SANTA CLARA – Brock Purdy’s first-career, four-interception fiasco no doubt triggered the 49ers’ Christmas night flop against the Baltimore Ravens.
But now what? Will there be long-term ramifications of Monday night’s 33-19 defeat at Levi’s Stadium, the same field where the 49ers figured to host playoff games next month en route to the Super Bowl?
Purdy left in the fourth quarter after sustaining his second nerve-related stinger in two games. Also, the 49ers lost All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams to a groin injury three minutes after halftime, after he chased down linebacker Patrick Queen on the Ravens’ fourth interception of Purdy.
The bright side? The 49ers (11-4) remain in position for the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed, and they still can lock that up by winning their final two regular-season games – Sunday at the Washington Commanders (4-11), and Week 18 against the Los Angeles Rams (8-7). The 49ers currently own the tiebreaker advantage over the NFC’s other two teams with 11-4 records, the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles.
Purdy, if healthy, and the 49ers have time to recapture momentum. The NFC West champs just won’t be rolling into the postseason like a year ago, when they owned a 10-game win streak.
The 49ers came into this gamer with a six-game winning streak, The Ravens (12-3) not only ended it, they made it seem like a long time ago.
Purdy’s worst outing of his 23-start career – excluding his elbow-ligament tear in last season’s NFC Championship Game loss in Philadelphia – saw three of his passes intercepted before halftime.
With eight minutes remaining, the Purdy jogged off to the 49ers’ sideline medical tent for an injury evaluation, after getting sacked and landing on his back and head. At that point, the 49ers trailed 33-12, and they already were without Williams (groin) and his backup Jaylon Moore (concussion).
Sam Darnold finished off that series with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Ronnie Bell to cut the deficit to 33-19 with 6:19 remaining. Darnold stayed in the game after Purdy exited the medical tent and chatted briefly with coach Kyle Shanahan. Darnold was intercepted with a minute remaining for a fitting finish to the 49ers’ debacle.
Only briefly did the 49ers’ offense look like the high-voltage machine that scored touchdowns in six straight possessions in a triumphant rout at Philadelphia three weeks ago.
Christian McCaffrey temporarily stopped the 49ers’ bleeding, after Purdy’s three interceptions. McCaffrey, the NFL’s leading rusher, scored on a 9-yard touchdown run to pull the 49ers within 13-12, with 3:23 until halftime. McCaffrey accounted for 65 of the 67 yards on that six-play touchdown drive, Purdy making up for the other 2 yards on a third-and-1 conversion run.
It was McCaffrey’s 14th rushing touchdown this season, and his 21st overall score, two shy of Jerry Rice’s single-season franchise record.
The Ravens had piled up enough points, however, to thwart any fourth-quarter comeback, perhaps channeling memories of their 2012 season’s Super Bowl win over the 49ers, who fell behind 28-6, rallied within 31-29, but lost 34-31.
This meeting was billed as a showdown between the NFL’s two leading MVP candidates – Purdy and Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, the latter of whom threw for 252 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 46 yards.
Meanwhile, Purdy’s 42.6 passer rating was his worst as the 49ers’ starter. In addition to four interceptions, he finished 18-of-32 for 255 yards.
The Ravens converted their final three interceptions of Purdy into two touchdowns and a field goal. Or in greater detail …
Interception No. 1: Purdy targeted Deebo Samuel in the end zone on the opening possession for a potential 15-yard touchdown pass, only to have safety Kyle Hamilton snag the ball. It was just the eighth interception in 389 passes by Purdy this season, and two more were picks coming in the next three passes.
Turnover result: They produced points, albeit a 2-0 lead for the 49ers via a safety, once Jackson threw the ball away in the end zone after tripping over umpire Alex Moore and getting chased by multiple defenders.
Interception No. 2: The 49ers were at the 37-yard line, two plays into the second quarter, when Purdy’s pass was deflected at the line of scrimmage by Brandon Stephens. The ball was caught by fellow cornerback Marlon Humphrey.
Turnover result: The Ravens went ahead 10-5 with a go-ahead touchdown drive. Gus Edwards scored on a fourth-and-goal plunge from 1, slicing through the 49ers’ front featuring six defensive linemen. Afterward, Nick Bosa, Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw huddled on the sideline to search for answers.
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Interception No. 3: Of the interception hat trick, this might have been the most galling error, if not for the first pick into the end zone. What made this one so unsightly was Purdy could have thrown the ball away but instead targeted George Kittle, only to have a ricochet grabbed by Hamilton for his second interception.
Turnover result: The Ravens opened their ensuing possession at the 20-yard line, and promptly settled for Justin Tucker’s 41-yard field goal and a 13-5 lead with 7:03 until halftime.
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Interception No. 4: Purdy’s arm got hit in the pocket by defensive tackle Travis Jones and the third-quarter throw fluttered into the hands of Queen. Williams appeared to strip and recover the football, but a replay ruling confirmed that Queen was down by contact.
Turnover result: On the next snap, Jackson threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Zay Flowers, for a 30-12 lead, just 3:11 into the second half. On the 49ers next possession, Williams was out with a groin injury, and Moore played left tackle on that five-and-out series.
The last time a 49ers quarterback had four passes intercepted: Colin Kaepernick, on Sept. 27, 2015 at Arizona.
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Purdy, in 22 previous games, had never thrown two interceptions before halftime in his career. He threw three in 22 minutes.
Purdy’s only previous games with multiple interceptions were October losses to the Vikings and the Bengals. Purdy also fumbled in that 31-17 loss to Cincinnati, after which he apologized to the team in the locker room, and the 49ers responded by winning six straight, up until Monday night’s massacre.
