49ers @ Rams
A truly awful, at times unwatchable game of football between the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams, which contained 7 turnovers (4 in the 1st quarter) and 14 punts, ended with a last-second Robbie Gould field goal to hand the 49ers the 23-20 win and in turn dent the Rams’ push for the playoffs. Dreadful quarterback play from both Nick Mullens and Jared Goff meant there was only 1 drive over 7 plays in the entire game – both QBs were picked off too. In some ways, you have to blame the playcalling on both sides – stubborn and at times predictable, both Sean McVay and Kyle Shanahan seem too heavily rooted in their tunneled philosophies. Football purists would have been seething today. There is nothing dynamic about these two offenses.
For the 5-6 49ers, it was a key win and it keeps their faint hopes of a wildcard spot alive. For the 7-4 Rams, a Seattle victory over Philadelphia tomorrow would see them drop a game behind in the race for the NFC West.
San Francisco 49ers
Quarterback
Nick Mullens: 24/35, 252 yards, 1 INT, 2 sacks
It is difficult to imagine how bad Nick Mullens (9.08 fantasy points) was through 3 1/2 quarters today without watching the game. Predictably reduced to hand-offs and dump-offs for most of the contest, he did at least show up when the 49ers needed him the most – he went 5-for-5 for 45 yards on the game-tying drive before going 4-for-5 for 43 yards to set up the game-winning 42-yard FG. Prior to that, however, he consistently overthrew receivers and relied on yards-after-the-catch from Deebo Samuel to account for much of his passing yardage. His interception was particularly embarrassing, Mullens throwing the ball into the back of the helmet of his right tackle Mike McGlinchey, the ball looping up into the arms of Rams’ rookie cornerback Jordan Fuller.
Fuller PICKING up right where he left off 🤩@AaronDonald97 with the tip, @j_fuller4 with the INT‼️ pic.twitter.com/cO5bv09awh
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) November 29, 2020
Another Rams cornerback, Darious Williams dropped an easy interception on a bad throw from Mullens on the 49ers’ first drive of the 3rd quarter. If Williams had held on, we may have seen a change at quarterback. Mullens is far, far from fantasy-relevant.
Running Backs
Raheem Mostert: 16 carries, 43 yards, 1 TD, 1 FUM lost | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 0 yards
Jeffrey Wilson: 12 carries, 43 yards, 1 FUM lost
Jerick McKinnon: 3 carries, 27 yards | 3 targets, 2 receptions, 11 yards
Kyle Juszczyk: 2 carries, 8 yards | 2 targets, 2 reception, 24 yards
The 49ers welcomed back premier running back Raheem Mostert (10.30 fantasy points) today after missing 4 games with an ankle issue. He responded with some nice running on the outside, hitting paydirt early for the 49ers only offensive touchdown of the day.
Return of the Mosterati!
Touchdown @RMos_8Ball to put the 49ers up 7-3. #SFvsLAR on FOX/49ers app. pic.twitter.com/B8Tjb7bwtb
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) November 29, 2020
Mostert provides both a significant and immediate upgrade to this 49er running back room and in all honesty, I think Shanahan would have given him 30+ carries today if it wasn’t his 1st game back. He is that good at implementing this scheme and possesses the elite speed to outrun cornerbacks downfield. However, he did cough the ball up after falling victim to Aaron Donald, a play that opened the door for a Rams comeback.
DPOY HIM.@AaronDonald97 strips it, @thrilll_32 takes it in for six! pic.twitter.com/djBJb3uykr
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) November 29, 2020
…and here is Jeffrey Wilson‘s (2.30 fantasy points) fumble.
.@AyyyeeeMoFox on the hunt 🦊
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/JfN95mN1gW
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) November 29, 2020
Wilson surprisingly out-touched Jerrick McKinnon (5.20 fantasy points) even after his fumble. But both these backs become bench stashes once again with Mostert’s return.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Deebo Samuel: 13 targets, 11 receptions, 133 yards
Kendrick Bourne: 5 targets, 3 receptions, 34 yards
Richie James: 1 target, 1 reception, 29 yards
Jordan Reed: 6 targets, 2 receptions, 18 yards
Ross Dwelley: 2 targets, 1 reception, 3 yards
The Rams probably knew how Shanahan was going to deploy Deebo Samuel (24.30 fantasy points) but they still couldn’t stop the YAC monster. Samuel remarkably broke double-digit tackles on a career-high 13 targets and was aided by some suspect Rams tackling downfield. 83 of his 133 yards occurred after contact, which is by far the most for a receiver in a game this season. Twice he burst away from multiple defenders to set up Mostert’s touchdown and then the game-winning field goal.
