49ers and Raiders Break Even in Preseason Finale; Five Takeaways from #SFvsLV

Purdy and the Offense Find Their Groove Early

San Francisco’s starting quarterback had the same amount of playing time he had in the team’s second preseason game, leading the offense for a total of three drives that extended into a couple minutes of the second quarter. Against the Raiders, Purdy and company found their rhythm early with a tone-setting 27-yard connection from the quarterback to Samuel Sr. near the left sideline. The opening series resulted in a six-play, 37-yard drive capped off by a 49-yard field goal by kicker Jake Moody. In their next possession, Purdy hit Kittle in traffic to convert on third-and-six, scrambled for 14 yards and a first down to set up running back Jordan Mason for the four-yard score.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan had ninth-year pro, Brandon Allen, take over for Purdy a few minutes into the second quarter. He closed out the night completing five of seven passes for 60 yards with the momentum of three of his four drives falling victim to some dropped passes and a couple sacks. Allen had a couple of nice connections that included a 24-yarder to tight end Cameron Latu and a 19-yard toss down the middle to Jacob Cowing.

Joshua Dobbs was under center for part of the third and fourth quarter and completed six of seven passes for 49 yards and a touchdown. His first drive was the most efficient and resulted in an 11-play, 55-yard drive capped off by a shot to Cowing down the middle for the score. Tanner Mordecai closed out the game, and despite not leading the team to any scoring drives, did complete a chunk play to Ronnie Bell and a deep shot to Trent Taylor on the final play of the game.

Teamwork for the Turnover

After forcing a quick three-and-out to start the game, the 49ers defense came up with a turnover the next time they took the field. Sophomore safety Ji’Ayir Brown and linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles put a big hit on Raiders quarterback Nathan Peterman to force the fumble, and defensive lineman Robert Beal Jr. secured the loose ball to set up the 49ers right at midfield.

San Francisco’s defensive line suffered a couple injuries to free agent signings Yetur Gross-Matos and Leonard Floyd in the first quarter of Friday night’s game. During the 49ers second defensive series, Gross-Matos got rolled up on a Raiders run play on first down, and two plays later, Floyd got caught up in a pile while trying to bring down Peterman on a scramble. Both were labeled questionable to return with knee injuries in the first half and did not return to the field. Prior to going down, Floyd made a nice tackle of Peterman in the backfield on the Raiders opening drive.

After the game, Shanahan said it is likely both players have knee sprains but will undergo MRIs for further examination.

Rookie Running Back Shines on Special Teams

Running back Isaac Guerendo made his preseason debut after spending most of training camp and preseason working back from a hamstring injury. The 49ers fourth-round pick was working in tandem with fellow running back Patrick Taylor Jr. as kickoff returners for the first half of Sunday’s contest. After Las Vegas punched in an 81-yard punt return touchdown in the second quarter, Guerendo responded with his own explosive special teams play. He caught and returned the ensuing kickoff for 93 yards and now owns the longest dynamic kickoff return of the preseason.

Guerendo’s 93-yard return set up San Francisco at the Raiders four yard line for their next offensive possession. Taylor Jr. took the back-to-back handoffs on the ensuing drive and punched in the three-yard touchdown to put the 49ers up 17-7 with just over nine minutes left to play in the first half.