SANTA CLARA–After winning their preseason opener in Kansas City last week, the San Francisco 49ers returned to Levi’s Stadium to give their home fans the first taste of head coach Kyle Shanahan’s new-look offense.
And while the 49ers’ first-team unit showed signs of life –and Shanahan displayed the offensive ingenuity that helped him land San Francisco’s head coaching gig– four first half turnovers were too much to overcome in a 33-14 loss to the Denver Broncos.
“That whole game was concerning,” Shanahan said. “You start out the first half with four turnovers. You know the penalties again, I’ve got to go in and look at but there was a bunch on both sides. We’re getting a lot called in the preseason, I’ve got to go find out about all of them.”
First-year starting quarterback Brian Hoyer led four offensive drives on Saturday evening, and though Hoyer completed 8-of-11 passing attempts for 89 yards, three of the four series resulted in giveaways. Hoyer himself was responsible for a pair of turnovers, including a fumble that slipped out of his hand prior to a pass attempt and an interception that wide receiver Marquise Goodwin juggled and lost.
“Obviously disappointing when you turn the ball over five times” Hoyer said. “Four times on offense. You’re never really going to have a chance to win the game so we’ve got to do a better job of protecting the ball.”
Goodwin was a standout for the 49ers’ offense on Saturday, as he and Hoyer linked up on three separate occasions, including on a 22-yard reception in front of Broncos’ All-Pro cornerback Aqib Talib that marked the longest offfensive play for San Francisco’s first unit. Goodwin finished with three receptions for 44 yards, and continued to solidify himself as an offensive weapon Hoyer can rely on this season.
The first turnover San Francisco committed came on special teams, as a Denver punt bounced off the calf of 49ers’ defensive back Jaquiski Tartt and gave the Broncos possession inside the 49ers’ red zone. The Broncos capitalized on a one-yard touchdown run from tailback C.J. Anderson that pushed Denver to a 7-0 lead it would never look back from.
After San Francisco’s defense limited the Broncos to a pair of field goals following Hoyer’s turnovers, the Broncos tacked on another touchdown in the wake of a fumble from 49ers’ backup running back Tim Hightower. Hightower’s fumble in Broncos’ territory brought an end to the night for the 49ers’ first-team offense, and prior to halftime, Denver opened up a 20-0 lead thanks to a 19-yard touchdown pass from Trevor Siemian to Jordan Taylor that beat San Francisco cornerback Asa Jackson.
Turnovers weren’t the only frustrating part of Saturday evening’s contest for the 49ers, as the team failed to establish a strong ground attack against the Broncos’ defensive front, and committed a slew of penalties that halted drives and extended Denver’s opportunities.
“We can’t hurt ourselves,” Hoyer said. “We had it last week too on a third down. That stuff takes no effort. That’s just the mental part of it. Lining up, making sure people are set when we motion, things like that. We’ve got to really take control of it as an offense and not let it happen anymore.”
Though San Francisco’s starting offense failed to score against Denver’s defense, backup quarterback C.J. Beathard engineered a scoring drive at the start of the second half that suggested the competition for the right to backup Hoyer is alive and well. Beathard is still technically slotted behind third-team quarterback Matt Barkley, but the rookie out of Iowa looked poised and in control on a three-play, 72-yard touchdown drive that culminated with a 33-yard pass to his fellow rookie and former Hawkeye tight end George Kittle.
“He did a solid job,” Shanahan said. “It was tough to get anyone in rhythm. We didn’t stay on the field very long. It was nice that he was able to hit Kittle in the flat on a keeper on the first series and it seemed like Kittle made a hell of a play down the sidelines. I lost it at the end so I didn’t see exactly how he finished it. But from what I saw with Beathard he did a solid job. There was a couple third downs that he missed. You know it was hard to get anyone in a rhythm in that game but under the circumstances, he did solid.”
The 49ers’ only other touchdown on Saturday didn’t come on offense or defense, but rather on special teams toward. After a Broncos’ touchdown put Denver ahead 33-7, undrafted rookie free agent Victor Bolden, Jr. returned the ensuing kickoff 104 yards for a touchdown that helped the Oregon State product’s efforts to make the 53-man roster.
The contest between San Francisco and Denver on Saturday took place after the two sides conducted joint practices on Wednesday and Thursday in preparation for the second contest of the exhibition season. Broncos’ head coach Vance Joseph was more reluctant to play his starters on Saturday, as a handful of headliners led by Von Miller sat out against a 49ers’ team that played nearly all of its healthy bodies. Nevertheless, Denver’s ability to take advantage of San Francisco’s early turnovers proved to be the difference in the game, as neither offense strung together lengthy scoring drives.
“You know five turnovers in a game, four turnovers in the first half, struggling to run the ball there, too, just looking throughout the game,” Shanahan said. “It’s really tough to win when you put your team in that situation.”
Photo by Chris Mezzavilla/KNBR