FOOTBALL IS BACK!
Today it’s been 25 years since the attacks on 9/11, and I just want to say a brief prayer before getting into sports.
Father, please be with everyone who lost family members and friends on 9/11, and send our eternal gratitude to those heroes on that day 25 years ago who gave their lives saving others.
Thank You for those firefighters, police officers, and everyone else who showed up that day and did extraordinary things in New York, at the Pentagon, and in the sky, fighting evil and showing that Your good will always prevail.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Now for sports.
Football is back!
For a brief moment yesterday…
Well, actually for an entire quarter…
I thought it was going to be another one of those years for the 49ers.
I grew up a Niners fan. I experienced all the Super Bowl wins. I’ve been very blessed as a sports fan, so I really can’t complain.
But as a sports fan, that’s kind of what we do when our team starts sucking.
It’s part of the fun.
So for one quarter I complained about Purdy.
I complained about the defense.
I complained about Shanahan.
I complained about the ownership.
I generally complained about everything.
Then the 49ers turned on.
They beat a very good Rams team 27-7 in Melbourne, and it turned into an amazing performance all around.
PURDY, I TAKE BACK EVERYTHING I SAID IN THE FIRST QUARTER
Brock Purdy finished:
25-of-34
205 yards
3 touchdowns
1 interception
105.6 passer rating
And maybe one of the most important stats:
ZERO sacks.
The offensive line kept him clean all game.
Purdy threw touchdowns to Demarcus Robinson, Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel.
The 49ers also ran for 174 yards, with Christian McCaffrey getting 68 yards on 10 carries and rookie Kaelon Black adding 65 on 14.
And the defense?
After the Rams scored to start the second quarter…
NOTHING.
Zero points the rest of the game.
Renardo Green picked off Matthew Stafford.
Fred Warner forced a Tyler Higbee fumble.
The Rams got all the way to fourth-and-goal from the 1 and Matthew Stafford tried to run it in himself.
NOPE.
Stopped.
The Rams finished with two turnovers and San Francisco walked out of Australia 1-0.
BUT LET’S TALK ABOUT AUSTRALIA
I’ve traveled to Australia a lot.
And I have to say this.
The Rams’ travel schedule seems CRAZY to me.
The 49ers left California on September 2 and landed in Melbourne September 4.
They basically gave themselves a week in Australia before the game.
Smart.
The Rams practiced in California Tuesday and then got on the plane for Melbourne.
That’s a VERY different schedule.
Australia is 17 hours ahead of the West Coast for this game.
That flight is brutal.
Your body gets hit with jet lag that feels like somebody just gave you a shot of morphine and you MUST SLEEP IMMEDIATELY.
At like 3 in the afternoon.
The 49ers actually had people advising the players on how to deal with it when they arrived, including telling them NOT to take a midday nap.
And why wouldn’t you fly in early?
Spend a week in Australia.
It’s one of the best places on Earth.
Don’t get me started on Australian girls.
Anyway…
I’m not saying that’s why the Rams lost.
But could that travel difference have played a factor?
Absolutely.
Which makes me VERY curious to see what these 49ers look like when they get back home.
Their next game is against Miami at Levi’s Stadium on September 20.
If they look like THIS again…
Okay.
Maybe I can hold off complaining until at least the second quarter.
THE JACKED LIST — 49ERS vs. RAMS
We’re not doing a separate Jacked List today.
The game itself gave us plenty to talk about.
The 49ers entered the game already without Alfred Collins, who tore his patellar tendon in practice in Melbourne and is expected to miss the season.
James Thompson Jr., who had been questionable with a hamstring injury, was active.
Nick Bosa, George Kittle and Dre Greenlaw were also cleared and available.
Then the game added to the list.
The 49ers reported postgame injury updates involving De’Zhaun Stribling and Jake Tonges, among others.
We’re still waiting for enough definitive postgame medical information to put exact diagnoses and timelines on those, so we’re not going to make them up.
JACKED: Alfred Collins. Season-ending torn patellar tendon.
UNJACKED: James Thompson Jr. Questionable coming in, active for the game.
UNJACKED: Nick Bosa. Back on the field.
UNJACKED: George Kittle. Back on the field.
UNJACKED: Dre Greenlaw. Back on the field.
We’ll update the Jacked List when the 49ers give us confirmed information on the guys who got hurt during the game.
Because football is back.
Which unfortunately means…
THE JACKED LIST IS REALLY BACK.
THE NL WILD CARD DID BASICALLY NOTHING YESTERDAY
Almost everybody had the day off, so the National League Wild Card picture is basically where we left it.
Chicago Cubs: 81-66
San Diego Padres: 78-68 — 2½ games behind Chicago
Arizona Diamondbacks: 78-69 — ½ game behind San Diego
So the Padres currently hold the final Wild Card spot by half a game over Arizona.
And now the Padres head to San Francisco to play…
MY GIANTS.
Here we go again.
My Giants.
The Padres trying to make the playoffs.
Me wanting somebody, ANYBODY, to eventually beat the Dodgers.
My brain is going to need its own injury report by the end of September.
Football is back.
Baseball is heading toward October.
And I’ve already complained about the 49ers coaching staff, quarterback, defense and ownership before they won their first game by 20 points.
Sports are officially back to normal.
If it’s sports and it’s Jacked Up, we cover it.
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