The 49ers’ fast start has come with an unusual calling card: age, and plenty of it.
San Francisco moved to 4-0 with a 24-14 win over the Denver Broncos, and the finish came the way so many of its big moments have this season - through veteran playmakers making the decisive grabs. Deebo Samuel put the 49ers ahead 10-3 in the third quarter with his third touchdown of the year, Christian McCaffrey later powered in on the goal line, and George Kittle delivered the knockout with a 56-yard catch-and-run on a screen.
That final stretch also pushed the 49ers into a strange bit of NFL history. With De’Zhaun Stribling and Ricky Pearsall unavailable, San Francisco is leaning heavily on its older receiving options, and it has worked in a big way. Per CBS Sports’ Doug Clawson, the 49ers have 11 receiving touchdowns from players aged 30 or older through four games, the most in league history over that span.
Kittle has four of those scores. Mike Evans has two.
Samuel has three. Demarcus Robinson and Kyle Juszczyk have one apiece.
It’s a snapshot that fits the way this roster has been built and the way it is winning right now. John Lynch has talked for years about getting younger, and the front office has made moves with that in mind. But through four weeks of the 2026 season, the offense’s experienced core has been the engine.
That doesn’t change the long-term picture San Francisco wants with players like Stribling and Pearsall. Stribling was injured in his NFL debut and is likely headed toward a late November return, while Pearsall is out for the season. For now, though, the 49ers are living in the present, and their veteran pass-catchers have them looking like the best team in football as they head into Week 5 against the Seattle Seahawks.
In Other News...
49ers Escape Denver With A Bigger Concern Heading Into Seattle
The 49ers left Denver with a win, but the bigger storyline may have been what came out of the game physically. San Francisco had already taken a hit in a hard-fought afternoon, and the injury list kept growing as the game wore on, with several players forced to exit before the final whistle.
The most notable concern centers on fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who injured his knee and is preliminarily believed to have a sprain with an intact ACL, pending MRI results. Safety Marques Sigle and cornerback Upton Stout also left with injuries, though none of the early signs point to anything season-ending, leaving the 49ers waiting on more clarity as they turn their attention to Seattle. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Win Still Left Kyle Shanahan With An Uncomfortable Debate
Kyle Shanahans name now sits alone atop a franchise list that once belonged to Bill Walsh, a milestone that would normally define a victory lap for any 49ers coach. Instead, it came in a 24-14 win over the Broncos that felt more like a reminder of how San Francisco is being carried right now, with the defense doing the heavy lifting while Brock Purdy and the offense worked through a flatter afternoon than the team has been used to.
The 49ers still moved the ball well enough to finish with 358 yards and they stayed efficient enough on third down, going 6 of 13 without turning it over. But for a coach who just passed a legend and for an offense that had already set a higher bar earlier in the season, the bigger question coming out of the game was not the record book moment. It was how much Shanahan trusts this version of the offense to find its rhythm again before the schedule starts demanding it. [Read more 🡒]
Dre Greenlaw Had A Personal Message For Sean Payton Sunday
Dre Greenlaw had a little extra edge Sunday in the 49ers matchup with Denver, and it showed in a moment that quickly made the rounds. The linebacker, now back in San Francisco on a one-year contract, was caught on camera telling Broncos coach Sean Payton that Denver made a mistake letting him go after injuries cut short his run there.
For the 49ers, it was another reminder that Greenlaw is not just back, he matters to their defense in a big way. After spending the previous season with the Broncos, he has reestablished himself as an important piece in San Francisco, and the message he delivered Sunday carried the kind of personal sting that tends to follow a player who felt he had something to prove. [Read more 🡒]