The San Francisco 49ers suffered their first defeat of the 2023 season, slipping to a 5-1 record after a close 19-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns. It was a massive upset, with the 49ers entering the game as 9.5-point favorites.
From the very beginning, it was evident that this would be a hard-fought contest. In fact, sparks flew even before kick-off, as both teams engaged in a pre-game skirmish.
A pre-game 49ers-Browns' skirmish, via @clevelanddotcom pic.twitter.com/tjUBGbJdNc
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 15, 2023
Ultimately, the 49ers fell short due to a missed field goal by rookie kicker Jake Moody in the game's final seconds.
"My message to [the team] was, regardless of whether we hit that or not, there's a lot of stuff from this game that we got to improve on," head coach Kyle Shanahan said during his post-game press conference. "I thought we made way too many mistakes on offense.
"Just losing a couple of guys in the game, we had to switch a couple of guys around, and we weren't quite ready for that, which starts with me, with too many mistakes. And this is our first time having to come in after a loss in a long time, and it's time to get back in, go to work, and make sure we come back next week stronger."
On a positive note, the 49ers haven't lost ground in the race for home-field advantage in the playoffs. The Philadelphia Eagles, the only other undefeated team going into Week 6, suffered a 20-14 defeat against the New York Jets.
Also 5-1 in the NFC are the Detroit Lions.
While San Francisco did miss out on an opportunity to distance themselves from the Eagles in the NFC, they avoided falling behind. Both teams now hold identical records, setting the stage for a highly anticipated clash on December 3 at Lincoln Financial Field. It's bound to be one of the season's most compelling matchups.