An NBC compilation shows how ill-equipped the 49ers were for the snow in Buffalo

An NBC compilation shows how ill-equipped the 49ers were for the snow in Buffalo

Even for a team from California, the San Francisco 49ers couldn’t have looked worse in Sunday’s 35-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills in the snow. The slick surface in Orchard Park, NY caused problems for players on both sides of the ball. The defensive lineman slipped as they tried to get out of their pre-snap stance. Receivers slipped as they tried to run their routes. It even affected the ball itself, as the 49ers gave up costly fumbles due to the cold weather.

The incidents happened so frequently that NBC put together a compilation of all the times the snow hit players trying to move or hold onto the football.

“It started right at the beginning of the game,” said broadcaster and former wide receiver Cris Collinsworth. “It was a little reminiscent of ‘Keystone Cop.’ Almost everywhere you look tonight, the guys who are the safest in football were the most unsure.”

Both teams had to deal with the effects of the snow. The NBC broadcast shared some advanced stats that showed the first half featured the slowest average route speed this season and the fourth-slowest pass rush exit speed. Meanwhile, both teams’ running games flourished, posting their highest rate of 10-plus yard runs in a half this season.

But the fact is that the Niners struggled more due to the elements. The cold weather caused the usually reliable Kyle Juszczyk to lose the ball at the goal line. It also turned a pass Brock Purdy would normally make into a fumble when it slipped out of his hands, and caused another special team mishap when Deebo Samuel fumbled the ball on a return.

Not surprisingly, the Buffalo team experienced no such mishaps in the Buffalo snow.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *