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The San Francisco 49ers Week 16 loss against the Tennessee Titans certainly left a bad taste in their mouths. The 49ers seemed to be in control of the game before costly turnovers let the Titans back into it, where they seized control- and a last-second victory on a field goal, dropping San Francisco to 8-7. After the heartbreaking loss, we take a look at the 49ers-Titans game with a few 49ers Week 16 takeaways in mind.
The 49ers jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first quarter after a long opening drive, got a stop and then embarked on another drive deep into Titans territory before a costly, red-zone interception from Jimmy Garoppolo stalled the drive. Such costly turnovers and a curious decision from head coach Kyle Shanahan likely had 49ers fans wondering what could have been from an offensive standpoint, while Titans wide receiver AJ Brown absolutely torching the San Francisco secondary likely had fans pulling their hair out.
At 8-7, the 49ers are still positioned for the playoffs, but they certainly made things more difficult for themselves with the loss to the Titans.
With that in mind, here are a few San Franisco 49ers Week 16 takeaways from their loss to the Tennessee Titans.
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San Francisco 49ers Week 16 Takeaways
3. Deebo Samuel is electric with the ball in his hands
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49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel put on an absolute show on Thursday Night Football against the Titans. Samuel caught nine passes for 159 yards, adding 32 rushing yards on six totes. The 25-year-old has now gone over the 100-yard mark five times this season and has an impressive 1,548 yards from scrimmage and 12 total touchdowns this year. He is, simply put, one of the best and most versatile weapons in the NFL. In a wild statistic via NFL Next Gen Stats, Samuel gained 126 of his 159 receiving yards after the catch. At one point, he turned a play that looked like it was going for a loss of five yards into a gain of five yards. Samuel is electric with the ball in his hands and good things happen for the 49ers when they feed him the ball.
2. The 49ers cornerback position continues to be their biggest issue
The 49ers cornerbacks had a world of trouble with Titans wide receiver AJ Brown, who torched them to the tune of 145 receiving yards and a touchdown. It's becoming a pattern too, as Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Russell Gage had 91 yards and a score last week and Cincinnati Bengals receiver Tee Higgins had 114 yards the week before. 49ers cornerbacks Emmanuel Mosley and Jason Verrett are both on IR, which certainly doesn't help. While K'Waun Williams earned a solid pass coverage grade against Brown and the Titans, the 49ers are going to need more out of the likes of Josh Norman and Ambry Thomas if they want to get where they want to go.
1. Kyle Shanahan doesn't seem to trust Jimmy Garoppolo
49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo played a very poor game. Garoppolo threw for 322 yards but had two costly interceptions, one of which occurred in the red zone. Those interceptions likely factored into Kyle Shanahan's decision to effectively run the clock out with over a minute left in the first half, rather than attempt to score again. If Shanahan really trusted Garoppolo, he would have likely been far more aggressive there. Instead, he held back the team's chance to extend their lead over the Titans, a decision that proved costly in a three-point loss to the Titans. Shanahan needs to either figure out a better way to make the offense work for Garoppolo- which is seemingly what he's been doing all year- or make the change to Trey Lance. Whatever Shanahan decides to do at quarterback, he needs to fully trust his signal-caller for the 49ers to succeed.
