A bye week appears to have been just what the doctor ordered for the 49ers.
They lost three straight games after a 5-0 start as injuries piled up and the defense showed more leaks than it had in the season-opening winning streak. The time off allowed for the return of wide receiver Deebo Samuel and left tackle Trent Williams and moving defensive coordinator Steve Wilks to the sideline coincided with a return to an overwhelming performance on that side of the ball.
Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence was sacked five times and turned the ball over three times during a 34-3 49ers rout in Jacksonville. Nick Bosa had 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble, Javon Hargrave had 1.5 sacks, and newcomer Chase Young joined Bosa in the backfield to drop Lawrence in the first half. Safety Talanoa Hufanga and linebacker Fred Warner had interceptions as Jacksonville’s five-game winning streak came crashing to a halt.
Samuel ran for a touchdown with Williams plowing the road in front of him in the second half and Brock Purdy threw three touchdowns before giving way to Sam Darnold late in the fourth quarter. The only blemish on the day was that running back Christian McCaffrey failed to score a touchdown for what would have been an NFL-record 18th straight game.
It wasn’t for a lack of trying as the 49ers fed McCaffrey the ball five times in a row once they moved inside the Jags’ 30-yard-line in the final minutes, but he wasn’t able to get into the end zone.
Purdy finished the day 19-of-26 for 296 yards and one of his touchdowns was a 66-yarder to George Kittle that he delivered under heavy pressure. Purdy’s first score came on a throw to the right while he was rolling left and those kinds of big plays were missing during the Niners’ losing streak.
McCaffrey will try to start another touchdown streak at home against the Buccaneers next weekend while Purdy, Bosa, Samuel and everyone else will try to keep things rolling. The Jaguars, who fell to 6-3, will host the Titans next weekend.
