Inman: 10 things that caught my eye in 49ers’ 34-24 win at Giants

EAST RUTHERFORD N J The ers buzzard luck struck again They only had four minutes left Sunday in what figured to serve as their majority lopsided and stress-free win all season They were up points then down went Mykel Williams It s feared he tore his anterior cruciate ligament and Williams instantly knew its severity as he reached for his right knee and banged his hands against his helmet while on his back on the MetLife Stadium s ever-suspect synthetic turf He now follows the hobbled footsteps of fellow defensive ends Nick Bosa ACL tear Bryce Huff hamstring and Yetur Gross-Matos hamstring Williams rookie season seems as finished as linebacker Fred Warner s after his ankle dislocation and fracture three weeks ago in Tampa Bay Head coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco ers looks on against the New York Giants during the fourth quarter in the meeting at MetLife Stadium on Nov in East Rutherford New Jersey Photo by Sarah Stier Getty Images Williams their first-round draft pick had started every contest this season and although he has just one sack his effort and coach-ability have shined amid a vastly counted upon rookie class We have been bitten particularly hard by the injury bug left tackle Trent Williams mentioned following the ers - win over the New York Giants We ve been able to continue and fight past it But who knows you never know what that straw is just enough to break the camel s back The ers offense is going to have to keep putting up -point games to offset their ever-shrinking defense Our offense requirements to total a lot of points week in and week out tight end George Kittle announced That s just what it is because we have a young defense with our two best players out and injuries galore on the defensive side Williams exit cast a pall over a NFC road win for the ers - Here are other things to catch my eye MAC-NIFICENT START Mac Jones passer rating was his best in seven starts for the ers this season and second-best of his five-year career Of curriculum he went the entire first half without an incompletion Did he know he was -of- for yards and two touchdowns No Was I supposed to Jones revealed with his playful chuckle I never really think about it like that It s more about having eyes in right spot Honestly right before half we had a touchdown and I took too long to step up on the fumble We were going to count there and I was pissed about that The only ers quarterbacks who ve started a meeting with as a large number of consecutive completions are Hall of Famers Joe Montana in at Green Bay in against San Diego and Steve Young in against Detroit in at Atlanta QUARTERBACK PLAN If this was Jones final act as Brock Purdy s fill-in coach Kyle Shanahan did not indicate that Even though Purdy was questionable to serve as a backup he was inactive a fifth straight competition while the ers cautiously let his right big toe improve Just want to make sure he gets percent better and don t put him out there too early Shanahan revealed Thought about it as a workable backup or urgency but I think the more time we give him the better San Francisco ers quarterback Mac Jones reacts after a touchdown against the New York Giants during the second half of an NFL football contest Sunday Nov in East Rutherford N J AP Photo Seth Wenig While Shanahan reported he hasn t been narrated that Purdy will require surgery after the season that Week injury is not vanishing It s perhaps something that ostensibly won t fully go away all year regardless of when he comes back Shanahan announced of the tricky decision FERRELL S TRIBUTE Clelin Ferrell supplied the ers anemic defensive front with a sack five days after his tryout On his second-quarter sack he acknowledged drifting too far up the field before a second effort allowed him to drop Jaxson Dart from behind at the -yard line I don t take this for granted I know how special it is to put this jersey on commented Ferrell a -game starter on the crew He started his career as a Raiders first-round draft pick and he played Sunday thinking about George Atkinson a former Raiders safety and a former mentor to Ferrell who died last week at age Related Articles ers record card Best scoring output secures win over lousy Giants What the ers revealed after beating the New York Giants ers Christian McCaffrey carries the load with help from Brian Robinson vs Giants Kurtenbach The urgent ers passed a key test against the N Y Giants with ruthless execution First-round draft pick Williams might be latest ers injury casualty Football lost a legend so I had him in my mind the whole day Ferrell announced I sought to wear my heart on my sleeve and play hard He was inevitably in my ear believing in me