The San Francisco 49ers beat the Arizona Cardinals 36-30 at Levi's Stadium on Sunday. The 49ers got far more out of far fewer snaps. San Francisco averaged nearly 9 yards per play, roughly double Arizona's rate, and needed only 50 snaps to outscore an opponent that ran 81.
Arizona held the ball for 38:44, but its ground game managed only about 3 yards a carry.
How It Happened
San Francisco struck first at 8:26 of the first quarter. Brock Purdy hit Mike Evans for 2 yards, and Evans lateraled to Deebo Samuel, who went 80 yards for the touchdown.
Evans added a 23-yard touchdown catch from Purdy at 14:55 of the second quarter. Arizona answered with Chad Ryland field goals of 26 and 41 yards, but Eddy Pineiro drilled a 57-yarder as time expired in the half.
Christian McCaffrey scored on a 1-yard run at 11:07 of the third quarter, though Pineiro's extra point failed. Arizona cut into the lead at 3:02 of the quarter when Jacoby Brissett found Michael Wilson for a 5-yard touchdown.
The fourth quarter turned into a shootout. Brissett hit Jeremiyah Love from 1 yard out to pull Arizona within a field goal, and George Kittle answered with a 10-yard touchdown catch. Another failed extra point kept the Cardinals within reach.
Brissett then ran in a 1-yard score with 2:51 left to pull Arizona within 2. Purdy found Kittle again, this time from 20 yards with 1:31 remaining. Ryland's 49-yard field goal with 34 seconds left set the final margin.
Key Performers
Brock Purdy, 49ers: TD passes to Mike Evans (23 YDS), George Kittle (10 YDS) and George Kittle (20 YDS), plus the completion that set up Deebo Samuel's 80-yard lateral score
49ers passing: 15-27, 297 YDS, 11.0 yards per pass, 0 INT
49ers rushing: 23 ATT, 140 YDS, 6.1 per carry
Jacoby Brissett, Cardinals: TD passes to Michael Wilson (5 YDS) and Jeremiyah Love (1 YDS), 1-yard TD run
Cardinals passing: 38-52, 272 YDS, 5.0 yards per pass, 0 INT
Cardinals rushing: 27 ATT, 93 YDS, 3.4 per carry
Kittle's two fourth-quarter touchdowns each came right after Arizona had pulled within one score. Both times, the 49ers pushed the lead back out.
What It Means
San Francisco moves to 3-0 and 2-0 at home. The 49ers won despite holding the ball for only 21:16 and losing a fumble. Their passing game averaged 11 yards per attempt, more than double Arizona's 5.
Arizona falls to 1-2. The Cardinals did plenty right: 9 conversions on 18 third downs, a perfect 2 for 2 on fourth down and no turnovers. But they went 3 for 5 in the red zone while San Francisco was perfect on its trips, and they committed 10 penalties for 86 yards.
The road has been kinder to the Cardinals than home so far. Their only win came away from home, and they are now 1-1 on the road and 0-1 at home. This performance, a one-score loss at an unbeaten team, supports the idea that they travel well, even if the result went the other way.