It doesn’t get a lot uglier than that. The 49ers (read: Brock Purdy) turned it over three times in the first half to put San Francisco behind 16-12 at halftime. Things only got worse in the second half as they went on to lose 33-19 in a battle of the top seeds from each conference.
Here are our notes and observations from each quarter:
First quarter
– The 49ers throwback red jerseys with the white pants are so, so good.
– The 49ers’ kick coverage team is so, so bad. Chris Conley whiffed a tackle on the opening kick which allowed the Ravens to return it out to the 30.
– Good pass breakup by Ambry Thomas on a second-and-8 on the Ravens’ opening drive.
– Ronnie Bell caught his first punt.
– Looked like there should’ve been a flag on a second-down throw to Kyle Juszczyk. No call.
– Big-time catch-and-run by George Kittle on a third-and-7. He rumbled for 58 yards after a throw into the intermediate area. Then he caught a good block by Brandon Aiyuk to get free deep into Ravens territory.
– Woof. What a bad interception in the red zone for Purdy. He tried finding Deebo Samuel and he never saw Kyle Hamilton cut in front for an easy INT. That’s an adjustment Purdy will need to make in this game. Baltimore is going to sit on throws in the middle of the field.
– A safety! Lamar Jackson tripped in the end zone on an official and grounded it for two San Francisco points. What a wild turn of events. It’s 2-0, 49ers.
– Ronnie Bell muffed the safety punt. Wow. The ball went out of bounds, but it would be a surprise if he returned punts again this evening.
– Purdy is playing almost too calm. He’s made a couple errant throws and had another throw batted down. He also took a bad sack on a fourth-and-1, but got bailed out by a defensive holding call.
– Jake Moody connects from 45 yards to make it a 5-0 49ers lead. Not getting TDs vs. the Ravens is going to be a problem as this game wears on.
– Good work in the open field by Tashaun Gipson and Fred Warner on a swing pass to Zay Flowers. They dropped him for a loss of a couple.
– The 49ers pass rush is doing an excellent job of keeping Lamar Jackson in the pocket.
– Tashaun Gipson has now been flagged for PI, a facemask, and holding in two (2) snaps. What a dreadful showing from him. Baltimore is now in the red zone thanks to Gipson.
– Jackson tried what looked like a read option. It did not work. Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, Dre Greenlaw and Chase Young were all there.
– Really nice open field tackle by Thomas on Nelson Agholor on a third down to hold Baltimore to a short field goal. It’s 5-3, 49ers.
– Kittle is cooking. He’s at three catches for 91 yards on four targets in the first quarter.
End of first quarter: 49ers 5, Ravens 3 (no, seriously)
Second quarter
– Sweet back shoulder throw to Samuel for 15 yards to open the second quarter.
– Another interception for Purdy on a ball that was batted in the air. They telegraphed a screen and it was too easy for Baltimore. That’s two turnovers early for him.
– The Ravens are picking their way down the field after the INT. Lot of short, easy throws for Jackson and he’s taking advantage.
– Easy TD for Baltimore to take a 10-6 lead. Purdy has really struggled early on and now his team is behind in the second quarter. His MVP case will very likely be made or broken on how he responds.
– Another interception off a deflection.That’s three for Purdy. Night night to his MVP case and the 49ers are in deep trouble early.
– Nice stop by Bosa on first down after the INT. He dropped the RB for a loss of three.
– Good defensive possession for the 49ers. Baltimore had a couple drops, but those completions weren’t going far. Justin Tucker drilled the 41-yard field goal and made it 13-5, Ravens. The 49ers have never needed an extended drive and points more than they need one now.
– Sick completion on a screen where the Ravens had it sniffed out. McCaffrey found a little space and Purdy still fit a throw in to him for six yards to bring up a third-and-1.
– Heck of a drive for McCaffrey. He touched the ball on five of their six plays and accounted for 65 of their 67 yards. He also plowed in for a nine-yard touchdown that made it 13-12, Ravens.
– There’s a sack for Javon Hargrave. The 49ers blitzed Deommodore Lenoir out of the slot and Hargrave fought through a double team as Jackson stepped up away from the pressure.
– Holding on Ambry Thomas negates a pass breakup for Hargrave. He way overcommitted on defending a short throw and when Zay Flower broke upfield, Thomas grabbed a hold of him to give Baltimore a gift first down instead of putting them in third-and-long.
– This has been an easy drive since the Thomas penalty. What a nightmare for the 49ers defense.