Uh oh, here come Deebo 💪 @19problemz @49ers
📺 #SFvsLAR on FOX pic.twitter.com/Ca2NzS8Lda
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) November 29, 2020
It was slim pickings for the rest of this receiving corps, who are not worthy of fantasy consideration.
Los Angeles Rams
Quarterback
Jared Goff: 19/31, 198 yards, 2 INT, 2 sacks | 5 carries, 11 yards
As bad as Mullens was today, Jared Goff (5.02 fantasy points) was decidedly worse. The former No.1 overall pick has now thrown multiple interceptions in 3 of his last 4 games. His first today, straight into the arms of Richard Sherman, was up there with candidates for the worst throw of his career.
And a welcome back to @RSherman_25 😏#SFvsLAR on FOX/49ers app pic.twitter.com/8dBz2GXeeD
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) November 29, 2020
Inexplicably, Goff failed to get Cooper Kupp, who went off for 145 yards on 13 targets last week, into the Rams gameplan until the 2nd half. Goff set a season-worst for completions (19) and yardage (198) whilst also failing to throw for a TD for the 3rd time this season. Despite a favorable run-in, Goff is not to be trusted in your fantasy playoffs.
Running Backs
Cam Akers: 9 carries, 84 yards, 1 TD
Darrell Henderson: 10 carries, 19 yards | 1 target
Malcolm Brown: 3 carries, 4 yards, 1 FUM lost | 3 targets, 2 reception, 15 yards
The lone bright spot for the Rams in this game was confirmation of the emergence of Cam Akers (14.40 fantasy points) as having the potential to lead this backfield going forward. Akers finally showed signs of life in his rookie season last week against the Bucs before turning in his best display as a Ram today. He broke loose in the 2nd half today for a big 61-yard gain.
CAM AKERS!!! 🚀🚀🚀
Explodes for a 61 yard run! LETSSSSSS GOOOOO! 🔥#SFvsLAR #FTTB #49ers #NFL #NFLTwitter #FantasyFootball pic.twitter.com/VPPxqxnCaJ
— Ben Eby (@TheBenEby) November 29, 2020
He also finished off the drive by punching in the 1st rushing score of his NFL career.
Cam Akers had visions of 6️⃣ @thereal_cam3 @RamsNFL
📺 #SFvsLAR on FOX
(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/oxwhv371yT
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) November 29, 2020
Up to that point, Akers had only 3 carries for 6 yards in the game, so err on the side of caution before immediately plugging him into your lineup. Akers has low-RB2 upside the rest of the way. Both Darrell Henderson (1.90 fantasy points) and Malcolm Brown (1.90 fantasy points) have disappeared from the face of the fantasy radar in the last few months. It is hard to believe in this backfield too heartily.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Robert Woods: 12 targets, 7 receptions, 80 yards | 1 carry, 8 yards
Cooper Kupp: 5 targets, 2 receptions, 41 yards
Josh Reynolds: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 40 yards
Gerald Everett: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 16 yards
Tyler Higbee: 2 targets, 1 reception, 6 yards
A miserable day for Goff translated into a terrible day for the Rams receivers, with only Robert Woods (15.80 fantasy points) salvaging some nugget of fantasy value for those who have him rostered. Through volume alone, Woods managed to produce despite Goff’s inaccuracies and indiscretions. Cooper Kupp (6.10 fantasy points) was not so lucky. A week removed from the two receivers combining for 275 yards and a TD against the Bucs Woods, and Kupp struggled to 121 yards combined on 17 targets and 9 receptions. It is hard to take many positives from this outing, however, both should be useful fantasy starters over the next couple of weeks.
Let’s not even talk about this over-hyped pre-season tight end room. 4 targets, 3 catches, 22 yards. Yuck!
— Benjamin Haller (@benjaminhaller1 on Twitter)