The San Francisco 49ers were coming off an emotional Week 10 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, and it looked like Week 11 against the Arizona Cardinals was going to be another devastating defeat. Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury knew the 49ers would be tough to beat coming off their first loss of the season.
"They have a little shorter week, but I know they have a great plan to get those guys [recuperated], and after a tough loss, we'll definitely get their best shot at home," Kingsbury told Bay Area reporters via a conference call last week.
Sunday's 36-26 score is deceiving. The 49ers may have won by 10, but the game was very close and felt very similar to the battle with the Seahawks. It could have easily been a second consecutive overtime matchup, if not for running back Jeff Wilson's catch and scamper into the end zone for the game-winning score.
The 49ers showed their resilience, as they have multiple times this season, and with other NFC teams hoping for another Niners stumble, improved to 9-1.
"I think last week, we played real hard," head coach Kyle Shanahan said after the game. "So did Seattle. It was just a tough, emotional loss. And to not have much time to recover from that, it lingered a little bit this week. That's why we had to address a ton of it, which I think our guys did great."
The 49ers felt ready to rebound from the heartbreaking loss just six days earlier. They seemed flat at the start of the NFC West battle, but rallied and finished strong.
"This game had a lot of similarities to [Week 10], which I think challenged our will, challenged the guys' character, and I think the guys were ready for it," Shanahan continued. "They rose to the occasion. I think we got stronger from the Seattle week, even though it didn't go the way we wanted. I think we got stronger from it, and I believe we got stronger today."
The 49ers' resilience will be tested further during the upcoming three-game stretch when they face the Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens, and New Orleans Saints. The three teams are each 8-2, with the Packers and Saints looking to take over the No. 1 spot in the NFC from San Francisco.