4th Quarter
TURNOVER ALERT: After three straight checkdowns from Jimmy Garoppolo despite being down two scores, the veteran quarterback floats a deep pass into the hands of Khari Willis, throwing his second interception of the game, and killing the 49ers chances for good.
TOUCHDOWN ALERT: On 3rd & 10, Carson Wentz lobs a pass to Michael Pittman, who easily runs it in for a touchdown after a terrible play by Dre Kirkpatrick on the ball. The Colts now lead 30-18 with under three minutes left in the game, essentially closing it.
TURNOVER ALERT: On 3rd & 3, Jimmy Garoppolo throws a boneheaded interception to Deebo Samuel after fixating on him as the first read, with Xavier Rhodes making the play after the ball was tipped in the air. The Colts retain possession in SF territory up 23-18.
SCORE ALERT: On 4th & 7 at the SF 24, Michael Badgley drills a 42-yard field goal to put the Colts up 23-18 with 7:03 left in the 4th quarter.
On 2nd & 15, Carson Wentz maneuvers in the pocket and scrambles through the heart of the 49ers defense for 17 yards and a 1st down.
Carson Wentz completes back-to-back completions of 14 and 13 yards, respectively, to put Indianapolis in San Francisco territory.
SCORE ALERT: After the two deep shots, Garoppolo settles off the bootleg and finds Deebo Samuel over the middle for a 14-yard touchdown to cap a three-play, 70-yard touchdown drive. The Colts now lead 20-18 after a batted down pass on the two-point conversion attempt.
The deep play has finally come, as Jimmy Garoppolo throws two nice deep balls of 29 and 27 yards to Deebo Samuel and Charlie Woerner, respectively.
The 49ers defense smothers the run game, as the Colts are forced into a 3 & Out and have to punt.
3rd Quarter
The 49ers disaster continues as Ross Dwelley is flagged for an offensive holding call, backing the 49ers up on 1st down.
SCORE ALERT: After offsetting penalties, Jonathan Taylor fakes the inside run and walks in untouched for the five yard touchdown, giving the Colts a 20-12 lead.
As usual, when Carson Wentz is in trouble, he throws the ball up in the air, and this time, Jaquiski Tartt runs into Michael Pittman, costing the 49ers 38 yards and Indianapolis has 1st & Goal at the SF 5.
After escaping a sack, Jimmy Garoppolo is hit from behind by Kwity Paye and fumbles the football at the SF 33, giving the Colts a chance to extend their lead.
After a costly JaMycal Hasty false start, Mohammed Sanu catches a 16-yard pass from Jimmy Garoppolo to give the 49ers their 1st third down completion in the game.
To start their first drive of the 2nd half, Jimmy Garoppolo completes a 10-yard pass to Deebo Samuel, which is followed by a solid Elijah Mitchell run of four yards.
On 3rd & 4, Azeez Al-Shaair comes up with a big stop in the running game to force a Colts punt inside San Francisco territory.
Up 13-12, the Colts elect to go for it on 4th & inches near midfield and convert after a failed, questionable challenge by Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers.
2nd Quarter
At halftime, the Colts lead 13-12 in a poor QB showdown, with Jimmy Garoppolo completing only 5/12 of his passes and Carson Wentz completing only 6/13 of his passes.
Despite having one minute and three timeouts remaining, the 49ers elect to burn their drive and head to the half down 13-12, hearing boos from the Levi's fans as they head to the locker room.
SCORE ALERT: Carson Wentz finishes a five-play, 28-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown scramble to give Indianapolis a 13-12 lead with 1:00 left in the half.
With 3:10 in the 2nd Quarter, Darius Leonard makes a great play on the football, forcing a Deebo Samuel fumble at the SF 28, giving Indianapolis a chance to take the lead.
Two drives later, Brandon Aiyuk misfields the punt and recovers the ball only in the endzone, giving San Francisco a 1st down only at their 20-yard line.
