How 49ers QB Brock Purdy assesses Week 5 loss to Cardinals – NBC Sports Bay Area & California

The 49ers' PFF ratings for their 24-23 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday at Levi's Stadium show an alarming trend that the team needs to curb.

Three offensive turnovers ultimately made a victory impossible for San Francisco, but their 12 missed tackles, after 17 missed tackles the week before, are a troubling statistic for a defense that is regularly touted as one of the league's best.

49ers missed tackles per week:

Week 1 vs. New York Jets: 9

Week 2 vs. Minnesota Vikings: 3

Week 3 vs. Los Angeles Rams: 2

Week 4 vs. New England Patriots: 17

Week 5 vs. Arizona Cardinals: 12

According to PFF, defensive end Nick Bosa led the field with three missed tackles on Sunday. While the All-Pro made standout plays in other areas of the game, including four stops, two pressures and an interception, the pass rusher's mistakes didn't help the defense get off the field.

Rookie safety Malik Mustapha, who came into the game for Talanoa Hufanga after the veteran suffered a wrist injury, missed two tackles, as did linebacker De'Vondre Campbell. Hufanga, safety Ji'Ayir Brown, cornerbacks Deommodore Lenoir and Charvarius Ward and defensive tackle Kevin Givens were each charged with one missed tackle.

In the 49ers' Week 4 win over the New England Patriots, Bosa and Campbell were again charged with three missed tackles. Brown, Lenoir, linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles and defensive tackle Maliek Collins were each charged with two missed tackles, while Mustapha, Ward and cornerback Renardo Green each missed a single tackle.

If the 49ers want to keep their playoff hopes alive, they need to find a way to eliminate or at least reduce the number of missed tackles in games.

Here are the 49ers' PFF grades for Week 5:

Ddefense

DL Nick Bosa — 87.9

While the pass rusher was blamed for missing three tackles (25.6 tackling grade), Bosa made up for it in other areas. The All-Pro recorded four tackles – all solo, four stops and two rushes.

DL Leonard Floyd — 79.1

The pass rusher recorded three pressures – a sack, a hit and a rush – and also recorded three stops and no missed tackles.

Remaining quarterback pressure:

S Ji'Ayir Brown – a rush

DL Sam Okuayinonu – a rush

DL Kevin Givens – a rush

DL Maliek Collins – a rush

CB Deommodore Lenoir – 74.3

The cornerback allowed one catch on three targets for three yards and a pass breakup. Lenoir also returned the blocked field goal kick for a touchdown.

CB Isaac Yiadom – 76.4

Yiadom improved in the 49ers' system, recording two tackles (one assist), one stop and one forced fumble. The defensive back also allowed one completion on two targets for 14 yards and a pass breakup.

Defensive odds and ends

Cardinals running back James Conner was stopped in the first half and only gained nine yards on six carries, but after halftime it was a different story. Conner carried the ball 13 times for 77 yards in the second half. 74 of Conner's 86 rushing yards came after contact, and he forced eight missed tackles on the day.

The 49ers blitzed on 12 of Murray's 32 dropbacks (37.5 percent), which is higher than their 31st-ranked rate of 19 percent through the first four games.

Ocrime

WR Brandon Aiyuk – 90.0

With an overall grade of 90.0, Aiyuk topped the team after catching eight of his 11 targets for 147 yards, six of which resulted in first downs. The wideout caught all three of his targets for 41 yards while lined up in the slot.

TE George Kittle – 72.4

Kittle caught eight of his 12 targets for 64 yards and a touchdown, with five of his catches resulting in either a first down or a touchdown.

RB Jordan Mason – 57.2

If not for his fumble in the red zone in the fourth quarter, Mason would have had a much higher score. The Georgia Tech tackle recorded 14 carries for 86 yards, including 72 after contact.

Mason currently leads the NFL with 340 rushing yards after contact, 25 forced missed tackles and 16 runs of 10 or more yards.

QB Brock Purdy – 73.7

Purdy completed 19 of his 35 attempts for 244 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. When using play-action, Purdy completed six of his eight attempts for 97 yards and a passer rating of 115.1. Without game action, Purdy completed just 13 of his 27 attempts for 147 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions and a 46.4 rating.

Purdy's sweet spot was intermediate throws that ranged between 10 and 19 yards downfield. On Sunday, he completed just eight of his 15 attempts at that distance, or 53.3 percent, after completing 10 of 19, or 77.8 percent, in the first four weeks.

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