49ers found themselves in a difficult spot heading into their bye week.
The Kansas City Chiefs had just beaten them soundly at Levi's Stadium to drop to 3-4 on the season. But the biggest solution to that team's problems was already in the building. The Niners acquired running back Christian McCaffrey in a blockbuster trade a couple days earlier with the idea that he could spark a second-half run. He did, and the Niners ripped off 10 straight wins to close the season on the way to an NFC Championship Game appearance.
Cincinnati Bengals. After a 5-0 start, the loss to the Bengals was San Francisco's third in a row, dropping them to 5-3 and out of first place in the NFC West division.
The Bengals linebackers, lost in the din of the national acclaim for the 49ers' brilliant tandem, made quite a stand on the home field of Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw when Logan Wilson and Germaine Pratt picked off 49ers QB Brock Purdy on two straight throws late in the second half. Though Purdy finished with 365 passing yards, a chunk of it came in the closing seconds. By then, Cincinnati had made the timely defensive plays to stifle Purdy in his first home loss in nine career NFL starts.
Brandon Aiyuk. But waiting was Wilson with his 10th career interception, the most of any NFL linebacker in the 2020s.
And on the next play, Burrow made it hurt when he lofted a 17-yard beauty over wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase's shoulder for 24-10 lead on a play Chase capped with a backward flip as the clock ticked to 13 minutes left.
Burrow went 28 for 32 for 283 yards and ran for 43 more against a Niners defense that has uncharacteristically struggled in recent weeks.
Burrw helped Cincinnati take control of the game early in the fourth quarter after Logan Wilson intercepted a pass from Purdy. The Bengals struck on the next play when Burrow lofted a 17-yard TD pass to Ja'Marr Chase to make it 24-10.
George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk both topped 100 receiving yards, and Christian McCaffrey had a rushing touchdown and a receiving touchdown, but overall it was a rough game for the 49ers.
For the Bengals, the win improves their record to 4-3. After a rough start to the season, Cincinnati is looking like the contender everyone thought they would be. And the 49ers are looking like something less than everyone thought they were three weeks ago.
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