Well, that was fun, wasn’t it? Outmanned, outgunned, and with "no hope," according to most "bright NFL minds," the San Francisco 49ers walked in on the road (insofar as it could be on the road against a team with absolutely no fanbase*, which basically means facing 100 Los Angeles fans and a couple of megaphones) and found a way to win against the Los Angeles Rams, eventually allowing me to go to bed at 5:00am following an epic 26-23 victory.

[* - Editor's Note: Sorry, Devin.]

The win was vital for a few reasons even before Sunday’s games–it moved the 49ers to 3-0 in the division, already meaning they surpassed their division win total for 2024, and put them out at 4-1 overall. The stupid thing is, but for a catalogue of mistakes against the Jacksonville Jaguars last week, this team that no one is talking about, that is mostly playing backups, and for whom the media continually tries to manufacture quarterback or coaching controversies ... would be undefeated.

Not bad, I guess.

The Moneyball 49ers, and Rooting for the Underdog

The biggest surprise about it all is the players making heroes of themselves by achieving what they have so far this season. True, we’re still seeing big plays from potential Hall-of-Famers like Christian McCaffrey and Fred Warner, but the most impactful plays have come from players that might not have otherwise seen the field.

• Jake Tonges has had several key catches, including the game-winner in Week 1.

• Kendrick Bourne led the team in receiving.

• Eddy Pineiro came in for Jake Moody and continues to hit critical kicks–as it stands, he has two game-winners.

• Mykel Williams, as a rookie, is becoming a huge force on the defensive line.

• Renardo Green’s return stemmed the flood of plays being given up in the secondary.

• Alfred Collins, another rookie, had one of the game’s most impactful plays, essentially punching Kyren Williams in the face to force a goal-line fumble.

  
  

The team is currently fourth in rookie snap percentage, which shows the amount of youth and inexperience showing up on the field for the team. If you’re not a 49ers fan reading this piece–and perhaps even if you are–your reaction to seeing the above names listed is probably akin to that of the scouts in Moneyball as Scott Hatteberg is proposed as the solution to the team’s first base issues: WHO?!

That’s the beauty of the game of football, and there’s something quite comforting and homely about rooting for the underdog. Much like in the team’s surprise late run to the playoffs in 2021, the 49ers are defying expectations and beliefs to continue to be competitive. Thanks to Seattle and Arizona’s collective meltdowns on Sunday (Arizona’s coming in hilarious and scarcely believable fashion to the Tennessee Titans), they’re even in sole possession of the lead of the NFC West, and have at least a game gap on each of their rivals.

Despite that, you’ll note that each of my pieces seems to contain some sort of "no one believes in us," siege-like mentality, and it’s largely because when one looks out across sports media, that’s actually the case. The 4-1 49ers is one of the league’s most remarkable stories, but may actually be one of the league’s least-covered teams. No one’s writing things like this column about this team, sans the tired attempts to create a quarterback controversy between the admittedly stunning Mac Jones and recently-minted franchise quarterback Brock Purdy.

In Praise of Mac Jones

Speaking of which, no, there is of course no controversy. Jones has been a revelation, and frankly, had his grit-and-toughness performance on Thursday night, battling through multiple injuries and cramp, been performed by one of the league’s darling quarterbacks, we’d likely be hearing about it for decades to come. Alas, for Mac Jones, it was just a Thursday.

One can’t argue with what he’s done, as he’s won all his starts, and quite often he has been a big part of the reason for it, particularly as the run game remains execrable (with Christian McCaffrey averaging just barely over three yards a carry). He’s also done it without the vast majority of his weapons, with even Ricky Pearsall, who was threatening a breakout season, missing against the Rams. Purdy, meanwhile, came back into the lineup last week versus Jacksonville, and was iffy at best, with a couple of key turnovers that were at least partially involved in dooming the 49ers to defeat.

A Quarterback Controversy? No, But…

So then–controversy abounds? Well, not quite. Purdy’s played parts of full seasons in the same situation and been equally as impressive. I stand by that if he had not played as well as he did in the early portions of last season, the team’s disappointing 6-11 finish would’ve been even worse. Pretty much all the games the team won were because of Purdy, not in spite of him. If, however, you only want to deal with this season, it should absolutely be noted that Purdy led a game-winning drive in Seattle in Week 1, in a performance not dissimilar to Jones’ three wins.

Ultimately, Purdy is just a better player. He’s more athletic, more accurate, makes decisions faster, and makes more top-level plays than Jones. He’s able to play outside the scheme, create plays in difficult situations, and is ultimately the higher-ceiling player. That’s not to take anything away from Jones, as he can play within a scheme very well, and a large reason we’re seeing more of the Mac Jones who was once considered for the No. 3 overall pick is because he’s being catered to correctly by Kyle Shanahan and his coaching staff, who are, frankly, coaching their asses off.

Shanahan and the 49ers Must Keep Learning

That said, one thing Shanahan should learn from this sojourn with Jones could perhaps have Purdy playing at his highest level again–no matter what the opponent, no matter how smart you think you are, create top-level, sensible gameplans that play to your players strengths. Shanahan is a peculiar coach that almost seems to improve when faced with adversity–with less to work with, he fills the gap with his incredible ability to put together an offensive gameplan. It’s almost as though having top players like Purdy, people he trusts, causes him to rest on his laurels, and allow the players to "create their moments" and big plays rather than scheming them up. If he can marry the excellent coaching job he’s done through five weeks of the season to the return of the team’s big hitters like Purdy, Kittle, Jennings, and Aiyuk, the sky can be the limit for the offense.

Similarly, on defense, there’s still moments of frustration and miscommunications, but all this experience for the team’s young players should pay dividends in the dog days of the season in late November and early December. The schedule, on paper at least, gets a little easier after Sunday’s road game in Tampa Bay, and while that might be one challenge too far for this young team, the experience will be invaluable for the late-season stretch. If they continue to ace the crash course they’ve been put on so far this season, they could even be playing in January.

And wouldn’t we all just love that? Enjoy the ride.