and giving me confidence Football lost a great spirit WATKINS CATCH Of all Jones completions Shanahan singled out the catch rookie Jordan Watkins made over the middle in traffic and very close to the ground It came on second-and- at the Giants -yard line and it fueled their second drive that ended with a Jones touchdown pass to a wide open Christian McCaffrey We don t make that completion there the odds are you re not getting it on rd and or rd and Shanahan reported Watkins made his first NFL catch last week after letting his first target slip through his hands This time Jones commended Watkins focus in their up-tempo scenario They were scrambling on defense Jones announced He just made a competitive catch We worked on that in OTAs He has strong hands and came up with it It was Watkins lone target McCAFFREY S CATCH McCaffrey delivered his second -yard rushing tournament yards carries and he led the ers in receiving five catches yards He scored their first touchdown -yard catch and their last one -yard run But nothing may have looked better than his longest play of the season a -yard catch-and-run to the Giants -yard line to set up his fourth-quarter rushing touchdown San Francisco ers running back Christian McCaffrey stiff-arms New York Giants cornerback Andru Phillips during the third quarter of an NFL football challenge Sunday Nov in East Rutherford N J AP Photo Frank Franklin II A P Photo That definitely was an unbelievable play by Mac McCaffrey revealed That play wasn t supposed to happen They dropped me and forgot to cover me I was supposed run longer direction and when I turned the ball was in the air That was a huge play by him and after that it was a lot of green grass ROBINSON S BREAKOUT MATCH Brian Robinson emerged from McCaffrey s shadow long enough to deliver fourth-quarter pizazz that knocked out the Giants Robinson ran for a season-high yards and his st carry with the ers resulted in his first touchdown which came on an -yard tackle-breaking effort for a - lead Jones explained of Robinson his former Alabama teammate I know he s been itching to get a chance I reported him to stay ready Christian s done a great job I revealed Your day is coming I notified him last week and this week He s attacking the line of scrimmage he s more relaxed and looks how he did in college Added McCaffrey To have him is huge to me He pushes me San Francisco ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings celebrates with wide receiver Russell Gage and wide receiver Demarcus Robinson after scoring a touchdown against the New York Giants during the second quarter of an NFL football tournament Sunday Nov in East Rutherford N J AP Photo Frank Franklin BURFORD S DEBUT Spencer Burford started at left guard for the first time in his four-year career dusted off moves from his first two years at right guard The ers tried converting him to Trent Williams backup at left tackle this year and after a knee issue cast him onto Injured Reserve he returned this past week as Williams sidekick at guard That s my big bro I ve been waiting on that declared Burford who s trained with Williams in Houston in the offseason I m trying now to capitalize on my opportunity BETHUNE REBOUNDS Tatum Bethune s tackles were the the majority by a er since Michael Wilhoite s in also against the Giants Four of Bethune s tackles came on the Giants opening touchdown drive The defense forced a three-and-out its next series keyed by big hits from Upton Stout and Dee Winters It s not like we had specific big pump-up thing that we needed to start hitting but we definitely felt it more after that first drive Shanahan stated The first drive was a very rough one PINEIRO PERFECTO Eddy Pineiro converted both his field-goal attempts and yards thus extended his franchise record of making his first field-goal attempts since arriving in Week as Jake Moody s successor San Francisco ers kicker Eddy Pi eiro celebrates with long snapper Jon Weeks after kicking a field goal against the New York Giants during the second quarter of an NFL football contest Sunday Nov in East Rutherford N J AP Photo Seth Wenig Those kicks also match Phil Dawson s mark for the franchise s fourth-longest streak of consecutive field goals made behind Robbie Gould from - Dawson in and Gould from - DEAL TALK Shanahan reiterated his month-long stance that the ers have no greater urgency to make another pact before Tuesday s p m deadline If the ers yearned to deal away wide receiver Jauan Jennings or safety Ji Ayir Brown each made a highlight play Sunday Jennings produced his second touchdown catch of the season a -yarder that ended with him diving over the goal line for a - lead Brown broke up a pass in the end zone in the closing minutes and proudly stood there in the aftermath