The San Francisco 49ers suffered a number of blows in their Week 3 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The 49ers rallied back from a 35-7 deficit in the second quarter before penalties and injuries ended San Francisco's hopes for a late-game comeback. The 49ers biggest loss came as Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a knee injury on a scramble. On 3rd-and-goal on the 49ers final drive of the game, Garoppolo attempted to pick up extra yardage as his knee buckled before being hit out of bounds. Garoppolo was carted off the field with what the team confirmed on Monday as a torn ACL.
Here's a look at the 49ers locker room's reaction to Garoppolo's injury and Sunday's loss to the Chiefs.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan on what Garoppolo's injury means going forward:
"I mean any time you lose your starting quarterback, it is a big deal. It was when we lost our starting running back too. So obviously, I feel for him personally. I know how disappointed he is. I have not had a chance to see him yet, but I feel for him."
Shanahan's thoughts on C.J. Beathard stepping in at quarterback:
"I have a lot of confidence in C.J.. He got a lot of playing time last year and led us to our first win last year. He came in today and made a hell of a throw on fourth down, no hesitation. C.J. is a gamer. Everyone in here has a ton of respect for C.J. and how he handles himself. He is a man out there and he is a very good quarterback. We are fortunate to have him."
Shanahan on how the 49ers battled back in the second half against the Chiefs:
"I was real proud of how we battled back in the second half. It was not in the first half. We got off to a very bad start. We have to do a lot better than we did in that first half. We have to play better. We have to coach better. I was proud of how the guys battled in the second half coming out down that much. I thought our guys stepped up and went through a lot of adversity throughout that half and kept going. They gave us a chance to have a possibility of a win at the end. We just came up short."
QB C.J. Beathard on what Garoppolo's injury means to the team:
"Keep these guys together, keep leading them. I mean we had a lot of injuries today and a lot of guys went down. It is just a matter of our psyche and keeping everyone in it on the next week and staying positive. There is going to be every opportunity in the world for guys to be mad or down about certain things, but we have to keep the morale and stay positive and move onto the next week and get the one next week."
Beathard on the value of his starts from last season helping this year:
"It is huge having already played last year in six games. I feel like it will really help me going forward having had the experience. It is not my first time in a live NFL game in the regular season. It is my second time around. I think it will be a little easier this time."
T Joe Staley on his message to the team following the Week 3 loss to the Chiefs:
"Going on the road and you come in down 35-7 after the second quarter. I'm proud of the guys coming out in the second half and battling and not quitting. We can't obviously put ourselves in a hole like that. We're really trying to take that next step. We're trying so hard to take that next step. We got to come out and we can have times where we execute and we have times where we execute like we did in the second half. We should be able to do that every single game, every time we step on the field. That's got to be the expectation of us. We can't have those mental lapses. We can't have lapses in momentum. We have to go out there and execute every single play. That's what it's going to take to make the next step. The focus on every single series needs to be the opportunity to score points. The focus for the defense for every single series needs to be on getting the ball back and making a big play. We can't have lapses like that. We can't put ourselves into a hole going 35-7 into the half."
Staley on his confidence in Beathard:
"The game is not too big for him. He puts in the work. He's a hard worker. The guy will stand back there and try and make the plays that are there. We've been on the field with him last year since Week 11, I think. He's been working hard every single day. This offseason he was going in and preparing the exact same way he did last year as a rookie. I expect him to continue to do the same."
DL DeForest Buckner on defensive adjustments made in the second half:
"Making little adjustments, in the first half we had too many busts on defense. We did a better job with everyone doing their job and being where they were supposed to be and trusting one another. We just have to start off like that next time."
RB Matt Breida on potentially losing a starter in Garoppolo:
"If it's an ACL, it's going to be a tough loss. Jimmy's a great competitor. It's hard to replace Jimmy Garappolo. But, C.J. is going to come in if he has to and do a great job. You saw the first time in, he threw a touchdown pass. So, I think we'll be alright."
Breida on the silver lining from the 49ers loss to the Chiefs:
"If you look at the second half, it shows we're a lot better team than what the score shows. Of course, there's a silver lining. And, we've got a long way to go to get better. But, I feel if we can get to that point, we're going to be a hard team to beat in this league."
TE George Kittle on his confidence in Beathard:
"Coach Shanahan has the highest standards for every single person on the team – especially C.J. That's why they took him in the third round. They thought so highly of him. He did his job last year and he's going to step up no matter what happens."
Kittle on what clicked for the offense in the second half:
"I think we just focused on the run. We didn't say 'hey, we're going to air it out now because we're losing by 28 points. Matt (Breida) and Al (Morris) had big time runs. Whenever you can run the ball, it opens up the passing game. Then, it just started clicking. When you give a guy like Jimmy G time, it's pretty easy."
FB Kyle Juszczyk on what he learned about his team in the second half:
"I wasn't surprised by it. I knew that's what we had in us. I knew that was something we could go out and do. The first half was not us. I wouldn't say I was surprised. But, I'm definitely proud of the way the way the guys fought. The way we rallied. And, we didn't turn on anybody. We had a lot of injuries out there. We're just dealing with a lot of things. I felt like we fought really hard."
