49ers grades in deflating Week 8 loss to Bengals

SANTA CLARA — You name it, the 49ers could have done it better Sunday at Levi's Stadium.

Quarterback Brock Purdy turned the ball over three times. The defense did not rush the passer consistently, did not tackle well and did not exactly play sticky coverage. The result was unsurprising: Another loss.

The 49ers dropped their third consecutive game, falling 31-17 to the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Bengals are the best team the 49ers have faced in their three-game skid after losses at Cleveland and Minnesota. Still, it was sloppy and uninspiring.

Here are the grades as they head into the bye week with a bad taste in their mouths:

Rushing offense

Christian McCaffrey extended his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown to 17, which ties Lenny Moore (Baltimore, 1963-64) for the NFL record.

The 49ers did OK on the ground, but fullback Kyle Juszczyk was stopped on a third-and-1 play in the first quarter to end the team’s first possession.

The 49ers need to create more space in the running game. McCaffrey ended up with 54 yards on 12 carries.

Purdy was the team’s leading rusher, but all of his rushing attempts were on scrambles. He had 57 yards on six carries.

Grade: C-minus

Passing offense

Purdy threw for a career-high 365 yards, but it was his two interceptions that broke the 49ers in this game.

Purdy completed 22 of 31 pass attempts for 365 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.

His first interception prevented the 49ers from scoring points in the third quarter. His second interception led directly to a Bengals touchdown.

George Kittle had nine catches for 149 yards, while Brandon Aiyuk had five receptions for 109 yards. Both also left some yards on the field when they failed to catch passes down the field.

The pass protection generally held up well, as Purdy was sacked twice late in the game.

Grade: D

Rushing defense

The 49ers’ run defense did not do much.

Joe Mixon gained 87 yards on 16 carries to lead the Bengals. Cincinnati averaged 5.0 yards on its 27 rushing attempts.

The 49ers had way too many missed tackles and sloppy plays. The Bengals got big yards between the tackles.

Grade: D

Passing defense

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is the highest-paid player in the league. On Sunday, he showed why.

Burrow torched the 49ers, completing 28 of 32 pass attempts for 283 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. His passer rating was 134.8.

The 49ers’ pass rush got things going a little bit, with Arik Armstead had two sacks.

But it was not there on a consistent basis. Burrow generally had time to throw, and he created a little more time on his own.

Ja’Marr Chase had 10 receptions for 100 yards and a touchdown.

Grade: F

Special teams

Jake Moody’s first kickoff of the game did not reach the end zone, allowing Trayveon Williams to break loose on a 42-yard return in the first quarter. That led to a short-field touchdown.

Moody made a 36-yard field goal and both extra-point attempts.

Punter Mitch Wishnowsky had a solid day with a 50.3 average with a 47.7 net average.

The 49ers got nothing on kickoff returns, as Ray-Ray McCloud returned one for just 16 yards.

Grade: C-minus

Coaching

Steve Wilks' defensive game plan was simple. There were not a lot of exotic looks or pressures. The 49ers felt they could get the job done just playing solid, fundamental football.

That did not work, as the 49ers were simply not sound enough to get the job done against the Bengals.

The 49ers rolled up 460 yards of offense, got 24 first downs and converted 55.6 percent of their third downs.

The plans appeared OK on both sides of the ball, but execution and turnovers were the major problems.

Grade: C-minus

Overall

Coach Kyle Shanahan boiled it down to this: Offense, defense and special teams need to play better, and every player and every coach needs to perform better.

“We just need to play better,” 49ers tight end George Kittle said.

That sounds like a reasonable expectation.

Grade: D

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