Niners Nation
The 49ers needed a comeback effort in the second half on Sunday and their quarterback delivered.
The San Francisco 49ers pulled off a key victory on Sunday, defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 23-20 to improve to 5-4 on the season, starting off the second half of the season with a win.
It was a game filled with adversity as the 49ers struggled to close out the game on multiple occasions, even needing a comeback in the second half to pull off the much-needed victory, with kicker Jake Moody hitting a 44-yard game-winning field goal as time expired to seal the deal.
Looking back at the first half, it was an array of missed chances for the 49ers after an early 46-yard Ricky Pearsall touchdown catch. The 49ers’ red zone struggles continued, as they settled for a field goal at the Buccaneers' 10-yard line, while later missing a field goal right before the half.
Quarterback Brock Purdy’s stat line at halftime looked pretty good on paper, as the signal-caller threw for 153 yards and one touchdown in the first half, completing 10/16 of his passes.
However, the actual play wasn't as crisp as he would’ve liked, as Purdy seemed late on some throws, while missing a few that he would like to have back. In addition, a healthy portion of the yardage came after the catch, which helped propel some of those early drives.
“Definitely felt out of rhythm to start the game,” Purdy said after the game. “Not really sure what it was, but I know [in the] second half, I just told myself, ‘All right, dude, just go out and compete and rip it. Don’t hesitate.’ And I thought second half, we all did that. The guys were open. I didn’t hold back.”
Well, Purdy looked much more composed in the second half, ending the game with 353 yards and two touchdowns on 25/36 passing, while also scrambling for 17 yards on four attempts.
The 49ers marched down the field on all five of their drives in the second half, initially starting with another field goal in the red zone, as a second-down sack killed the chance for a touchdown.
That was followed by another Jake Moody miss, this time from 50 yards, taking away another scoring opportunity for the 49ers when they were down 17-13.
But, after that, Purdy and the 49ers settled in, getting the go-ahead touchdown thanks to an improvisation play from the quarterback, who scrambled to create time before finding George Kittle on a well-placed ball in the back of the end zone to give San Francisco a 20-17 lead.
That followed a sweet throw up the sidelines to star running back Christian McCaffrey that went for 30 yards where Purdy led his running back with anticipation, getting San Francisco deep into Tampa Bay territory.
The 49ers had a chance to create even more distance on the ensuing drive, as Deebo Samuel took a short pass 32 yards to place San Francisco in field goal...
