coaches when deciding what to do about the dynamic kickoff.
Arguably, the 49ers should have banged the ball into the front row, in both of those situations. The first one ignited a comeback that could have become a loss. The second one got a kicker injured, for the second straight game.