The San Francisco 49ers won a wild one in Chicago, improving to 4-8 on the season. It hurts draft position, but it was at least an entertaining close to a football game. Things were pretty ugly for most of the third and fourth quarter, but then it got rather exciting late.
The Bears got into the end zone with just under four minutes remaining, and it seemed like the 49ers were doomed to yet another tough loss. The 49ers surprised a lot of us with a quick drive capped by Blaine Gabbert racing 44 yards for a touchdown to tie the game. And then the Bears came right back with a big kick return, only to miss the game-winning field goal as time expired.
We moved into overtime and neither team seemed like they wanted to win this game. The Bears punted to the 49ers after Corey Lemonier dropped an interception that would have set the 49ers up in field goal range. Fortunately, Blaine Gabbert found Torrey Smith on the first play after the punt, and the 49ers had a walk-off win.
The win does hurt the 49ers draft position, but I have to admit, I had a lot of fun watching the end of that game. It was almost comically absurd when the Bears missed their field goal, but that Gabbert-Smith hook-up was a thing of beauty. Once in a while it's nice to see the big win. And so, I view today as being a good day.
With the Win...
- The 49ers improved to 33-30-1 all-time against the Bears, including an 11-17-1 record on the road.
- San Francisco has now won three of the last four overall matchups against Chicago.
- The Niners won in Chicago for the first time since defeating the Bears, 28-3, on 1/8/89 in the NFC Championship as the 49ers went on to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII.
- The 49ers improved to 2-1 on the season against the NFC North.
Smith Scores From 70+
- QB Blaine Gabbert connected with WR Torrey Smith in overtime on a 71-yd. TD pass. Smith now has 3 TDs of 70-or-more yards on the season.
- According to Elias, Smith became the first 49ers player to register 3 rec. TDs of 70-or-more yards in the same season since WR John Taylor accomplished the feat in 1989. He is the first player in the NFL to reach the mark since Cleveland Browns WR Josh Gordon in 2013.
Gabbert Scampers For A TD
- Gabbert ran 6 times on the day for a career-high 75 yards (12.5 avg.) and a career-long 44-yd. TD to tie the game, 20-20, with 1:42remaining. It marked the first TD run of Gabbert's career. He completed 18 passes for 196 yards and 1 TD for a QB rating of 84.9.
Boldin Gets To 13,000
- With 5 receptions for 37 yards on the day, WR Anquan Boldin became the 18th player in NFL history to record 13,000-or-more receiving yards in their career. He now has 13,001 career receiving yards.
Draughn Finishes The Drive
- RB Shaun Draughn capped off a 16-play, 81-yd. drive with a 1-yd. TD run in the 2nd quarter It marked his 3rd career TD run and first since 11/1/12 at SD as a member of the Kansas City Chiefs.
Welcome Ward Back to Illinois
- Northern Illinois alumnus DB Jimmie Ward intercepted Bears QB Jay Cutler and returned it 29 yards for his first career INT and first career TD. It marked the first INT for a TD since 12/20/14 vs. SD (S Antoine Bethea - 49-yd. INT return).
Tartt Gets To Cutler
- S Jaquiski Tartt brought down Jay Cutler for his 2nd career sack. His first came in the team's season-opening game vs. Min.
Ellington's Career Long Return
- WR Bruce Ellington had 4 kickoff returns for 98 yards (24.5 avg.), including a career-long 40-yd. return.
Pinion's Punts
- P Bradley Pinion had 9 punts for 433 yards (48.1 avg.), including a career-long 62-yd. punt.