After the turnover, the Colts force a 49er 3 & out to retain possession of the football.
On the first play of the quarter, Nick Bosa rushes into the backfield and disrupts Carson Wentz, who fumbles the football right into the hands of Azeez Al-Shair for a much-needed turnover in the redzone.
1st Quarter
Jonathan Taylor rushes for an impressive 33 yards, slicing through the defense and breaking multiple tackles to get to the SF 2 for a 1st & Goal.
On 3rd & 10, Carson Wentz underthrows a deep pass to Keke Coutee, but K'Waun WIlliams is flagged for defensive pass interference, costing the 49ers 40 yards and setting Indianapolis at the SF 35.
On the 1st play of the Colts third drive, Josh Norman breaks on a Carson Wentz intended for Zach Pascal, breaking it up on an impressive near-interception.
SCORE ALERT: After JaMycal Hasty is a victim to the wet turf, the 49ers are forced to settle for a Joey Slye 56-yard field goal, making the score 12-7 with 2:31 left in the first.
After a nice Elijah Mitchell run, the 49ers use play-action as Jimmy Garoppolo finds Deebo Samuel over the middle for a 28-yard gain.
Elijah Mitchell starts San Francisco's third drive with a six-yard run, continuing his dominance early in this game, as the 49ers continue to pound the ball.
SCORE ALERT: On the ensuing drive, a 57-yard Michael Pittman Jr. catch leads to a 11-yard touchdown pass from Carson Wentz to Mo-Alie Cox to bring the score to 9-7 SF.
Miscommunication by Ward and Tartt leads to the Cox TD.
— Rohan Chakravarthi (@rohanSports27) October 25, 2021
After the turnover, the 49ers can't move the ball offensively after an Elijah Mitchell 16-yard gain, as the Colts force a Joey Slye field goal and SF now leads 9-0 with 8:19 left in the 1st quarter.
TURNOVER ALERT: FUMBLE! Josh Norman punches the ball out of Jonathan Taylor's hands on the Colts first offensive play, and the 49ers have a chance to score yet again early in the 1st quarter.
SCORE ALERT: Elijah Mitchell marches the 49ers down the field for an eight-play, 78-yard touchdown drive to start the game, as he rushed five times for 57 yards and scored the opening touchdown. The 49ers lead 6-0 with 10:12 left in the 1st quarter.
Go off rook! @EliMitch15 marches in to score on the opening drive💨
📺 #INDvsSF on NBC / 49ers App pic.twitter.com/E02U8nvh6w
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) October 25, 2021
Pregame
With the inactives listed, Aaron Banks is suited up for the first time this year as a corresponding move with Trent Williams inactive. In addition, Jaylon Moore will start at left tackle. The 49ers are also having LB Tyrell Adams active, as he was called up from the practice squad alongside quarterback Nate Sudfeld.
Most of the inactives were expected, as Trey Lance, Trent Williams, Javon Kinlaw and Maurice Hurst all dealt with a variety of injuries all week. However, Deommodore Lenoir, who wasn't on the injury report all week, being a healthy scratch is perplexing, as the team elected to go with five cornerbacks: K'Waun Williams, Josh Norman, Dre Kirkpatrick, Emmanuel Moseley, and Dontae Johnson.
With Lance inactive, the 49ers have QB Nate Sudfeld as Jimmy Garoppolo's backup this weekend. Lance continues to rehab the sprained knee he suffered during San Francisco's loss to Arizona in Week 5.
The 49ers have listed their inactives for the game: QB Trey Lance, WR Travis Benjamin, CB Deommodore Lenoir, CB Ambry Thomas, T Trent Williams, DT Javon Kinlaw and DT Maurice Hurst.
The Colts have listed their inactives for the game: QB Sam Ehlinger, T Will Fries, WR T.Y. Hilton, T Braden Smith, CB Rock Ya-Sin, RB Jordan Wilkins, and DE Kemoko Turay.