Senior Staff Writer
INGLEWOOD, Calif. – The Rams (3-2) fell to the 49ers 26-23 in overtime Thursday night at SoFi Stadium.
Tied 20-20 with 10:39 remaining after kicker Joshua Karty‘s extra point attempt was blocked, the Rams defense pitched a critical 3-and-out which gave the ball back to their offense with 9:11 to play, only for the offense to go 3-and-out after an incomplete pass on 3rd and 1.
Despite punter Ethan Evans‘ ensuing punt being downed at the 49ers’ own 2-yard line, San Francisco (4-1) – despite being stopped at the L.A. 41 – managed to convert a 59-yard field goal attempt to take a 23-20 lead with 2:56 remaining in the fourth quarter.
From there, the Rams marched all the way down to the 49ers 3 with 1:05 remaining, when running back Kyren Williams fumbled at the 2. The 49ers recovered the ball at their own 1, but were forced to punt since the Rams could stop the clock with all three of their timeouts.
A holding penalty on the ensuing punt return against the Rams negated a 26-yard return by wide receiver Xavier Smith to the 49ers 27, but it didn’t prevent the Rams from getting kicker Josh Karty in position for a 48-yard field goal attempt that would send the game into overtime.
In overtime, the Rams gave the 49ers advantageous field position after being penalized for Karty’s kickoff landing short of the landing zone. San Francisco began the drive at their own 40 and reached the Rams 21 before outside linebacker Byron Young‘s sack for a nine yard loss on second down led to them settling for a 41-yard field goal, taking a 26-23 lead midway through overtime. The ball was tracking to miss wide left before skimming off the left upright and in.
The Rams made it to the 49ers 11 on the ensuing drive – aided by a 38-yard completion from quarterback Matthew Stafford to wide receiver Tutu Atwell – down to a 4th and 1 from there. The Rams went for it but were unsuccessful as Williams was stopped for no gain.
Williams finished with 131 total yards from scrimmage and two receiving touchdowns in the loss. Stafford finished 30 of 47 passing for 389 yards and three touchdowns.
Here is the complete game recap, presented by American Airlines:
The 49ers scored on the opening possession with a 6-yard touchdown pass from Jones to tight end Jake Tonges to take an early 7-0 lead. Leaning heavily on McCaffrey on that drive, Jones was 5-for-5 for 77 yards in addition to that touchdown pass on the first drive.
The Rams possessed the ball for just 3 minutes and 10 seconds in the first quarter, compared to a time of possession of 11:50 for the 49ers.
Los Angeles’ deficit increased to 14 after a 1-yard touchdown pass from Jones to McCaffrey as that second series – which began at San Francisco’s own 9-yard line – overlapped into the second quarter.
On the ensuing offensive series, running back Blake Corum fumbled the pitch from Stafford, and it was recovered by 49ers linebacker Trevis Gipson at their own 30.
However, the Rams defense forced the 49ers to punt after wide receiver Kendrick Bourne dropped a pass on third-down that would’ve converted to a first down. The offense responded with a scoring drive to make it 14-7 on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Stafford to Williams with 2:09 left in the first half. Los Angeles passed on nine-straight plays after Corum’s fumble.
The 49ers added a 37-yard field goal as time expired at the end of the first half to take a 17-7 lead into halftime.
Despite developing a good rhythm on the second half-opening drive, the Rams lost it after back-to-back drops forced them to settle for a 53-yard field goal attempt by Karty that missed wide right with 12:46 left in the third quarter. The 49ers had to settle for a 20-yard field on the ensuing series, but it extended their lead to 20-7 with 6:33 left in the third quarter.
Los Angeles answered on the ensuing drive with a 1-yard touchdown pass from Stafford to Puka Nacua to cut its deficit to six with 3:45 to go in the third quarter.
Inside linebacker Nate Landman‘s tackle for a 3-yard loss on McCaffrey on third down forced the 49ers to punt at the beginning of the third quarter. The Rams marched downfield and tied the game 20-20 on an 8-yard touchdown pass from Stafford to Williams, but Karty’s ensuing extra point attempt was blocked with 10:30 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Back-to-back three-and-outs just before the midway point of the fourth quarter gave the 49ers the ball back with 8:18 left. Pineiro’s 59-yard field goal gave them the lead 23-20 with 2:52 left.
Nearly two minutes later, Williams lost the ball at the 49ers 2, but the Rams – with all three of their timeouts and the 49ers in shallow field position – were able to force the 49ers to punt and get the ball back with 42 seconds left.
Despite the holding penalty on the ensuing punt return that negated starting the next drive at the San Francisco 27, Los Angeles added a 48-yard field goal by Karty with two seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime.
Starting at their own 40 at the beginning of overtime, because of that penalty for the kickoff landing short of the landing zone the 49ers reached the Rams 21 before Young’s sack for a 9-yard loss on second down forced them to settle for a 41-yard field goal by Pineiro to take a 26-23 lead with 5:51 left in overtime.
On the ensuing series, the Rams reached the 49ers 11, but were unsuccessful on their 4th and 1 attempt from there.
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