49ers @ Cardinals
Final Score: 49ers 45, Cardinals 29
Writer: Christian Otteman (@COttemanPL on Twitter/X)
In a game set up as the mismatch of the week with the 49ers being favored by 12 points, there were plenty of fireworks on display in this high-scoring matchup that was nevertheless over before it began. Both teams had their stars on display from the beginning, with Christian McCaffrey outpacing teammate Deebo Samuel 3-2 in the touchdown department for the 49ers while Trey McBride established his dominance as the target hog in Arizona’s offense. Perhaps most importantly, Brock Purdy and Kyler Murray had injury scares in this game but both returned to the field just a handful of plays later. Ultimately, the 49ers took care of business and secured the NFC West crown as a result. With only the bye left to play for, the Niners will host the Ravens for a Christmas Day matchup on Monday Night Football that’s sure to be a present for football fans everywhere.
Three Up
- Brock Purdy – Purdy had an injury scare after taking a big hit towards the end of the first half, but he emerged from the medical tent a few plays later and threw a strike to Christian McCaffrey for a touchdown. With a stinker from Dak Prescott in Buffalo, Purdy has emerged as the favorite to win the MVP.
- Trey McBride – McBride added yet another impressive game to his 2023 campaign and has been one of the best tight ends in the league over the past couple of months. He crossed the century mark for the second time this season and is a top-tier option for the last couple of weeks of the season.
- Christian McCaffrey – Can CMC truly be “up” at this point? Well, he only had one touchdown in his past two weeks combined, so seeing him put three scores on the board is more than deserving of this spot. If you have him, you’re off to the semifinals. If you faced him… my condolences.
Two Down
- Marquise Brown – It feels a little unfair to put Marquise Brown here given that he left this game with an injury, but he failed to record a single target before his departure. This injury combined with his extended slump dating back to Week 9 means that he should be left out of your lineups going forward.
- Kyler Murray – A difficult matchup against the 49ers to be sure, Kyler Murray has still not produced more than two total touchdowns in a game since his return to action. His rushing ability makes him a threat for a big week at any given time, but we have yet to see that upside in 2023.
San Francisco 49ers
Quarterback
Brock Purdy: 16/25, 242 yards, 4 TD
It was another day at the office for Brock Purdy, who continued his MVP campaign with another surgical outing. Purdy has the luxury of playing with some of the most skilled players in the league at almost every position, but that’s no reason to discredit the incredible season he’s had. His back shoulder pass to Deebo Samuel was a great play on both ends where Deebo made an adjustment to haul in a ball that Purdy put in just the right spot:
Deebo TD! Another 40-burger for the @49ers.
📺: #SFvsAZ on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/kw7mays4qU pic.twitter.com/Xrxeec3yRV— NFL (@NFL) December 17, 2023
Despite the great season, it’s hard to rank Purdy as more than a fringe QB1/QB2 due to the lack of rushing upside and the tough test against the Ravens in Week 16.
Sam Darnold: 2/3, 20 yards | 2 carries, -2 yards
Sam Darnold came into the game in relief of Brock Purdy while the latter took some time in the medical tent.
Running Back
Christian McCaffrey: 18 carries, 115 yards, 1 TD | 5/5 receiving, 72 yards, 2 TD
BREAKING NEWS: Christian McCaffrey is incredibly good at football. In a game that lined up as a smash spot on paper, McCaffrey delivered in spades for owners and will likely be one of the most highly-owned players on championship rosters once again. His second score of the day was a hilarious one where nobody was within 20 yards of him on the catch, so he was able to get up and score despite falling down:
CMC's 19th TD of the season goes for 41 yards!
📺: #SFvsAZ on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/kw7mays4qU pic.twitter.com/Fvvzz9Can9— NFL (@NFL) December 17, 2023
A matchup with the Ravens next week will be a much tougher test for CMC & Co., but you aren’t considering benching him for a fraction of a second.
Jordan Mason: 5 carries, 20 yards
Credit to Jordan Mason: he has been efficient with his touches whenever his number has been called to tote the rock, usually in blowout games to give CMC a rest. However, he has more than five touches just once this season, meaning that he remains a high-value handcuff and nothing more.
Kyle Juszczyk: 0 carries | 2/2 receiving, 26 yards
Operating as the fullback, “Juice Check” is never a fantasy-relevant option, but it’s always fun to see him show up in the box score.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
George Kittle: 2/4 receiving, 54 yards
Kittle wasn’t asked to do much in this one but still had a couple of nice chunk plays on his pair of receptions. On an offense that has this many mouths to feed, Kittle is bound to have a few down weeks, but he’s still been a top-8 TE in six of the last eight weeks. If you have him, you’re starting him at this point of the season.
Deebo Samuel: 4/7 receiving, 48 yards, 2 TD | 1 carry, 11 yards
With his two scores today, Deebo Samuel has scored seven touchdowns over his past three games. On his first touchdown, Deebo went in motion pre-snap and the Cardinals made the bold decision to not send anybody over to cover him, leading to a wide-open score. Deebo is one of the most electric players in the league with the ball in his hands and always finds a way to make the most out of his opportunities. A tough matchup with the Ravens shouldn’t deter you from starting the hottest player in the league next week.
