Garoppolo Throws 4 TD Passes, 49ers Beat Cardinals on TNF, 28-25

The San Francisco 49ers are still undefeated. Kyle Shanahan’s team beat the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday Night Football, keeping its record perfect after 8 rounds. Jimmy Garoppolo threw four touchdown passes to lead his team to a 28-25 victory.

“I thought that Jimmy played a hell of a game,” said 49ers head coach at the press conference. “and it was his best game yet, probably.”

Garoppolo ended the night with four TD passes, recording 317 yards, 28 of 37, without an interception. He was masterful on the field of State Farm Stadium, dictating the tempo and the pace of the play, and successfully overcoming all the adversities. He had fantastic Emmanuel Sanders beside him, and the two terrorized the Cardinals’ defense, along with George Kittle.

Sanders had seven catches for 112 yards, and a touchdown, while Kittle posted 79 in six receptions also for a score. Jimmy G was making things happen, as San Francisco’s defense and their running game struggled tonight. The guests recorded just 101 yards on the ground, with Breida delivering 78 on 15 carries. The second half wasn’t too great for Shanahan’s guys who managed to get just one TD, while on the other side allow the Cardinals to come down to only three points and to have a momentum, which unfortunately for them, they didn’t have time to use.

The hosts opened the game nicely, with Kenyan Drake, the latest acquisition of the 49ers from Miami, bursting on the first play and rushing for 36 yards. He would end the opening drive with a 4-yard pass to lift his team to an advantage. Drake finished the night with 162 yards, 110 on the ground, 10 short of his personal best. In the opening 6 games with the Dolphins, his best production was 44 yards.

However, the 49ers replied. With four seconds to go until the end of the first period, Garoppolo found George Kittle, with a 30-yard touchdown pass, and the guests tied the result. They continued in the same rhythm in the second sequence, with Jimmy G finding Kendrick Bourne for a 7-yard score with 9:04 left, and Emmanuel Sanders with the time running out before the break. It was a one-yard toss.

Kyler Murray began playing much better in the second half, and his first of two TD passes came with 5:51 into the third sequence, once hitting KeeSean Johnson with a 9-yard TD pass. It was then 28-14 for the visitors, following Dante Pettis’ touchdown that came on Garoppolo’s 21-yard pass.

Arizona was near a massive surprise in the final period. They first scored with Zane Gonzales’ 36-yard field goal, before Andy Isabella’s 88-yard TD. The Cards decided to go for a two-point conversion which would bring them to just three points away from the guests, and they did that, with Murray finding Drake.

Garoppolo, yet, didn’t allow for anything unpredictable to happen, spending all 4:53 left without some particular problems. He made some big plays during that drive, having two third-down conversions.

The QB of the UNDEFEATED San Francisco @49ers!

Jimmy Garoppolo joined @ErinAndrews after the TNF win! pic.twitter.com/eJTdw3WzeJ

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 1, 2019

The 49ers are still undefeated with 8 straight wins, and now have three games at home coming up, which will ease their situation in the near future. At first, Shanahan’s guys welcome Seattle Seahawks, then meet again with the Cards, before having a huge showdown with the Packers and Aaron Rodgers.

“So we’re really excited for being 8-0, but that doesn’t mean anything,” said Shanahan. “It just means that we can enjoy a couple days off a little bit more.”

Murray had a solid night, and was pretty good in the last quarter. The No.1 pick from this year’s draft was making all sorts of problems for the 49ers, but he didn’t have a chance to deliver the final blow. Arizona’s QB threw for 241 yards, 17 of 24, making 2 TD passes. He also had 34 yards on the ground.

“Obviously, he’s a shifty guy, a talented guy, likes to play with his legs,” said DeForest Buckner, San Francisco’s defensive end, about Murray.

The Cards (3-5-1) now have two away games. The first one in Tampa Bay vs. Buccaneers and after that against the 49ers.