Why the 49ers’ time management strategy backfired in late loss to the Rams originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
The 49ers’ offense took over with 1:51 left in the game Sunday at SoFi Stadium. The Los Angeles Rams had just one timeout left, so it seemed like the perfect situation for San Francisco to get the final possession of regulation.
The 49ers thought they would either score the winning points or at least go to overtime without the Rams taking control of the ball for a final possession.
Coach Kyle Shanahan shared his line of thinking and explained what went wrong at the end of the Crushing defeat for the 49ers (27-24) when asked about the situation by NBC Sports Bay Area.
“The number one goal was to try to win the game outright, which I think we had every opportunity to do,” Shanahan said.
The 49ers planned to reduce the time as much as possible. But the clock stopped after the first try when quarterback Brock Purdy was pushed out of bounds after a 4-yard scrum.
With 1:46 left, Purdy struck Brandon Aiyuk on a 9-yard pass for a first down.
“That’s why we couldn’t get a two-minute attack on that second-and-6,” Shanahan said. “We got a loop route to BA, and we regrouped after that. So that was definitely the thought process.”
The clock was down to 1:12 remaining when the next play began from the 49ers’ 43-yard line.
An incomplete pass took only four seconds off the clock.
The 49ers then missed their chance to get within field goal range and run the clock down to the final seconds when the second-year receiver Ronnie Bell failed to hang on a deep pass from Purdy.
If Bell had made the catch, the 49ers would have started their next play near the Rams 25-yard line and with about 20 seconds remaining in the game.
At this point, it would be a 43-yard field goal attempt for kicker Jake Moody.
Instead, the 49ers found themselves facing a third-and-10 situation with 1:02 remaining.
“At that point, it’s over,” Shanahan said of the possibility of running the clock. “You have to move the chains or they can use their timeout and leave.”
Purdy gained 2 yards on a scramble, and the Rams used their final timeout with 56 seconds remaining on fourth down.
Rams rookie Xavier Smith caught Mitch Wishnowsky’s punt at the 12-yard line, eluded rookie Malik Mustapha and ran up the right sideline for a 38-yard return.
Linebacker De’Vondre Campbell’s A 25-yard pass interference penalty while in coverage against tight end Colby Parkinson set up Joshua Karty’s 37-yard field goal with :02 remaining to give the game the lead. Rams pull off improbable victory.
“Obviously we didn’t get the job done, we didn’t get the ball,” Shanahan said. “We could have gone out and run on the first two downs. But we were trying to win, and when we were in bounds, that’s why we regrouped and didn’t go into two-minute mode.”