– There’s the big run for Lamar on a third-and-long. Baltimore was out of field goal range and now after a 31-yard scamper they’re in TD range. Just an abominable defensive breakdown.
– Tucker drilled the 28-yard field goal to put Baltimore up 16-12. That was the worst half the 49ers have played since maybe Week 6, and it was certainly one of their worst offensive halves of the year. They still averaged 8.6 yards per play.
Halftime score: Ravens 16, 49ers 12
Third quarter
– Near interception again for Purdy on third-and-5 to open the second half. Not a good start to the second half. Purdy was looking for Willie Snead who ducked instead of trying to catch the ball.
– Mitch Wishnowsky just picked up a late hit penalty. The wheels have completely fallen off for the 49ers.
– The 49ers just don’t have the horses to hang with the Ravens on offense. Baltimore picks up 41 yards on a catch-and-run to Gus Edwards. The Ravens are inside the 5 already.
– Touchdown. Easy work for Nelson Agholor against Jason Verrett (no idea, dude). It’s 23-12 and the 49ers are reeling.
– There’s another interception for Purdy. He got hit as he threw, missed McCaffrey and threw it directly to Ravens LB Patrick Queen. That’s four for him and the Ravens are deep in the red zone again.
– Wide open TD one play after the pick. It’s 30-12 and the Ravens are rolling at Levi’s Stadium.
– Two drops by Deebo Samuel on the drive after the TD by the Ravens. Then an illegal shift after his second drop on third down. This game feels over with 9:32 left in the third quarter.
– Javon Kinlaw just got called for a defensive holding, which is a good indicator for how this game is going.
– The 49ers are now missing tackles. They’ve punted on this game.
– Lamar Jackson is so good. He’s turned multiple sacks into explosive plays with his arm and his legs.
– Nice run stop by Kevin Givens on third-and-goal from the 2. Jackson tried a run up the middle and Givens blew it up.
– A short field goal for the Ravens. They’ve punched in points on seven consecutive possessions and it’s now 33-12 in Santa Clara. What a rear end kicking this is.
– A couple of first downs on a good throw to Kittle and then a backwards toss to McCaffrey who followed a block from Kittle for a big gain. If San Francisco is going to hang around in this game they need more plays like that.
– WOW. Deebo Samuel just took a WHACK from Marlon Humphrey, bounced off and kept rolling for a six-yard gain.
– Too many short throws. The Ravens are sitting on them and Shanahan is hiding his QB. That result is the 49ers’ pass catchers getting walloped.
End of third quarter: Ravens 33, 49ers 12
Fourth quarter
– Third-and-11 and Purdy throws it to nobody. Embarrassing performance for No. 13.
– What a mess on fourth-and-11. Purdy evaded pressure, threw a no look pass for a loss of a yard and nearly got his RB killed. This is grounds for benching. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Sam Darnold.
– Trent Williams and his backup Jaylon Moore have both left the game. That’s not great!
– Oof:
Looks like Burford is going in at RT with McKivitz moving to LT
— Tim Kawakami (@timkawakami) December 26, 2023
– For some reason Brock Purdy is still in with a second-string RT and third-string LT in the game.
– Purdy is now exiting after taking a sack. Sheesh. Sam Darnold is in.
– Hey look a touchdown. Darnold drilled a throw in to Ronnie Bell for a score with just over six minutes to go.That’s Bell’s second TD of the year and it makes it 33-19.
– Third-down stop by Fred Warner who knocked down Jackson’s throw at the line of scrimmage. That stops the clock with 4:45 to go. A quick score for San Francisco makes this game interesting.
– Darnold is back in for the 49ers after the punt.
– Samuel doesn’t get much separation as a route runner, but it doesn’t matter when he gets the ball in his hands. He’s still gutting this one out and picked up a hard-fought first down with 3:22 to go.
– Now Aaron Banks is hurt with 2:20 left. The 49ers only have Jake Brendel left at his regular starting spot.
– At the two-minute warning the 49ers have a third-and-goal at the 1 down by 14 points. They have all three timeouts so this is interesting if they can punch it in.
– A sack on third-and-goal was the thing the 49ers couldn’t have. Darnold has to throw it away. Instead it’s fourth-and-goal at the 12.
– Check that — false start on Burford. Fourth-and-goal at the 17.
– Interception. Fifth of the game for Baltimore. Ball game.
Final score: Ravens 33, 49ers 19