Brandon Aiyuk: 3/5 receiving, 37 yards
Much like the other pass catchers on his team, Brandon Aiyuk didn’t need to do much as the 49ers cruised to an easy victory this afternoon. He’s had enough boom weeks to be trusted in the next week of the fantasy playoffs, even against an elite Ravens secondary.
Jauan Jennings: 2/2 receiving, 25 yards
With so many talented options ahead of him, it’s tough for Jauan Jennings to put up numbers in the box score. He can be safely left on waivers.
Ronnie Bell: 0/1 receiving, 0 yards
Ronnie Bell hasn’t managed to carve out a meaningful role thus far in his rookie season. Even in Dynasty leagues, he’s best left on waivers unless you have huge rosters.
Arizona Cardinals
Quarterback
Kyler Murray: 26/39, 211 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT | 6 carries, 49 yards
As most QBs playing the 49ers do, Kyler Murray struggled in this one due to the dominance of the 49ers defensive line. As a result, Kyler was running for his life to avoid being sacked. This led to a few trademark scrambles from Kyler, but he wasn’t able to find the end zone on the ground and had just one passing score on the day. It’s been a mixed bag for Murray in 2023, but he possesses a dual-threat upside that few other QBs do. The Bears are a tough matchup in Week 16, but traveling to Philadelphia for a game against the league’s worst secondary in Week 17 is worth looking forward to.
Clayton Tune: 1 carry, 0 yards
Much like Sam Darnold, Clayton Tune was only in for a couple of snaps while Kyler Murray got checked out.
Running Back
James Conner: 14 carries, 86 yards, 1 TD | 3/3 receiving, 3 yards
James Conner started the day off strong for the Cardinals, cutting between defenders en route to his fifth score of the season. As long as he’s taking the bulk of the carries, Conner is finding a way to produce for fantasy teams, and this week was no exception. Conner also showcased good vision on his largest gain of the day, a 43-yard rumble that brought the Cardinals inside the red zone:
Light work for James Conner on the 43-yard gain 😤
📺: #SFvsAZ on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/kw7mays4qU pic.twitter.com/mZYQwaKil7— NFL (@NFL) December 17, 2023
Conner has another tough matchup against the stout Bears run defense in Week 16, but he showed today he can still produce against solid defenses. He’s a perfectly fine RB2 for the next round of the fantasy playoffs.
Emari Demercado: 4 carries, 64 yards, 1 TD | 1/3 receiving, 6 yards
Most of Demercado’s production in this one came on a single play, a 49-yard touchdown run where he escaped from a would-be tackler and turned on the jets for the score:
Demercado runnin' it in for six!@Money_E3 x #ProBowlVote pic.twitter.com/LaHXHTBePL
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) December 17, 2023
Despite showing impressive athleticism on this play, Demercado doesn’t get enough touches to warrant rostering except as a handcuff for Conner.
Michael Carter: 3 carries, 27 yards | 3/3 receiving, 10 yards
Michael Carter is in a similar situation to Emari Demercado in that he gets a few touches per week and looks quick with those touches, but he doesn’t have a large enough role to count on at this stage of the season. Should he remain in Arizona in 2024, he may be a late-round dart throw as the Cards’ primary pass-catching back.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Trey McBride: 10/11 receiving, 102 yards
Trey McBride continued his meteoric rise in Week 15 of his sophomore season, functioning as the go-to target for Kyler Murray all afternoon. McBride impressed on a number of his catches, routinely making high-difficulty grabs and finding extra yards wherever he could. Since Zach Ertz went down with an injury, McBride has been a top-3 TE in terms of scoring, and there’s no reason to believe this will change for a team that figures to play most of its games from behind. He’s an easy TE1 for his date with the Bears in Week 16.
Elijah Higgins: 4/4 receiving, 44 yards, 1 TD
Elijah Higgins saw most of his action on the Cardinals’ final drive of the day which was capped off with Higgins’ first career NFL touchdown. He should remain on waivers as the clear second TE behind Trey McBride.
Geoff Swaim: 1/1 receiving, 26 yards
Geoff Swaim was carted off the field with a calf injury in this one and did not return. He doesn’t show up in the box score much but is nevertheless a crucial blocking TE for the Cardinals.
Greg Dortch: 2/3 receiving, 15 yards | 1 carry, 5 yards
Greg Dortch gets a handful of touches per week but hasn’t found a way to turn his chances into meaningful fantasy production, even in a game where Marquise Brown left early with an injury. Dortch can be left comfortably on waivers for the remainder of the season.
Zach Pascal: 0/4 receiving, 0 yards
Pascal hasn’t recorded a reception since Week 4, also against the 49ers.
Michael Wilson: 0/3 receiving, 0 yards
This certainly wasn’t the return we were hoping for in Michael Wilson‘s first game back from injury, as it was the first time the rookie has been held without a catch this season. The good news is Kyler Murray looked his way in the end zone in this contest, meaning the team is still trying to find ways to get him involved.
Marquise Brown: 0 targets, 0 yards
Marquise Brown failed to record a reception before he was forced from the contest with what was called a heel injury. Even if he’s able to suit up in Week 16, he’s too risky of a play to trust starting at this stage of the fantasy playoffs.