49ers past Bucs as Jake Moody makes a clutch field goal
San Francisco 49ers place kicker Jake Moody, (#4) right, celebrates with Mitch Wishnowsky (#3) left after kicking the game winning field goal during the second half of an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Tampa, Fla., Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)
2024.11.10 – The reliable San Francisco kicker Jake Moody made up for missing three earlier field goals by booting a 44-yarder as time expired Sunday to give the 49ers a 23-20 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Moody said his confidence never wavered. Not even after a frustrated teammate confronted him on the sideline.
“I really, really wanted a chance to redeem myself,” said Moody, who in his first game back after being sidelined three weeks with a sprained ankle, also kicked field goals of 28 and 33 yards for the defending NFC champion 49ers (5-4), who have won consecutive games for the first time this season.
“I felt really confident, really good going that direction. It was the same exact spot as the previous one,” Moody said. “I saw what happened with the previous one and was able to make an adjustment.”
Moody, who was 13 of 14 entering Sunday, delivered the winner after missing wide left from 49 and 50 yards and then wide right on a 44-yard attempt that would have given San Francisco a six-point lead with 3:09 remaining.
2024.11.10 (SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers) Game Highlights
San Francisco 49ers place kicker Jake Moody (4) kicks the game winning field goal against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half of an NFL football game in Tampa, Fla., Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)
2024.11.10 (SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers) Game Highlights – (CD-Highlights)
2024.11.10 – SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers (NBC Sports Post Game)
2024.11.10 – SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers (NBC Sports Post Game)
TV cameras caught 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel exchanging words and appearing to shove long snapper Taybor Pepper when the frustrated wide receiver approached Moody on the sideline after the third miss.
Moody shrugged off the sideline incident involving Samuel. who had five catches for 62 yards.
“It’s an emotional game. Stuff like that happens all the time,” Moody said, adding he’s not looking for an apology from Samuel. “You just move past it. We won, so that’s all that matters.
“Like I said, heat of the moment, it happens. I do have to make those kicks at the end of the day. That’s all I’m focused on.”
San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan said he didn’t see what happened.
“Guys are frustrated, something probably happened … brothers scuffle a little bit. I didn’t see any of it, so I don’t know how bad it was,” Shanahan said. “It’s something I’m not too worried about. We’ll fix it, if it hasn’t been fixed already. We’ll fix it on the plane and go back to loving each other (Monday).”
2024.11.10 – SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers (NBC Sports Post Game)
49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall (14) scores his first career touchdown, a 46-yard catch-and-run, over Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr. during the first half of San Francisco’s 23-20 victory in Tampa, Fla., on Sunday. Jason Behnken / Associated Press
2024.11.10 – SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers (NBC Sports Post Game)
2024.11.10 – SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers (NBC Sports Post Game)
Niners Ricky Pearsall sat out the first six games after being shot in the chest after an autograph session in downtown San Francisco on Aug. 31. On his touchdown, he caught a pass over the middle from quarterback Brock Purdy, accelerated toward the left sideline where he outran the pursuit until safety Antoine Winfield Jr. closed in and nearly brought him down as the receiver extended the ball over the goal line.
Purdy threw for 353 yards without an interception, and had touchdowns of 46 yards to rookie Pearsall — the wide receiver’s first NFL score — and 11 yards to George Kittle. He moved his team into position for the winning field goal with two completions to Jauan Jennings and two more to Pearsall.
The Bucs wiped out a 10-0 deficit with help from 49ers punt returner Jacob Cowing, whose third-quarter muff was recovered at San Francisco’s 21 to set up Tampa Bay’s first TD. Four plays later, Mayfield threw a 9-yard scoring pass to Rachaad White that made it 10-10.
Rookie Bucky Irving scored on 12-yard run that put Tampa Bay ahead 17-13 early in the fourth quarter. Purdy answered with his TD throw to Kittle to put the 49ers back in front with just over seven minutes left.
2024.11.10 – SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers (Krueger & Crew Post Game)
George Kittle’s (#85) right, athletic 11-yard touchdown reception gave the 49ers a 20-17 lead with 7:02 left in the fourth quarter Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of an NFL football game in Tampa, Fla., Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024. (Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
2024.11.10 – SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers (Krueger & Crew Post Game)
2024.11.10 – SF 49ers vs. TB Buccaneers (Krueger & Crew Post Game)
“They are a good team that’s lost some games, some close ones, and it was a day before their bye week, so we knew we were going to get their best shot,” Shanahan said. “We had some opportunities to run away with it. We didn’t. That was on us.”
McCAFFREY’S RETURN
Christian McCaffrey took the field for the first time since the Super Bowl. The San Francisco 49ers’ offensive spark was back, so everything was right in the 49ers world. He should calm the nerves and mute all anguish, right?
Turns out, McCaffrey is not a panacea for all that ails the 49ers. The way Sunday’s game unfolded proved that.
The 23-20 win improved the 49ers’ record to 5-4. But if you were looking for signs that the second half of the season is going to be smooth sailing, you didn’t get many on Sunday.
The season-long absence of their best offensive player had been an easy explanation for the 49ers’ woes. But the real culprits for the team’s struggles have been huge defensive lapses and routinely awful special teams.
McCaffrey’s return — after missing the first eight games of the season while struggling with bilateral Achilles tendinitis — didn’t fix either of those issues and both were on full display. And, oddly, his return didn’t seem to fix the 49ers’ red-zone problems either: they were 1-of-3 there.
Whatever the reasons, the 49ers were, once again, in danger of letting a win slip away. Even with McCaffrey back in the fold.
McCaffrey had a heavy workload right from the start. He played 25 of 30 offensive snaps in the first half. He finished with 13 carries for 39 yards, the longest a 13-yard gain. He was targeted seven times as a receiver and caught six passes for 68 yards.
“Just getting back into the feel of a real game, getting back into a groove was really good for me,” McCaffrey said. “That was the third time I’ve had on pads in eight weeks. Maybe I didn’t feel like myself 100%, but that’s normal when you haven’t played for a long time.”
INJURIES
49ers: DE Nick Bosa played after being listed as questionable after hurting his hip in practice.
Buccaneers: LT Tristan Wirfs limped off with a right knee injury in the second quarter and did not return. CB Zyon McCollum (hamstring) and LB Chris Braswell (oblique) departed in the second half.
UP NEXT
49ers: Host NFC West rival Seattle next Sunday.
Buccaneers: Bye week.
Related: 49ers fend off late furious Cowboys rally with a victory
Related: See below – 49ers rally to beat Lions and secure Super Bowl trip
Read more at: San Francisco 49ers Media Services / More AP NFL
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