49ers cough up another fourth-quarter lead, fall to Giants 27-23 on Monday Night Football

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Tot
NYG	7	3	10	7	27
SF	3	10	7	3	23

More self-inflicted wounds by the San Francisco 49ers ultimately led to yet another fourth-quarter collapse to the previously one-win New York Giants on Monday Night Football, as the Niners fell 27-23 and drop to 2-8 on the season.

San Francisco 49ers second-year quarterback Nick Mullens made his first major mistake of his pro career, tossing his first interception in the first quarter that led to seven points for the visiting New York Giants in Week 10 on Monday Night Football. And it wasn't the first of the night either, although Mullens' second pick of the game came off the hands of wide receiver Marquise Goodwin and into the hands of Giants defensive back B.J. Goodson.

Off the first turnover and trailing 3-0, that early Giants touchdown from veteran quarterback Eli Manning to wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. gave New York an early 7-3 lead. And Beckham would haul in another in the third quarter to cut into what became a 20-17 49ers lead.

The Niners reached that lead thanks to two touchdowns by running back Matt Breida, a 3-yard rush in the second quarter and an 11-yard reception on San Francisco's first possession of the third quarter. And that pass by Mullens for Breida was an impressive one, for sure:


Breida was a major reason behind the 49ers' early offensive success, as was tight end George Kittle, who had 83 yards on nine catches.

The 49ers looked fairly dominant until halfway through the third quarter, when Manning operated the same pass play on two consecutive snaps, the second resulting in a 20-yard touchdown to Beckham over the head of cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon, who was banking on safety Jimmie Ward providing help over the top.

Following another Giants field goal late in the third, Mullens and the 49ers looked to retake the lead and hold onto it, thereby avoiding yet another fourth-quarter collapse from head coach Kyle Shanahan's squad. Yet the Niners defense held, giving San Francisco another chance to retake the lead in the quarter. But the offensive drive stalled with just under 11 minutes remaining, resulting in a punt. And Manning nearly hit Beckham again for a huge gain, only to underthrow the pass and give Witherspoon and Ward barely enough time to recover and record the pass breakup.

San Francisco defenders DeForest Buckner and Dekoda Watson sacked Manning the following play -- the first the Niners recorded against a Giants team having allowed a league-high 31 quarterback takedowns entering the game:


Thanks to a key third-down pickup by wide receiver Kendrick Bourne, the 49ers managed to get their offense back in the red zone with just above three minutes remaining. Yet the drive stalled short, as Bourne was targeted four yards short of the first-down marker. The Niners were forced to settle for a 30-yard field goal from kicker Robbie Gould to go up 23-20 with 2:46 remaining in regulation.

So that left Manning and Co. to stage one of those fourth-quarter comebacks he used to be known for years ago. And it looked promising for New York too, especially after a 31-yard pickup by a wide-open tight end, Evan Engram. And a holding call on 49ers linebacker Malcolm Smith on 3rd-and-12 didn't help matters at all either. Nor did Witherspoon's 16-yard pass-interference call.

Notice a trend among bad teams in the fourth quarter?

That led to another fourth-quarter blown lead, as Manning connected with wide receiver Sterling Shepard from three yards out to take a 27-23 lead with 53 seconds left:


Mullens and the 49ers offense led a desperate scramble to retake the lead, coming down to a one-second play from the Giants' 21-yard line.

It sailed high out of the end zone, marking the fourth time this season the Niners lost a fourth-quarter lead.

San Francisco now falls to 2-8 on the year after committing so many late mistakes, which has become something of a trend for Shanahan and Co. this season.

NYG	Team Stats	SF
17	First Downs	24
277	Total Yards	374
180	Pass Yards	250
97	Rush Yards	124
8 (78)	Penalties (Yds)	10 (97)
0	Turnovers	2
5 (43)	Punts (Avg)	3 (42)
25:46	Time of Pos.	34:14

