Temperature Check: 49ers Week 1
Somethings went well, somethings didn't go so well.
Following a dramatic win in Seattle, let’s take a look at who’s hot, who’s cold, and who’s lingering somewhere in the middle.
Hot
Robert Saleh
The prodigal son returned home and immediately made an impact as the defensive performance was no longer vanilla. With appropriately timed blitzes, stunts, and the return of the NASCAR package on the line, the 2025 version of this defense is a far cry from what we saw in 2024. And with the youth that played significant minutes, Saleh hasn’t yet scratched the surface of what should be in store the rest of the way.
Dee Winters
For a stretch in Sunday's game, it felt as though Winters was involved in every play, accounting for six tackles on the day, two of which were for a loss. He was all over the field, and with his speed and recognition improvement apparent from last season, the transition away from Dre Greenlaw may be smoother than most expected.
Nick Bosa
Six tackles. One sack. One forced fumble that sealed the game. Bosa showed up when needed the most with a bullrush that knocked the ball from Sam Darnold, with Bosa himself recovering to put the Seahawks to bed.
Christian McCaffrey
After missing the majority of 2024 with injuries, most thought McCaffrey would be on a pitch count. While he was early on, he was responsible for most of the offense on the day with 31 total touches for 142 yards on the day.
Jake Tonges
After George Kittle exited the game and the offense began to sputter down the stretch, Tonges showed up for several catches that extended the final drive, leading to his first ever touchdown, a leaping grab away from Seahawks CB Riq Woolen, which would ultimately be the game winner.
Room Temp
Brock Purdy
Yes, Purdy navigated the game winning drive by tossing a touchdown to Jake Tonges in the final two minutes, but this was a pass that until it was snatched by Tonges, appeared to be interception number three on the day. Purdy bookended the day with solid drives and great decision making, but everything in between was mostly forgettable.
Ricky Pearsall
Much like his quarterback, Pearsall was fantastic on the first and last drives of the game for the offense. He was practically invisible the rest of the day. The double move up the sideline to set up the eventual game winner was a route of beauty as he caught a 45-yard pass over the outstretched arms of Riq Woolen.
Upton Stout
Sunday was an up and down day for the rookie corner. A devastating holding call against Cooper Kupp on 4th down gave the Seahawks life on an overthrow, and would eventually result in a Seahawks touchdown. Stout would atone for that mistake later in the game by deflecting a Darnold pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba on the final drive of the game.
Cold
Special Teams
While there is optimism with the addition of new ST coordinator Brant Boyer, Sunday's game made it clear there is still work to do. While most of the concern is directed towards the kicker, blocking and penalties need to be cleaned up quickly to avoid looking like the 2024 version of this unit.
Offensive Line
To Brock Purdy’s credit, he was running for his life on most passing downs. Seattle’s defense was consistently in the backfield harassing Purdy. The run game could not get going either, as the 49ers averaged 3.3 yards per carry on the day, with the long run of the day being a 13-yard carry by McCaffrey.
Injuries
Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but the 49ers suffered several injuries on the day. While some were minor, allowing Fred Warner, Trent Williams, and Dominick Puni to return to the game, the injuries to George Kittle and Jauan Jennings forced them out of the game on Sunday, and possibly longer pending the severity.
Hypothermic
Jake Moody
This experiment needs to end. Moody was awful on Sunday. He started with offering Seattle great field position by missing the landing zone on the opening kickoff, and then followed up with a missed 27-yard field goal off of the upright. He would get a chance at redemption, but the low trajectory kick was easily blocked by the Seahawks. Kyle Shanahan’s frustration was visible in body language and action afterwards. Moody would not get another attempt until Shanahan had no choice after keeping the offense on the field on two fourth downs in field goal range.