Garoppolo might be out for the year

The San Francisco 49ers fear quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo will miss the remainder of the season after sustaining an injury to the ACL in his left knee late in Sunday’s 38-27 loss to Kansas City.

Garoppolo will have an MRI to confirm the severity of the injury, but 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said “we fear an ACL.” That would mean C.J. Beathard is in line to start at quarterback.

Garoppolo was 20 of 30 for 251 yards with two touchdowns and no picks against the Chiefs, and he was at his best in trying to rally the 49ers late. But after driving for a potential score in the fourth quarter, Garoppolo was flushed from the pocket and headed for the sideline.

He appeared to take an awkward step and his knee buckled, just as Chiefs cornerback Steven Nelson delivered a shoulder-to-shoulder blow. Garoppolo wound up leaving on a cart.

“I think that was his fault,” said Chiefs linebacker Justin Houston, who was trailing the play. “I pray he’s not hurt, it’s nothing serious, but as a quarterback you should step out of bounds. It’s only an inch. An inch wouldn’t have made a difference. You got the yardage. You need to be smart.”

Cousins struggles: The Buffalo Bills unfolded an astute defensive game plan at Minnesota and unleashed their front seven on Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins.

The most important part of their preparation and execution? Forcing Cousins to fumble.

With a third-down strip-sack of Cousins inside the 20-yard line to turn the ball over on each of Minnesota’s first two possessions, Buffalo converted those big plays into 10 easy points on the way to a 27-6 victory.

“We drop back every single day and talk about having two hands on the ball and protecting the football and understanding how important that is,” said Cousins, who also threw an interception.

Since Cousins became a full-time starter for Washington to begin the 2015 season, he has fumbled 33 times. That’s one behind Seattle’s Russell Wilson for the most in the NFL over that span.

Reading the record book: New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees broke the record of 6,300 career completions set by Hall of Famer Brett Favre.

❚ Indianapolis Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri matched Morten Andersen for most field goals in NFL history with 565.

The 45-year-old Vinatieri needed three field goals against Philadelphia to tie the record.