The San Francisco 49ers made a statement in Melbourne, and the trip to Australia looks a lot smarter now.
Behind a sharp offense and a defense that never let the Rams get comfortable, the 49ers opened the season with a 27-7 win Friday morning in Australia at the historic Melbourne Cricket Ground. The preseason Super Bowl favorites came in with plenty of hype. They left looking flat, with Matthew Stafford out of sync and eventually pulled with 3:29 remaining.
The travel strategy was one of the big talking points before kickoff. San Francisco got to Australia a full week early and used the time for practice.
Los Angeles arrived just over a day before the game and tried to stay on California time, even with the 17-hour difference. That approach might make sense once the Rams get home and prepare for a Monday night matchup with the New York Giants, but it didn’t help them here.
San Francisco’s defense set the tone early under new coordinator Raheem Morris. Stafford finished 15 of 25 for 155 yards with no touchdowns, one interception and a 61.2 passer rating.
The 49ers also forced two turnovers and produced a huge third-quarter goal line stand, stopping Stafford on a fourth-down sneak. That sequence helped swing the game, and Deebo Samuel’s touchdown on a 99-yard drive pushed the score to 24-7.
Nick Bosa was a major factor even after missing all of training camp and the preseason. He finished with two tackles for loss, a quarterback hit and four total tackles.
Fred Warner, back after last season’s season-ending ankle injury, posted 11 tackles, broke up a pass and forced a fumble. Renardo Green picked off his first pass of the season after being benched in last year’s divisional round loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
The defense wasn’t perfect. The 49ers had some trouble against the run early, and Puka Nacua broke loose for a long gain in the first half that led to the Rams’ only touchdown. Still, San Francisco held Los Angeles to 290 yards, well below what the league’s top scoring and yardage team from last season usually puts up.
On offense, the new pieces made an immediate impact. Mike Evans, whose training camp absence drew plenty of attention, said before Week 1 that he didn’t need the practice time.
His first game in a 49ers uniform backed that up. Evans caught six of seven targets for 49 yards and scored his first touchdown on a fade route, with five of those receptions moving the chains on third down.
Christian McCaffrey and rookie running back Kaelon Black split the backfield workload in a way that suggested San Francisco is easing McCaffrey in after he turned 30 this summer. McCaffrey ran for 68 yards on 10 carries, while Black added 65 yards on 14 attempts.
Brock Purdy was efficient as usual, completing 25 of 34 passes for 205 yards and three touchdowns. He did throw an interception, but the response was strong: the 49ers scored on four of the next five possessions, with a missed field goal on the final series breaking up that stretch. San Francisco also went 7 of 12 on third down and outgained the Rams 379-290.
The only real concern to come out of the win was health. Rookie receiver De’Zhaun Stribling had to be helped off midway through the second quarter after what looked like a non-contact injury to his left leg.
He had already been in the medical tent earlier in the game before returning, then came up lame while running an in-cutting route. He was carted off with his right cleat removed, and the 49ers later ruled him out with an ankle injury.
Tight end Jake Tonges also left with an apparent leg injury.
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Brock Purdy Hit Could Bring NFL Fallout After 49ers Opener
Brock Purdys season-opening performance in Melbourne was memorable for more than just the box score, because one of the biggest moments came when the 49ers quarterback took a hit from Rams defensive tackle Tyler Davis that drew a roughing-the-passer flag. Purdy finished the game 25 of 34 for 205 yards with three touchdowns and one interception, but the contact he absorbed is the kind of play that tends to linger after the final whistle once the league reviews it.
The NFLs guidelines leave room for fines on penalties like that, and there is already speculation that the collision may have crossed into helmet-to-helmet territory, which could bring added discipline. For San Francisco, the immediate concern is the health of its quarterback and the protection he gets going forward, while the larger issue is whether the league decides the hit in Melbourne was simply a penalty on the field or something more costly when the office in New York takes a closer look. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Hit On Brock Purdy Could Bring NFL Punishment
Brock Purdy still delivered a productive outing in Melbourne, but one of the biggest moments in the 49ers game came on a hit from Rams defensive tackle Tyler Davis that drew a roughing-the-passer flag and raised the possibility of a helmet-to-helmet call. The play stood out not just because of the contact itself, but because it landed on a San Francisco quarterback who kept the offense moving anyway, finishing 25 of 34 for 205 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.
For the NFL, the question now is whether the play turns into more than a penalty on the field. League discipline can follow this kind of hit if officials and review determine it crossed the line, though it remains to be seen whether fines will actually come down. For the 49ers, the larger concern is the same one every team has in moments like this: protecting Purdy while keeping him upright enough to do what he did in Melbourne. [Read more 🡒]
Nick Bosa's 49ers Return Took A Strange Turn After The Rams Win
Nick Bosas return in the 49ers season opener against the Rams was one of the biggest on-field positives of the night. Coming back from a torn ACL, he made his presence felt with four tackles, two tackles for loss and a quarterback hit, a reminder of how much San Francisco missed him when he was out. For a player whose impact is usually measured in pressure and disruption, simply getting through that first game healthy mattered as much as the stat line.
The strange part came afterward, when a social media post began circulating with a quote falsely attributed to Bosa about honoring Charlie Kirk, a statement he never made. It was the latest example of how quickly fake quotes can spread around NFL players, following similar fabrications that have previously targeted George Kittle and C.J. Stroud. For the 49ers, it turned a straightforward comeback story into an unnecessary off-field distraction. [Read more 🡒]