Week 3 of the NFL season kicked off Thursday with the San Francisco 49ers taking down the New York Giants (1-2) at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
Daniel Jones and the Giants were coming off a wild second-half comeback over Arizona in Week 2 that arguably saved their entire season, seeing as they had been outscored 60-0 in six quarters to open the season prior to the narrow win.
On the other side, Brock Purdy & Co. remain undefeated atop the NFC West. Both teams were without a key offensive catalyst, as Giants running back Saquon Barkley (ankle) and 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (shoulder) were out due to injury.
San Francisco methodically brought the ball down the field and got into the red zone to open the game, but it was held to a 28-yard field goal from Jake Moody. New York then moved the ball on its first drive but settled for a 44-yard field goal from Graham Gano.
Nobody blocked him
49ers star defensive end Nick Bosa got his first sack of the season late in the first quarter when he had an open lane to Jones and took the Giants quarterback to the ground.
Getting 'em down in bounds
A pair of screen passes on two third-and-longs to wide receiver Deebo Samuel and running back Christian McCaffrey — which combined for 47 yards — helped the 49ers get into the red zone early in the second quarter. Then on a third-and-5 from the New York 9-yard line, Purdy hit wide receiver Ronnie Bell, who got his feet in bounds near the pylon for the San Francisco touchdown.
San Fran doing what it does
Faced with a third-and-12 on the Giants' 20-yard line, Purdy hit tight end George Kittle, who maneuvered his way through the defense for another 49ers first down; Giants defensive lineman Leonard Williams was flagged for roughing the passer, putting the ball on the 4-yard line. On the very next play, McCaffrey ran in a 4-yard score.
Giants steal 3
A 17-yard completion from Jones to wide receiver Darius Slayton got the Giants in 49ers territory on the ensuing possession, helping them get in range for Gano, who connected on a 57-yard field goal with 13 seconds remaining in the first half.
HALFTIME - 49ers 17, Giants 6
The 49ers controlled the first half, maintaining possession for 20 minutes and outgaining the Giants 242-88 in total yards. McCaffrey made NFL history in the first half. According to FOX Sports Research, McCaffrey's rushing score made it 12 consecutive games that he has reached the end zone (including the playoffs). If he scores next week, McCaffrey will break a tie with Jerry Rice (1987) for the most consecutive games with a touchdown in 49ers history.
Giants take advantage
The Giants and 49ers each punted on their first possessions of the second half. Then a fair catch interference penalty on Shemar Jean-Charles put the ball on the San Francisco 37-yard line for New York.
On the second play of the drive, 49ers defensive back Deommodore Lenoir was penalized for pass interference. One play later, Matt Breida powered in an 8-yard touchdown run for the Giants. They failed to convert a two-point conversion, though.
Deebo keeps going
On the first play of the ensuing drive, Samuel somehow evaded four tackle attempts en route to a 40-yard pickup. The drive ended with a 21-yard field goal from Moody. San Francisco led 20-12 with 4:08 remaining in the third quarter.
They just won't go down
After forcing a Giants three-and-out, the 49ers put together another field-goal drive, which was set up by a 29-yard completion from Purdy to Kittle — who put a stiff-arm on safety Xavier McKinney and kept going through the New York secondary on the play.
Finding Deebo
San Francisco forced another New York three-and-out, and then it took a three-score lead. On the eighth play of the next drive, Purdy hit a contested Samuel for a 27-yard touchdown. The 49ers led 30-12 with 5:58 remaining in the fourth quarter.
INT for good measure
Jones had his pass tipped multiple times, and 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga ultimately came down with the interception.
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