EMPHATIC VICTORY
Determined 49ers get contributions from many as they come from behind to end slide
CHICAGO >> Deebo Samuel saved the 49ers’ season.
Or Jimmy Garoppolo did. Or credit the 49ers’ offensive line that pushed Elijah Mitchell over the goal line, then followed by opening a lane for Garoppolo’s second touchdown run of his pressure-packed homecoming game.
The 49ers desperately snapped a four-game losing streak Sunday with a 33-22, comeback win against the Chicago Bears, who needed more than rookie quarterback
Justin Fields’ magic on a Halloween Sunday at Soldier Field.
“Huge team win,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “We kept talking about whatever it took to win is what we had to do. We didn’t care whether it was 2-0 or ended like that. Was just real proud of the guys.”
Eventually, it fell on the 49ers’ defense to preserve a fourth-quarter lead, a defense that’s been unreliable all season and especially on third downs. Fields remarkably ran for a touchdown to threaten the lead, but he later was sacked by Samson Ebukam with 4 1/2 minutes left, and then came a Josh Norman interception with 1:34 to go.
Arguably, it also came down to whichever kicker missed at which inopportune moment, and the Bears’ case was certainly hurt by Cairo Santos’ missed point-after kick in the fourth quarter to keep them behind 23-22.
In the end, the 49ers (3-4) won on the road, as was the case their first two games of the season, and next up is a Sunday home date with an Arizona Cardinals team that is 7-1 but could be without quarterback Kyler Murray (ankle).
Here are the highlights from this one:
SUPER SCREEN >> Nothing like an 83-yard screen pass to spark a comeback.
On third-and-19, Samuel snatched Garoppolo’s pass at the 11-yard line, then weaved his way through traffic, with helpful blocks by Brandon Aiyuk and Alex Mack. Samuel dove to get the ball onto the left pylon for an