Maiocco’s 49ers Report Card: Team grades in blowout win over Bears originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The 49ers beat a team on Sunday that has now lost seven games in a row.

Given how the 49ers looked over the last two weeks, no one could have been sure that they would be capable of the utter dominance they displayed against the Chicago Bears at Levi’s Stadium.

Quarterback Brock Purdy distributed the ball and the receivers ran freely in coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense – a throwback to previous seasons.

And the defense turned on Chicago rookie quarterback Caleb Williams in the 49ers’ 38-13 win, ending their three-game losing streak.

This game was decided at halftime when the 49ers held an incredible 319-4 lead over Chicago in total yards.

The Bears expected to bounce back in their first game since interim coach Thomas Brown replaced Matt Eberflus, who was fired after the Thanksgiving Day debacle in Chicago.

Instead, they looked like a team that never had a chance.

Here’s the report on the 49ers’ Week 14 win:

Rushing offense

Rookie running back Isaac Guerendo ran for 30 yards in the first half and showed off his 4.33 speed as he turned the corner and came downfield.

Guerendo had two short touchdown runs. He has four touchdown runs this season to tie Brock Purdy for the team lead. Before leaving the game with a foot injury in the fourth quarter, Guerendo ran for 78 yards on 15 carries.

Patrick Taylor stepped in and converted a fourth down run. He also added a touchdown while rushing seven times for 25 yards. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk had a strong day as a blocker as the 49ers rushed for 131 yards on 34 attempts.

Grade: A-minus

Passing offense

Quarterback Brock Purdy started strong with long gainers to running back Isaac Guerendo and tight end George Kittle early in the first drive. He hit Jauan Jennings on touchdown passes of 7 and 16 yards in the first half.

Kittle was a force in the passing game just a week after he had just one reception for 7 yards against Buffalo. On the day, the Purdy-to-Kittle combination was 6-for-6 for 151 yards.

Guerendo showed his ability to make plays out of the backfield with two catches for 50 yards.

Purdy finished the day with 20 completions on 25 attempts for 325 yards with two touchdowns, no interceptions and a passer rating of 145.4.

Grade: A-minus

Rushing defense

The 49ers’ front seven controlled the game, while Bears running back D’Andre Swift managed just 38 yards on 14 rushing attempts.

De’Vondre Campbell led the 49ers with seven tackles. Talanoa Hufanga, who returned to the starting lineup from injured reserve, and fellow safety Malik Mustapha each registered five tackles.

Grade: A-minus

Appropriate defense

The 49ers figured they would have some options to counter Williams, who entered the game as the league’s most sacked quarterback. And indeed they reached him early and often.

Five of the 49ers’ seven sacks against Williams came on third down. Another mistake was one that Evan Anderson was able to make up for.

Yetur Gross-Matos had a career-best three sacks, while Leonard Floyd tied Nick Bosa for the team lead in that category with two sacks.

The Bears only had 94 net yards in the passing game. When the game got completely out of hand, Williams threw two touchdown passes to rookie Rome Odunze.

Grade: A-minus

Special teams

Neither team had any major problems in the second leg. 49ers punter Pat O’Donnell posted a 39.0 net average on two punts. And return man Jacob Cowing averaged 5.5 yards on four returns.

But the 49ers still found a new way to make mistakes on special teams.

Jake Moody made a short field goal and all of his extra points, but inexplicably missed his kickoffs twice short of the landing zone. These errors gave the Bears possession at the 40-yard line.

Grade: C

Coaching

After back-to-back defeats, the coaching staff deserves credit for getting the team to play sharp and energetic.

Shanahan stepped up his game on Sunday as the 49ers tore apart the Bears’ defense with an explosive mix of run and pass.

The 49ers got going, and the rules of the game contributed to that in the first half. Chicago’s defense had no answer to what San Francisco was doing.

Defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen came up with various third-down pressure packages that worked against the hesitant rookie quarterback.

The Bears were expected to get the new coach. But the 49ers had a plan on both sides of the ball to push them aside without much trouble.

Grade: A

In total

Hey, we realize the Bears have proven themselves to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. They are currently on a seven-game losing streak.

But Chicago has played some close games in the last three weeks against Detroit, Minnesota and Green Bay – three of the NFC’s top four teams. The Bears lost those games by a total of seven points.

The 49ers never gave Chicago a chance. No one could have expected the 49ers to win this game after how they looked against Green Bay and Buffalo.

The 49ers were dominant in the first half and that was all they needed to put this game away.

Grade: A-minus

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