SANTA CLARA — Franchise royalty was in attendance, a new offensive weapon was on the field, and the 49ers emerged in the fourth quarter willing to challenge the Kansas City Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes.
That comeback did not last long. The 49ers bowed out 44-23 Sunday at Levi’s Stadium.
Their offense, even with newcomer Christian McCaffrey forced into action, paled in comparison to the Chiefs, especially when it counted most, the fourth quarter, in a painful reminder of their Super Bowl LIV collapse three seasons ago.
The Chiefs (5-2) scored touchdowns on 6-of-9 possessions before a merciful punt and then three kneel-downs to expire the fourth-quarter clock.
The 49ers (3-4) needed serious firepower to keep pace with that, and as general manager John Lynch prefaced Friday, this team’s ills would not be solved completely by Thursday’s trade for Christian McCaffrey, who flashed in his 49ers debut, just three days after his trade from the Carolina Panthers.
“We’ve got too many people who can change the game to score just 23 points,” wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk said.
Added tight end George Kittle: “We have plenty of guys that can make plays. Unfortunately today, it showed we couldn’t get the ball in those guys’ hands at the right time.”
No, this loss was not as painful as the Super Bowl catastrophe, but it was reminiscent in many ways, probably because Mahomes shredded what had been a highly touted 49ers’ defense.
The 49ers teased at a comeback, only to fall to 0-27 under coach Kyle Shanahan when trailing by at least four points entering the fourth quarter.
Hope emerged, however, when Kittle’s 15-yard, third-down touchdown catch cut the Chiefs’ lead to 28-23 with 14:16 to go. Nick Bosa followed up with a sack of Mahomes to open the Chiefs’ ensuing series. The 49ers’ Faithful awaited more good news.
Nothing like a Mahomes fourth-quarter bomb to ruin a 49ers’ feel-good moment in the fourth quarter of a game. A 57-yard shot to Marquez Valdes-Scantling took care of that Sunday, though not on the bewilderment scale of Mahomes’ 44-yard completion to Tyreek Hill on third-and-15 that sparked the Chiefs’ Super Bowl comeback. Mecole Hardman followed with his third touchdown of the day for a 35-23 lead.
Things only got worse for the 49ers: a sack of Jimmy Garoppolo in the end zone for a safety, then Mahomes’ third touchdown pass of the day.
All this unfolded with Joe Montana serving as honorary captain, with Jerry Rice among other Super Bowl winners in the house, with ex-coach Jim Harbaugh part of the 2012 anniversary celebration, and with Bryant Young receiving his Pro Football Hall of Fame ring at halftime.
The 49ers settled for field goals in a shootout against the touchdown-scoring Chiefs, who entered as the NFL’s highest-scoring team.
McCaffrey, who had no official practice time upon his trade, still was deployed for 21 snaps. He had 38 rushing yards on eight carries and 24 receiving yards on two catches. And, with 3:38 remaining, Garoppolo was pulled for Brock Purdy, who threw the first passes — and the first interception — of his regular-season NFL career.
Garoppolo finished 25-of-37 for 303 yards with two touchdown passes and one goal-line interception that ruined a great scoring opportunity late in the second quarter.
Mahomes’ stat line was much more productive: 25-of-34, 423 yards, three touchdowns, and an opening-drive interception by Talanoa Hufanga.
The 49ers’ defense offered little resistance, even with Bosa back from a 1 1/2-game absence and cornerback Charvarius Ward in the lineup, as both returned from groin injuries.
Mahomes was not hit until midway through the third quarter, and even on that hit by Kevin Givens, the former MVP still completed an 18-yard throw to Travis Kelce (six catches, 98 yards).
To sum up Shanahan’s postgame press conference: Garoppolo’s interception was a “real big mistake,” Jauan Jennings’ made a “really stupid penalty” on the second-half kickoff return, the Chiefs’ offense had a “lot of space,” and McCaffrey made an “impressive” debut.
Shanahan called it “unacceptable” that the 49ers’ defense yielded 34 yards on a third-and-20 screen pass to Jerick McKinnon, who faked a block on Bosa. That set up the Chiefs’ fourth touchdown: Mahomes’ 4-yard touchdown strike to Justin Watson capped a 75-yard drive, and it was preceded by
McKinnon was expected to be that multi-faceted back when the 49ers signed him in 2018, only to have a knee injury derail his three-year tenure. McCaffrey could emerge as that weapon if the 49ers’ offense bonds quicker than it’s shown through seven games.
“Listen, this was a weird week for me and for them. I didn’t know what to expect,” McCaffrey said. “I had a certain list of plays that were up. For me, it was mentally focusing on controlling what I can control. Obviously losing is frustrating. I’m still getting to know these guys. But I’ve got to do my job.”
Kansas City totaled 529 yards to the 49ers’ 444. Both teams stacked up penalties in addition to yards: The 49ers had 10 for 80 yards, the Chiefs eight for 84.
The 49ers knew they’d have to rally, by virtue of a 14-13 halftime deficit, but they quickly fell behind 21-13 only 1 1/2 minutes into the second half on a 16-yard touchdown run by Clyde Edwards-Helaire. That score capitalized on a 48-yard kickoff return by Isiah Pacheco and an ensuing 15-yard penalty on Jauan Jennings.
Robbie Gould’s third field goal of the day, a 49-yarder, pulled the 49ers within 21-16 midway through the third quarter.
The 49ers initially staked themselves to a 10-0 lead by combining a Gould field goal with an 8-yard touchdown pass from Garoppolo to Ray-Ray McCloud, with that touchdown coming after Talanoa Hufanga’s third-down interception of a Patrick Mahomes pass that Tashaun Gipson Sr. tipped.
Kansas City responded with two touchdowns from Hardman (8-yard catch, 25-yard run), and the 49ers’ only productive counterpunch was another field goal for a 14-13 halftime deficit.
The 49ers blew a great chance to take the lead into halftime when Garoppolo’s response to a blitz was to float a third-down pass that was intercepted inside the goal line by Joshua Williams with 1:28 remaining. That 49ers possession was gifted to them when Sam Womack III recovered a muffed punt (by the Chiefs’ Skyy Moore); the punt came after a Jaylon Moore false-start penalty scuttled a field-goal attempt.
Thanks to that interception off Garoppolo, the Chiefs threatened to expand their lead just before halftime, and they marched to the 49ers’ 5-yard line, but a touchdown pass was nullified by an illegal low McKinnon block on Bosa, and the ensuing field-goal try failed.
Injury-wise, the 49ers overcame a first-half scare to Hufanga, who had a first-series interception and then a second-quarter shoulder injury, of which he was cleared to return. Deommodore Lenoir left with a shoulder injury just before halftime.
