Injuries and game changing turnovers led to the San Francisco 49ers 29-27 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. Despite falling short in the final minutes of the contest, there were several players who stood out on Sunday.
Check out the 49ers top five players from the Week 4 contest according to Jeff Deeney of Pro Football Focus.
1. CB Greg Mabin
The undrafted free agent in 2017 led the 49ers with an 89.2 overall grade. Mabin was targeted five times and allowed just two receptions for 18 yards on his 29 snaps played. Mabin also added three tackles, two resulting in a defensive stop and a forced fumble against the Chargers. Mabin's Week 4 performance was recognized on PFF's “Team of the Week.”
"We had a plan to put Mabin in going in," Kyle Shanahan said postgame. "It was more about Mabin and how he has been practicing the last couple of weeks. He had a great week at practice and we thought he deserved it. We planned on him going in the game spelling Ahkello Witherspoon inward a little bit. When he did go in and got his opportunity, he was playing at a pretty high level so we kept him in."
2. TE George Kittle
San Francisco's tight end earned the top grade on offense at 85.1. According to Deeney, Kittle's 90.0 overall grade through the first four weeks of the season is the best among all NFL tight ends and his 2.87 receiving yards per route run rank second behind O.J. Howard (2.88).
Kittle's 125 yards on 34 receiving snaps to go along with his 82-yard touchdown also earned him a spot on PFF's "Team of the Week" for the second straight week. Kittle has caught 18-of-28 targets for 316 yards and one touchdown through four games, ranking second among all NFL tight ends in total yards and fourth in yards per reception (17.6).
3. QB C.J. Beathard
In his first start of 2018, Beathard completed 23-of-37 throws for 298 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions against the Chargers. Beathard put up an impressive 90.5 passer rating when under pressure compared to his 78.8 rating when kept clean.
"I thought he played well," Shanahan said. "(The interception) was unfortunate. Wish we would have solved that and got rid of it. He gave us a chance to win today. Played very tough. Made some big plays, especially in some of the situations with guys going in and out. He handled a little adversity well, and a lot of chaos with some of the injuries. I was proud of how he played."
4. DL Arik Armstead
Armstead led the 49ers defense with four pressures on his 20 pass rush snaps. He added five total tackles and finished the game with an 82.4 overall grade.
5. WR Kendrick Bourne
Bourne found the end zone for his second-career score and currently leads the 49ers in touchdowns through four weeks (2). He caught 3-of-4 targets for 37 yards for an overall grade of 82.3.
