How PFF graded McCaffrey, 49ers offense's historic performance
How PFF graded McCaffrey, 49ers offense's historic performance originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
The 49ers had an incredibly efficient performance in their 35-16 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday at Levi's Stadium, and their PFF grades reflect how productive they really were.
San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy connected on all but one of his 21 pass attempts. His 20 completions added up to 283 yards, one touchdown and a 134.6 passer rating. Purdy's 95.2 percent completion rate broke a franchise record held by Steve Young (90 percent; minimum 20 attempts) since 1991.
Purdy's average depth of completion yesterday was 9.1 yards downfield, which is the second highest among NFL quarterbacks in Week 4 through Sunday’s games. The second-year play-caller continues to be extremely accurate in intermediate level passes (11 to 19 yards), completing all three attempts for 61 yards for a 91.7 percent completion rate through four games.
Where Purdy was less accurate was on deep passes but on Sunday, the quarterback showed why there shouldn’t be any doubt. Purdy completed all three of his pass attempts that traveled more than 20 yards in the air.
Purdy received a lot of support during the game from Christian McCaffrey, who also had a historic performance. The running back’s 13th consecutive game with a touchdown surpassed the franchise record held by Jerry Rice (12).
Here are highlights from the 49ers Week 4 grades:
OFFENSE
RB Christian McCaffrey - 91.0
Fifteen of the 49ers’ 30 first down were a result of McCaffrey’s efforts. The running back racked up eight rushing first downs and seven through the air. McCaffrey's 23 rushing first downs and 11 receiving first downs top all other NFL running backs.
McCaffrey also leads the league in the following categories:
-- Rushing yards (459)
-- Yards after contact (323)
-- Touchdowns (six - tied for first with Miami Dolphins Raheem Mostert)
-- Missed tackles forced, rushing (22)
-- Runs over 10 yards (14)
WR Brandon Aiyuk - 93.4
Aiyuk received the highest overall grade on the 49ers' offense in Week 4 catching all six of his targets for 148 yards. Each of Aiyuk’s receptions resulted in a first down and the wideout is currently PFF's highest-graded wide receiver (93.5).
Offensive line
LT Trent Williams -- 90.1 overall grade, 75.8 pass blocking grade (one hurry)
LG Aaron Banks -- 68.0 overall garde, 85.5 pass blocking grade (no pressures allowed)
C Jake Brendel -- 64.4 overall grade, 74.6 pass blocking grade (no pressures allowed)
RG Spencer Burford -- 68.4 overall grade, 58.9 pass blocking grade (one hurry)
RT Colton McKivitz -- 70.2 overall grade, 67.5 pass blocking grade (one sack)
DEFENSE
Defensive Line
Nick Bosa -- 89.6 overall grade, 90.0 pass rush grade — four hits, one hurry
Javon Hargrave -- 60.0 overall grade, 71.8 pas rush grade — one sack, one hit, two hurries
Drake Jackson -- 53.5 overall grade, 52.8 pass rush grade — two hurries
Javon Kinlaw -- 48.4 overall grade, 65.6 pass rush grade — two hurries
Kevin Givens -- 52.3 overall grade, 61.9 pass rush grade — two hurries
Arik Armstead -- 67.1 overall grade, 71.9 pass rush grade — one hit, one hurry
Kerry Hyder -- 47.5 overall grade, 56.0 pass rush grade — one hurry
LB Dre Greenlaw - 70.1
Greenlaw led the team with nine total tackles and a 77.8 run defense grade. The linebacker, however, allowed four completions on seven targets for 22 yards and a touchdown, giving him a 60.9 coverage grade.
DB Kendall Sheffield - 84.8
The new addition to the defense was only on the field for 11 snaps at the end of the game, but he made the most of it racking up three tackles and only one catch allowed on two targets for negative-4 yards. Sheffield also was on the field for 15 special-teams snaps, including one play at gunner where he downed the ball at the 1-yard-line.
Coverage
LB Oren Burks -- 76.9 coverage grade, allowed one catch on one target for three yards
DB Isaiah Oliver -- 65.9 coverage grade, allowed three catches on four targets for 23 yards
DB Deommodore Lenoir -- 63.1 coverage grade, allowed five catches on five targets for 31 yards
S Tashaun Gipson -- 61.4 coverage grade, allowed no catches on two targets
S Talanoa Hufanga -- 59.3 coverage grade, allowed one catch on one target for 16 yards and a touchdown
CB Charvarius Ward -- 58.8 coverage grade, allowed two catches on three targets for 26 yards
CB Ambry Thomas -- 55.4 coverage grade, allowed two catches on three targets for 44 yards
LB Fred Warner -- 53.7 coverage grade, allowed four catches on six targets for 56 yards, one forced incompletion, one dropped interception
LB Dee Winters -- 28.6 coverage grade, allowed five catches on seven targets for 48 yards
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