What we learned as Purdy struggles in 49ers' Christmas loss to Ravens

BOX SCORE SANTA CLARA — The 49ers simply were not ready for prime time on Monday night. Quarterback Brock Purdy, who entered the week as the top MVP candidate in the NFL, had the worst game of his football life. And the Baltimore Ravens took full advantage of all the 49ers' shortcomings in rolling to a 33-19 blowout victory at Levi's Stadium on Christmas night. It was only the third time in NFL history teams with the best records in each conference have matched up in December or later since the 1970 merger. The Ravens, now 12-3, showed why they entered as the top team in the AFC. The 49ers? Not so much. This game did not live up to the anticipation, as the 49ers simply were overmatched in every which way. The 49ers fall to 11-4 on the season but still hold the tie-breaker edges for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. But, now, they might have no margin for error with games at Washington and home against the Los Angeles Rams to close out the 2023 NFL regular season. Here is how things fell apart for the 49ers in Week 16: Purdy picked off four times Purdy expertly avoided crucial mistakes in his first 23 regular-season starts with the 49ers. On Monday, he made enough mistakes to last a long, long time. And it is safe to assume his case for MVP has lost serious momentum and might have been delivered a fatal blow. Purdy completed 18 of 32 pass attempts for 255 yards with no touchdowns and four interceptions. He left the game in the fourth quarter with a stinger. Sam Darnold entered and played the rest of the way. Purdy had thrown more than one interception in only two of his NFL games before taking the field against the Ravens. In the first quarter-and-a-half, Purdy threw a career-worst three interceptions. Then, he threw another pick early in the third quarter as Baltimore took a commanding lead. Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton picked off Purdy in the end zone in the first quarter. The turnover cost the 49ers a chance for a touchdown, but the 49ers ended up getting points out of the deal. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, under pressure from Fred Warner and Nick Bosa, retreated more than 20 yards backward before tripping over umpire Alex Moore in the end zone with Chase Young in pursuit. Jackson tried to throw the ball away but his pass did not make it back to the line of scrimmage, so it was ruled a safety and the 49ers led 2-0. Purdy's next interception came when Brandon Stephens deflected his pass on a corner blitz and Marlon Humphrey got the interception. Baltimore cashed in on Gus Edwards' 1-yard touchdown run on fourth down. Then, Purdy made an ill-advised decision to throw late across the field to George Kittle. Humphrey broke up the pass and Hamilton made the interception. Kicker Justin Tucker made a 41-yard field goal to give the Ravens a 13-5 lead midway through the second quarter. 49ers' defense struggles against Jackson Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson put forth a convincing case for his second league MVP, as the 49ers' defense had no answers for him. In the second and third quarters, the Ravens scored on seven consecutive possessions (three touchdowns and four field goals). The 49ers had not allowed scores on seven drives in a row since the 2005 NFL season. Entering the game, things did not seem to be broken in the 49ers' defensive backfield. Yet, they opted to make some changes, anyway. The 49ers elevated cornerback Jason Verrett from the practice squad to suit up for his first game since Week 1 of 2021. Verrett had season-ending injuries the past two seasons. He signed with the 49ers' practice squad just two weeks ago. The 49ers stayed with their standard nickel defense in the first half with Deommodore Lenoir sliding inside to nickel back and Ambry Thomas joining Charvarius Ward on the outside. But the 49ers began the second half with Verrett playing nickel back, with Lenoir and Ward remaining at cornerback on all downs. The 49ers stayed with that alignment for a couple of series before going back to their first-half lineup. Verrett was not on the field for many snaps, but he was beaten for a 6-yard touchdown pass from Lamar Jackson to Nelson Agholor that gave the Ravens a 23-12 lead with 12:07 remaining in the third quarter. Would 49ers want rematch? This game was billed as a potential Super Bowl preview. It did not look that way, of course, but could a return game take place Feb. 11 in Las Vegas at Super Bowl 58? That is a long way down the road, and the 49ers did not look Super Bowl-ready on Monday night. The Ravens were stronger, faster and more aggressive. They completely overwhelmed the 49ers for most of the game. It could be that the Ravens are just a bad matchup for the 49ers. Or could the experience of facing the Ravens' unique defensive disguises be valuable experience down the road if the teams were to meet again? Purdy has to be able to figure out all the things about the Ravens' defense that gave him problems. He never appeared comfortable against the league's top defense. Meanwhile, 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey continued his consistent play and is likely the key to the team's postseason fate. The team records continue to pile up for McCaffrey, who eclipsed 100 yards from scrimmage in the first half. He went over 100 yards rushing and receiving for the eighth consecutive game to break a tie for the franchise record. Roger Craig set the mark of seven in a row in 1988. McCaffrey entered the game with 499 career receptions. In his 89th regular-season game, McCaffrey became the fastest running back to surpass 500 catches, doing it in his 89th regular-season game. Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk did it in 112 games. McCaffrey now has 21 touchdowns (14 rushing, 7 receiving). Jerry Rice holds the single-season franchise record of 23 touchdowns. He did it 1987, a season that was strike-shortened to just 12 games. Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

What we learned as Purdy struggles in 49ers’ Christmas loss to Ravens

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