USA TODAY International Edition
Garoppolo’s rise helping erase 49ers’ QB questions
With a comeback victory over the Cardinals, the 49ers got back on track following their first loss of the season.
In so doing, the 49ers improved to 9- 1 and remained atop the NFC, which features three 8- 2 teams in the Packers, Saints and Seahawks. But Sunday’s game, in which San Francisco erased a 16- 0 first- half deficit thanks to a 19point fourth quarter, also featured another rebound of great importance.
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo delivered a crucial performance, completing 34 of 45 pass attempts for 424 yards and four touchdowns, including a 25- yard game- winner to Jeff Wilson with 31 seconds left. Garoppolo did throw two interceptions, one off a tipped pass, but his late- game heroics greatly overshadowed those turnovers.
Garoppolo’s performance carried
great significance because he has represented one of the biggest question marks on the 49ers’ roster. In many games this season, San Francisco has won in spite of him. The seventh- year veteran has struggled with ball security ( 10 interceptions and four lost fumbles), but the 49ers’ dominant defense helped erase those transgressions.
On his best days, Garoppolo served as a solid offensive manager rather than the game- changing quarterback the 49ers believe he can be. Two weeks ago, he finally seemed to put it all together, recording a 317- yard, four- TD outing in a 28- 25 win against the Cardinals. But in the following week’s 27- 24 overtime loss to the Seahawks, he completed just 52% of his passes and turned the ball over three times. A slow start and more mistakes Sunday seemed to perpetuate concerns about the 28- year- old.
But Garoppolo scratched and clawed his way toward redemption, throwing the 49ers back into the game on a day when a usually potent rushing attack mustered only 34 yards on 19 carries.
That performance should further fuel the confidence of the quarterback, who has made only 20 starts in his career. If Garoppolo can begin to consistently elevate his team when other facets of the game aren’t operating with precision, he will only further bolster San Francisco’s chances of making a deep playoff run.
Cousins still energized
Few players found themselves under more scrutiny than Kirk Cousins during the first month. The Vikings’ quarterback looked nothing like the player they thought they were getting in 2018 when he signed a three- year, $ 84 million deal.
The Vikings owned a 2- 2 record through September thanks largely to a strong rushing game and defense. But there were a lot of internal frustrations with Cousins and an anemic passing attack. Something clicked, however, after wide receiver Adam Thielen called out his quarterback and play- callers. Cousins has gone from whipping boy to toplevel performer, throwing 18 TD passes and only one interception in the last seven games while leading his team to six wins in that stretch.
Sunday’s game represented another clutch performance. The visiting Broncos jumped out to a 20- 0 halftime lead, but the quarterback threw three second- half TD passes in a 27- 23 victory.
The Vikings finally are getting the kind of production and leadership out of Cousins that they badly craved. And what’s even more impressive is the fact that Cousins, who boasts the secondhighest TD total ( 21) in the NFL this season, has played at this level without the services of Thielen, who has missed three of the last five games.
Cousins has adopted a more aggressive mind- set, but so too have his playcallers. Mike Zimmer brought in Gary Kubiak to ensure that the Vikings ran an offense that strongly emphasized the run game. However, the initial approach taken by Kubiak and offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski was probably more conservative than necessary.
So when Thielen and fellow wide receiver Stefon Diggs voiced frustrations over limited opportunities, the two coaches adjusted. The Vikings started dialing up more play- action pass plays, and Cousins and the offense responded favorably. After averaging 21 points per game during that 2- 2 start, the Vikings have scored 29.3 points per outing in the seven games since.
At 8- 3, the Vikings hold the second wild- card spot in the NFC. The final stretch of the season features a game at Seattle and home contests against all of their NFC North foes. But if Cousins and the offense can maintain this level of play, the Vikings should return to the postseason after last year’s absence.
Who’s the worst NFL team of all?
The playoff picture is taking shape. But so too is the draft order, and still leading the way for that first overall pick are the Bengals. With a 17- 10 loss to the Raiders, Cincinnati dropped to 0- 10 as the only remaining winless squad.
The Bengals might have some competition for when it comes to the worst overall team, however. The Redskins fell to 1- 9 after a 34- 17 throttling by the Jets at home. Washington has managed to score only 125 points this season, 22 fewer than the Bengals and 14 fewer than the 2- 8 Dolphins.
Until the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game, the Redskins had gone 16 quarters without scoring a TD, which was the longest streak in the league since 2001.
The Bengals rank 27th in total offense ( 309.1 yards per game) while the Redskins are 31st ( 255.7), just ahead of the Jets ( 248.2). But Cincinnati’s defense has surrendered more yards per game ( 425.1) than any other team in the league, while Washington’s defense ranks 23rd ( 369.5).
The Bengals and first- year coach Zac Taylor seemingly waved the white flag when they benched ninth- year veteran and three- time Pro Bowl quarterback Andy Dalton for rookie fourth- round pick Ryan Finley two games ago.
Meanwhile, the Redskins’ only real focus of the remaining slate of games is for interim head coach Bill Callahan and offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell to see what kind of development they can coax out of rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins so team officials know what they have in him.
It appears likely that the Bengals will land the first pick of the draft. However, Washington has the potential to shape the outcome of the first round if they land a top two or three pick. If Haskins shows promise, the Redskins will have flexibility because they will not need to spend their first pick on one of the elite passers. Multiple teams interested in one of those quarterbacks, however, could come calling with offers. The Redskins would likely love to land a handsome collection of picks to help fortify the talent- depleted roster their next head coach must take over.