The return of players like George Kittle and Deebo Samuel was overshadowed by San Francisco's disappointing loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. However, the 49ers did see encouraging performances by a number of backups while the team awaits the return of several starters. Here are six players with notable performances during the team's Week 4 matchup, according to Jeff Deeney of Pro Football Focus.
Kittle was one of the highlights of Sunday's game. The tight end was perfect, catching all 15 of his targets for 183 yards and a touchdown in his first game back in two weeks. Kittle tied Christian McCaffrey (Week 16, 2019) for the most targets with a perfect catch rate in a single game in the history of recorded targets (since 2009).
The tight end earned a 92.4 overall grade last night, the highest of any qualifying tight end so far through Week 4. He had six contested catches against the Eagles, which was the most of any player in a game since 2018.
Kittle now has 3,172 career receiving yards in his 47th NFL game. He ties Rob Gronkowski for third-fastest to reach 3,000 yards by a tight end in NFL history, behind only Mike Ditka and Kellen Winslow (45 games).
Additionally, the tight end topped 100 receiving yards for the ninth time in his career. Kittle is tied for the third-most 100-yard games by a tight end in their first 50 career games, since 1970. Gronkowski (12) and Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow (14) are the only tight ends with more.
2. Kevin Givens
San Francisco's second-year backup defensive tackle earned the highest-overall grade on defense with an 89.5 mark on 17 snaps. Per Deeney, much of his play doesn't show up on the stat sheet, but he did notch at least one quarterback pressure and one run stop against the Eagles in Week 4.
3. Ben Garland
San Francisco's center was the lone member of the offensive line to not allow a single quarterback pressure on the night. As the best performing offensive lineman against the Eagles, Garland earned himself a 78.0 overall grade.
4. Jamar Taylor
Taylor may have only played in 10 snaps on Sunday, but he was one of the highlights of the night. He earned a 75.4 overall grade in his 49ers debut, notching a sack on his first snap. He was also not targeted on his seven coverage snaps.
Taylor stepped in at nickel cornerback on Sunday following a knee injury to K'Waun Williams in the fourth quarter.
The 49ers signed Taylor to the team's practice squad on Friday and was promoted to the active roster ahead of Sunday's game. He has familiarity with the 49ers defense as he spent training camp with San Francisco and saw reps with the starters with Williams out of the lineup.
The former Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman notched four quarterback hurries, a fourth quarter sack and two run stops against the Eagles. He earned a 74.9 overall grade following Sunday's performance.
Armstead registered a career-high eight quarterback pressures that included three hits, four hurries and split a sack with Hyder to force a fourth down for a 79.5 pass rush grade. The sixth-year defensive lineman also recorded four stops (2 run, 2 pass) for a 74.1 overall grade.
Honorable Mention - C.J. Beathard
Beathard made his first appearance since Week 8 of the 2019 season and earned a 73.4 overall grade. He led the team down the field in the final two drives of the game while completing 14-of-19 passes for 138 yards. He was 6-of-7 for 81 yards on throws of 10-plus yards downfield, with his only miss being a hail mary on the final play of the game.
