What We Saw: Week 7

Ben Brown
What We Saw 3 Years Ago
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Colts @ 49ers

Colts @ 49ers

Final Score: Colts 30, 49ers 18

Writer: Corey Saucier (@Deputy_Commish on Twitter, /u/Lights_Kamara_Action on Reddit)

 

As the rain poured down in San Francisco on Sunday night, the ball naturally became tougher and tougher to hold onto and we saw some good, old-fashioned sloppy football. Both teams had issues with Center/QB exchanges, both teams had issues with fumbles, drops, and sailed passes as well. RBs Elijah Mitchell and Jonathan Taylor stole the spotlight for their respective teams, although Mitchell’s usage was surprisingly minimal in the second half. 49ers’ QB Jimmy Garoppolo got off to a slow start after his 1.5 game absence with a calf injury, and he was never really able to get into a rhythm throughout the course of the game. In the end, Garoppolo’s two 4th-quarter interceptions sealed the game for QB Carson Wentz and the Colts. Even with the downpour having created awful passing conditions, WRs Deebo Samuel and Michael Pittman were able to put together solid fantasy performances for their managers. How did your team fare in this monsoon? Let’s dive into what we saw:

 

Indianapolis Colts

 

Quarterbacks

 

Carson Wentz: 17/26, 150 yards, 2 TD | 4 carries, 23 yards, TD, 2 Fumbles (1 Lost)

 

While Colts’ QB Carson Wentz was able to make enough plays to get his team a win on Sunday night, those who picked him up as a streaming option to cover a bye this week were most likely left disappointed. Wentz accounted for 3 total TDs on the night, including this nifty option scramble where he kept it for himself:

 

 

While Wentz accounted for 3 scores, the rain-soaked conditions limited his passing yardage totals, and caused him to lose a fumble. In real-time, the play appeared to be an INT and was even ruled so, but later in the second half it was announced that the ruling on the field had been changed to a fumble:

 

All in all, it wasn’t an awful performance for Wentz on Sunday night – especially when you take the weather into account.

 

Running Backs

 

Jonathan Taylor: 18 carries, 107 yards, TD, 2 Fumbles (1 Lost) | 3 targets, 3 receptions, 3 yards

Nyheim Hines: 8 carries, 14 yards | 3 targets, 1 reception, -2 yards

Marlon Mack: 3 carries, 4 yards

 

Colts’ RB Jonathan Taylor got off to a slow start in the first few games but has been on a hot streak ever since – racking up over 100 scrimmage yards and at least 1 rushing TD in four consecutive games. Things got off to a rocky start for Taylor when he fumbled on his first touch of the game:

From that point on, Taylor put on a dominant performance on the ground. He ripped off several big runs – including this 33-yard burst where he very nearly found the end-zone:

Taylor ran with great patience, waiting for blocks to develop and making nifty cuts to pick up chunk yardage. Check out this slick little cutback TD run:

Taylor remains the top dog in the Indy backfield rotation as RBs Nyheim Hines and Marlon Mack were quiet on Sunday night. Hines had a chance for a big gain in the first half on a wide-open pass that hit him straight in the hands but he dropped it.

 

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

 

Michael Pittman: 4 targets, 4 receptions, 105 yards, TD

Zach Pascal: 6 targets, 3 receptions, 14 yards

Mo Alie-Cox: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 25 yards, TD

Keke Coutee: 1 target, 1 reception, 5 yards

 

Even though the downpour made for awful conditions for pass-catchers, Colts’ second-year WR Michael Pittman found a way to provide a solid fantasy performance for his managers. Pittman made the most of his 4 targets, converting them all for 105 yards and this, ‘You Got Mossed’ looking TD that put the game away for the Colts:

Earlier in the game, Pittman connected with Wentz on this 57-yard bomb while being held:

WR Keke Coutee hauled in his lone target in his Colts’ debut, while fellow WR Zach Pascal had a quiet night in the rain. TE Mo Alie-Cox got some love thrown his way on National Tight End Day, salvaging his fantasy performance by finding the end-zone on this nasty play-action fake with a hop, skip, and a jump:

 

San Francisco 49ers

 

Quarterback

 

Jimmy Garoppolo: 16/27, 181 yards, TD, 2 INT, 2 Fumbles (1 Lost)

 

It was a night to forget for 49ers’ QB Jimmy Garoppolo on Sunday night. As I mentioned in the opener, Garoppolo struggled to get going early and never really looked comfortable throwing the ball in the rain. It’s not sure if his recent calf injury may be to blame at all, but Jimmy and the 49ers’ offense looked worse as the game went on. San Francisco found a lot of success on the ground in the first half but abandoning the run in the second half led to three Garoppolo turnovers – started by this fumble late in the 3rd quarter:

Late in the 4th, Garoppolo threw this INT that appeared to be a pick-six at first, but the review showed that Colts’ CB Xavier Rhodes stepped out of bounds:

Garoppolo’s final INT came just after the 2-minute warning and essentially ended the game for San Francisco.

 

Running Backs

 

Elijah Mitchell: 18 carries, 107 yards, TD

JaMycal Hasty: 3 carries, 1 yard | 6 targets, 3 receptions, 15 yards

 

Rookie RB Elijah Mitchell absolutely dominated in the first half on Sunday night, but his puzzling lack of usage in the second half (4 carries, 14 yards) may have just cost San Francisco a chance to compete. Mitchell had 6 carries, 69 yards, and this TD run by the end of the first quarter:

Mitchell continues to be the favored rookie RB in San Francisco’s rotation as fellow rookie RB Trey Sermon finished Sunday night’s contest without a single touch. RB JaMycal Hasty made his return from an IR stint with an ankle injury and took over the 3rd-down work immediately – drawing 6 targets on the night.

 

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

 

Deebo Samuel: 11 targets, 7 receptions, 100 yards, TD

Brandon Aiyuk: 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards | 1 carry, 3 yards

Trent Sherfield: 2 targets, 1 reception, 9 yards

Mohamed Sanu, Jr: 1 target, 1 reception, 16 yards

 

While yards through the air were tough to come by on Sunday night, 49ers’ WR Deebo Samuel showed us that he is the bonafide, stud WR in this offense. Samuel has shown us that he is weather-proof, QB-proof, bad-offense proof, and good-defense proof – and WR Brandon Aiyuk has shown us that he is droppable at this point. Samuel found the end-zone for the 3rd consecutive game, to bring the ‘9ers to within one score early in the 4th:

It was Samuel’s 3rd game this season with at least 100 receiving yards and his 4th game with at least 10 targets. On the other hand, 49ers’ head coach Kyle Shanahan‘s distaste for Aiyuk continues to manifest itself in interesting ways. Aiyuk was limited to two touches on Sunday night, and after muffing a punt that ended up rolling into the end-zone for a touchback, he was replaced on punt return duties by WR Mohamed Sanu, Jr for the rest of the night.

 

— Corey Saucier (@Deputy_Commish on Twitter, /u/Lights_Kamara_Action on Reddit)

Series Navigation
Introduction
Broncos @ Browns
Panthers @ Giants
Jets @ Patriots
Bengals @ Ravens
Chiefs @ Titans
Football Team @ Packers
Falcons @ Dolphins
Lions @ Rams
Eagles @ Raiders
Texans @ Cardinals
Bears @ Buccaneers
Colts @ 49ers

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