49ers Studs and Duds: Little to celebrate in lopsided loss to Rams

SANTA CLARA You re not going to win various football games when you fall behind - So no the ers didn t beat the Rams Sunday in a pivotal Week NFC West matchup Frankly it was incredible they were ever within striking distance of Los Angeles in a match that ended - with LA posting yards of offense while registering no penalties to the Niners seven and winning the turnover battle - on Sunday The Niners fell to - on the season with the loss and are clearly in a second tier all to themselves in the division trailing the Seahawks - winners over Arizona and Rams STUDS Related Articles Kurtenbach My ers-Rams prediction let chaos reign ers sat out NFL pact deadline Fans will eventually thank them Kurtenbach The ers need more than they can afford at the NFL agreement deadline Kurtenbach The urgent ers passed a key test against the N Y Giants with ruthless execution ers Studs and Duds Mac Jones bruised and bleeding shows total control in win over Giants Brian Robinson RB Another positive encounter for the Niners backup back scoring a touchdown and outgaining McCaffrey on the ground The ers Offensive Line A strong performance against an elite defensive front The Niners have problems oh so multiple problems but blaming the boys up front for this loss is totally telling the world that you don t know ball George Kittle TE He displayed up The question was absolutely how frequently the Niners could get the ball to him Kittle had nine catches for yards and a touchdown and added a few strong blocking in the run battle He remains as good as it gets at the tight end position DUDS Related Articles ers-Rams live updates Niners cut into LA lead in third quarter Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue who oversaw financial rise dies at Kurtenbach My ers-Rams prediction let chaos reign Tom Brady recalls having his own cheering section at Levi s Stadium ers keys to beating Rams sweeping NFC West rival Renardo Green CB Whether it was Davante Adams or Puka Nacua Green gave back all the progress he made over the last meager weeks Unless he s in a strict man-to-man look Green really struggles to stick with anyone And when you play man-to-man against Adams you lose You can do the math here Luke Gifford LB Typically when I suggest that a defensive member was a target I mean it in a way that s a little less than literal In this episode I mean it literally Gifford was targeted repeatedly on Sunday to the point that when the Niners put the seventh-year linebacker on the field the Rams changed the play to go right after him And those plays worked without fail Gifford is a fine special teams competitor but the Niners Big Nickel where Jason Pinnock stepped in at SAM linebacker proved to be the far-better option Robert Saleh DC For no other reason than keeping Gifford on the field Ji Ayir Brown FS A liability against the run and the pass He ll post a flash play every now and again and follow it with two or three plays where he s woefully out of position or is straight-up run over Malik Mustapha SS Played so poorly you could argue that Brown was the better safety Jordan Elliott DT The Rams ran duo Sean McVay s favorite run play at Elliott to the point of relentlessness But you stick with what works in this league His fourth-and- encroachment with to play in a lost-cause situation didn t help his affair for not making this list