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Mac Jones leads the 49ers in a comeback win over the Cardinals to claim first place in the NFC West

The San Francisco 49ers came into Week 3 hobbled, and a defensive line that has been the strength of the team would miss two of its most important players before halftime. Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams were both questionable to return. The broadcast showed Bosa giving Robert Saleh a thumbs down, which felt like Bosa knew something was off. Bosa would eventually be ruled out for the remainder of the game.

Mac Jones remained efficient in the first half. He completed 12 of his 18 passes for 112 yards and only took one sack. The 49ers couldn’t generate much in the running game early on. Christian McCaffrey only had five carries for nine yards.

Kyle Shanahan has always been one to adjust. The 49ers found creative ways to get McCaffrey involved in the passing game. Ricky Pearsall continued to get open. McCaffrey and Pearsall combined for 90 of Jones’ 129 passing yards.

It was the defense, even without Bosa, that found ways to stifle the Cardinals. Murray had nothing going through the air. The secondary took away Marvin Harrison. They were also fortunate after Harrison dropped what figured to be a touchdown on a coverage bust.

Eddy Pineiro’s 50+ yard field goal gave the Niners a 6-3 lead heading into halftime.

Marques Sigle had a missed tackle that led to an explosive run for the Cardinals in the third quarter. That was after Mykel Williams’ tackle for loss was erased after Arizona converted on fourth down. The Cardinals would have scored in the red zone, but another dropped pass meant they’d have to settle for a field goal to tie the game at six.

The 49ers answered with an 11-play drive that had Ricky Pearsall and Christian McCaffrey’s fingerprints all over it. However, a 1st and goal from the six-yard line was stalled after McCaffrey was stuffed on 3rd & goal from the one, when Jones’ pass to CMC was incomplete.

The silver lining meant Arizona would need to march 99 yards. On 3rd & 1, C.J. West, Mykel Williams, and Bryce Huff all made an impact, which forced a near safety on intentional grounding in the end zone. After a punt, San Francisco would have the ball on their 43-yard line.

McCaffrey set up a 4th & 2, and Pearsall won when his team needed him the most. Shanahan called a deep route to Pearsall, which was bold but ultimately proved to be the correct call. Pearsall won the route and picked up 34 yards. That big play set up a Kyle Juszczyk one-yard score to make it 13-6.

That lead did not last long. Murray found Harrison wide open deep. This time, Harrison caught it for 32 yards. Renardo Green got lost in coverage and committed defensive pass interference in the end zone, leading to a Trey McBride touchdown to tie the score at 13.

McCaffrey’s long rush of 15 yards on the season was topped by Brian Robinson’s 19-yarder on the drive. It felt like the 49ers’ running game was coming alive. Unfortunately, on 3rd & 5, Mac Jones threw it to the wrong colored jersey at the worst possible time. It looked as though the 49ers were going to have a field goal, at worst. Instead, it was a drive with no points.

Fred Warner’s stop on third down bailed out the offense. However, it would be the undoing of the special teams that would cost San Francisco. Instead of letting the ball bounce at the six-yard line, Skyy Moore caught the punt. That meant the offense was backed up in their own end zone. Dominick Puni was beaten off the snap, held Calais Campbell, and that meant San Francisco gave up a safety.

The game wasn’t over. Third down still had an opportunity to get a stop, and Upton Stout broke up a third-down pass to keep the Niners’ hopes alive. Mac Jones had a timeout and plenty of time to get the 49ers into field goal range.

Jones found Jake Tonges for 11 yards, Skyy Moore for 10 yards, and Kendrick Bourne for 11 yards to put the 49ers into field goal range. A 20-yard screen pass to McCaffrey put the 49ers in chip-shot range for Pineiro. His kick split the uprights, and San Francisco escaped with a home win, 16-15, to remain undefeated.