The 49ers are ridiculous at this point. You know the streaks but they're worth pointing out anyway:
- 5-0 for the first time since 2019.
- 15 straight regular season wins, tied for the longest streak in team history.
- 8 straight regular season games with 30+ points, the longest streak in team history.
This is shaping up to be one of the best single seasons the 49ers have ever had, and with this franchise's history, that's saying something.
Brock Purdy: A
It seems redundant to keep giving Purdy such high marks week after week, but he keeps earning them.
In this game, it was all about the touchdowns for Brock. Add four more to his total, which is now up to 20 in his 10 career starts. It was also his eighth game with 2+ TD passes, which ties Purdy with Kurt Warner and Deshaun Watson for the most games with at least 2 scores in a player's first 10 starts.
Against Dallas, Brock was at his best following adversity. After a Trent Williams false start on the opening drive in the second half, Purdy erased a 1st-and-15 with a 23 yard strike to Brandon Aiyuk. After a Spencer Burford holding penalty negated a 40 yard gain to Aiyuk and set up a 3rd-and-13, Brock layered a beautiful throw to Deebo Samuel over the middle for a 42 yard gain. Three plays later Kittle had another TD and the Niners had snuffed out any hope for a Cowboys comeback.
Running Backs: B+
Had Christian McCaffrey actually played in the fourth quarter he probably pushes this grade up to an A, but his services were no longer needed thanks to the blowout. Still, 78 total yards and a touchdown is nothing to sneeze at, especially against a very good defense like Dallas. CMC will just have to console himself knowing that his 14 straight games with a touchdown (including playoffs) is a franchise record and tied for the third longest such streak in NFL history.
In McCaffrey's absence, Jordan Mason shined. Every time Mason gets the ball, he looks fresh and runs hard. All told in this one, he notched 69 yards on 10 carries, including a 26 yard touchdown that featured a lot of business decisions by the Cowboys' defense. Mason will never get as many touches as he deserves with McCaffrey earning so much of the workload, but he has shown he's capable of producing when given the opportunity.
Receivers: A+
Lots to get to here, but we'll start with George Kittle, who exploded for a career-high three touchdowns a day before his 30th birthday.
Kittle is always good for a few massive weeks every single season, and Sunday was one of those days. Whether it was getting open in the red zone or breaking free down the sideline, Kittle showed he's still a premier receiving threat from the tight end position.
As for the wideouts, both Deebo and Aiyuk had their moments in this game. The duo went for a combined 7 catches and 113 yards, with each having a 20+ yard reception. Aiyuk's stellar play has been a talking point all year for the 49ers, but Samuel has quietly reasserted himself as a pass-catcher in 2023. Other than last week when he was still recovering from rib and knee issues, Deebo has had at least 50 yards through the air in every game this season.
Offensive Line: Awesome
I usually don't grade the offensive line because I'm not knowledgeable enough in that part of the game to give you any worthwhile information, but I have to hand out some flowers here.
The Cowboys have one of the most aggressive and disruptive fronts in football, and the Niners more than held there own in this one. Micah Parsons didn't even register a single QB hit in this game, let alone a sack.
While some of this success has to do with Brock Purdy throwing the ball quickly, it would be foolish to discount the efforts of Trent Williams, Aaron Banks, Jake Brendel, Spencer Burford, and Colton McKivitz in this game.
Defense: A
For all talk talk about how this year's unit might not be as good a years past, they sure looked like it on Sunday. It might be easy to overlook considering the final score, but let's not forget that Steve Wilks' guys stopped the Cowboys cold on their first four possessions of the game, including forcing a turnover that created an immediate red zone opportunity for the offense.
Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw were at their absolute best. Warner made game-changing plays including a forced fumble, a sack, and an interception. Greenlaw was absolutely everywhere on the field, and made several bone-crunching hits to force incomplete passes. He also notched a sack and two tackles for loss.
The secondary did their part in this one as well. Mooney Ward broke up one of the few deep balls Dak attempted while in single coverage along the sideline, and Tashaun Gibson was his usual ball-hawking self on a Prescott overthrow. CeeDee Lamb was the only wideout to catch more than two passes in the game, and Dak threw for just 153 total yards despite needing to pass for most of the game.
It might have taken Steve Wilks a week or two to get his bearings, but the 49ers defense is running like a well-oiled machine right now.
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