The 49ers walked away with a 23-17 win over the Commanders on Monday night, but George Kittle wasn’t interested in pretending it felt clean. San Francisco built a 20-3 cushion in Week 6, then let Washington hang around long enough to turn a comfortable night into a tense one. Kittle’s takeaway was blunt: that kind of slip-up won’t always end well.
“When you’re up 20-3 and you can’t shut the door on a team that has been struggling - I think if we were playing a super-efficient team we lose that game pretty easily. And we can’t have that,” Kittle said, via Matt Barrows of The Athletic. “There are teams out there that will take advantage of us going three-and-out multiple times.”
Even with the second-half wobble, San Francisco safety Malik Mustapha said the group kept coming. The message from his side of the locker room was about toughness, not polish.
“We were going to take those body shots today. We were going to take them and keep standing up,” Mustapha said.
Out in Los Angeles, the Rams are still waiting on tight end Terrance Ferguson. Adam Schefter reported Ferguson, who is dealing with an ankle injury, is not expected to be ready to come off injured reserve by next week, the first time he’ll be eligible to be designated to return. A source told Schefter that Ferguson “will take some time.”
The Rams may also be looking at help elsewhere on offense. ESPN’s Dan Graziano said the team is expected to at least explore a trade for a receiver after losing Davante Adams to a major hamstring injury.
In Seattle, the spotlight is once again on Sam Darnold. Through the early part of the season, the Seahawks quarterback has thrown for 1,033 yards with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions, and Jason La Canfora of Casino.org cited executives who believed Darnold had traits that once made him look like a first-round bust.
La Canfora described Darnold as a “system QB” who needs a talented playcaller as an offensive coordinator, while Seattle OC Brian Fleury has been “questionable at best.”
One high-ranking NFL official who was with Darnold earlier in his career said the quarterback needs the right coordinator to get the best out of him: “I’m not going to say that he was fragile, but it takes a certain kind of OC to bring out the best in him.”
Seattle could have one more weapon back in the mix soon. Mike Macdonald was asked whether he expects Zach Charbonnet to play in Week 7, and the Seahawks head coach sounded optimistic.
“Zach is gonna have a full week’s worth of reps, so that’s exciting. And there’s a possibility that you could see him on Sunday in some capacity.” (Brian Nemhauser)
In Other News...
Rams May Be Headed For A Tough Matthew Stafford Decision
Matthew Stafford has done everything the Rams could ask of him through the first six games of the 2026 season, piling up 1,794 passing yards and sitting atop the league in that category. Even so, Los Angeles has only managed two wins, and the gap between Staffords production and the teams record has become hard to ignore as injuries continue to stack up around him.
Ty Simpson is among the younger players the Rams are weighing for more snaps as they try to navigate the stretch ahead. For a team that still has Stafford performing at a high level, the question is no longer whether he can carry an offense, but how long Los Angeles can keep asking him to do it while also trying to build a clearer path through the rest of the season. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Suddenly Face A Huge WR Decision After Latest Injury Blow
The Rams receiver room took another hit when Davante Adams was projected to miss six to 10 weeks with a hamstring injury, adding more pressure to an offense already dealing with multiple injuries to key players. With Matthew Stafford and the passing game now facing a thinner margin for error, the team has been pushed into a tougher roster conversation than it expected this early in the stretch run.
Alex Kay floated the idea of Los Angeles looking at free-agent Tyreek Hill as a way to soften the blow, but the timing may not be on the Rams side. Hills agent has said he is close to signing with another NFL team, and there has been no official report of a deal with Los Angeles, leaving the Rams to weigh whether they need to act quickly or look elsewhere for help. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Injury Trouble Keeps Growing At The Worst Possible Time
The Rams depth chart keeps getting thinner at exactly the wrong moment. Los Angeles placed wide receiver Davante Adams, nose tackle Poona Ford and defensive lineman Kobie Turner on injured reserve, a blow that cuts into both the offense and the front seven as the team turns its attention to a Week 7 matchup with the Raiders. Turner is expected to miss at least four weeks, adding more strain to a roster already trying to absorb a wave of absences.
Trent McDuffie is also day-to-day with a groin injury and did not practice, while linebacker Nate Landman has entered concussion protocol, leaving the Rams with more uncertainty as the week unfolds. In response, the team signed EDGE Darryl Peterson III to the active roster and Jalen Hunt to the practice squad, another reminder that the Rams are scrambling to patch holes while the games keep coming. [Read more 🡒]