Giants Player Stats
Passing	Cmp/Att	Yds	TDs	INTs
E. Manning	19/31	188	3	0
Rushing	Att	Yds	TDs	Lg
S. Barkley	20	67	0	18
S. Shepard	1	27	0	27
W. Gallman	2	3	0	2
Receiving	Rec	Yds	TDs	Lg
O. Beckham	4	73	2	30
E. Engram	4	46	0	31
S. Barkley	4	33	0	23
E. Penny	2	12	0	9
S. Shepard	2	9	1	6
C. Coleman	1	11	0	11
R. Ellison	1	6	0	6
S. Pulley	1	-2	0	-2
Kicking	FG	Lg	XP	Pts
A. Rosas	2/2	31	3/3	9
Punting	No	Avg	I20	Lg
R. Dixon	5	47.6	3	59
Kickoff Returns	No	Avg	TDs	Lg
C. Coleman	3	30	0	51
S. Simonson	1	12	0	12
Punt Returns	No	Avg	TDs	Lg
Q. Henderson	1	7	0	7
Defense	T-A	Sck	INTs	FF
L. Collins	7-2	0	0	0
L. Carter	6-1	0	0	0
A. Ogletree	4-3	0	0	0
C. Riley	5-1	0	0	0
B. Goodson	4-2	0	2	0
J. Mauro	4-2	0	0	0
J. Jenkins	5-0	0	0	0
B. Webb	5-0	0	0	0
B. Hill	3-1	0	0	0
D. Tomlinson	1-2	0	0	0
M. Thomas	2-0	0	0	0
G. Haley	2-0	0	0	0
O. Vernon	1-0	0	0	0
M. Edwards	1-0	0	0	0
S. Chandler	1-0	0	0	0
K. Martin	0-1	0	0	0

49ers Player Stats
Passing	Cmp/Att	Yds	TDs	INTs
N. Mullens	27/39	250	1	2
Rushing	Att	Yds	TDs	Lg
M. Breida	17	101	1	23
A. Morris	9	19	0	5
K. Juszczyk	1	3	0	3
N. Mullens	2	1	0	2
Receiving	Rec	Yds	TDs	Lg
G. Kittle	9	83	0	22
M. Goodwin	4	69	0	26
K. Bourne	4	33	0	13
D. Pettis	4	12	0	8
M. Breida	3	31	1	19
K. Juszczyk	2	10	0	11
T. Taylor	1	12	0	12
Kicking	FG	Lg	XP	Pts
R. Gould	3/3	53	2/2	11
Punting	No	Avg	I20	Lg
B. Pinion	3	44.3	1	47
Punt Returns	No	Avg	TDs	Lg
R. James	1	23	0	23
D. Pettis	1	1	0	1
Defense	T-A	Sck	INTs	FF
M. Smith	5-1	0	0	0
K. Williams	5-0	0	0	0
J. Ward	4-1	0	0	0
F. Warner	2-2	0	0	0
D. Buckner	0-4	0.5	0	0
A. Exum	3-0	0	0	0
R. Sherman	3-0	0	0	0
M. Nzeocha	3-0	0	0	0
A. Witherspoon	2-1	0	0	0
A. Armstead	2-0	0	0	0
R. Blair	2-0	0	0	0
D. Watson	1-1	0.5	0	0
E. Mitchell	1-1	0	0	0
C. Marsh	1-0	0	0	0

• Written by:
  Peter Panacy
  Peter Panacy has been writing about the 49ers since 2011 for outlets like Bleacher Report, Niner Noise, 49ers Webzone, and is occasionally heard as a guest on San Francisco's 95.7 FM The Game and the Niners' flagship station, KNBR 680. Feel free to follow him, or direct any inquiries to his Twitter account.
  All articles by Peter Panacy
  @PeterPanacy

Related News

• Eli Manning leads comeback, tosses three TDs in Giants 27-23 win over 49ers Pro Football Talk • Nov 12, 2018
• Five thoughts from 49ers' last-minute loss to Giants KNBR • Nov 12, 2018
• Giants 27, 49ers 23: Manning's last-minute TD pass spoils Mullens encore The Mercury News • Nov 12, 2018
  May require subscription
• 49ers get a more realistic look at the resilient Nick Mullens ESPN • Nov 12, 2018
• Refocused, NFL Week 10: New York Giants 27, San Francisco 49ers 23 Pro Football Focus • Nov 12, 2018
• Three takeaways from the Giants' victory over the 49ers on 'Monday Night Football' Sporting News • Nov 12, 2018
• Quick notes from 49ers' 27-23 loss to Giants Niners Wire • Nov 12, 2018
• 8 Takeaways: Giants 27, 49ers 23 in Week 10 49ers.com • Nov 12, 2018