The San Francisco 49ers closed out the preseason with a commanding win over the Las Vegas Raiders. Sunday served as a "dress rehearsal" for the regular season, with a number of starters making an appearance. George Kittle, Trent Williams, Raheem Mostert, Alex Mack, Jaquiski Tartt and Jalen Hurd were among the group of 49ers who made their preseason debuts on Sunday.
After a "good week" of practice, head coach Kyle Shanahan alluded to wanting to see roughly 20 snaps out of his starters before sending them to the sideline in preparation for Week 1. Here are a few takeaways from the 49ers commanding 34-10 victory at home.
Quarterback Rotation
Shanahan got creative and offered a glimpse of what his two-quarterback offense could look like, with both Jimmy Garoppolo and Trey Lance seeing snaps under center on the team's first two drives.
San Francisco put together a 10-play, 68-yard drive where both of the 49ers quarterbacks were interchanged with five snaps apiece. Mostert notched seven carries for 53 yards during that drive. Lance did not throw any passes, however, was in for three of Mostert's runs. In between quarterback exchanges, Garoppolo capped off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run.
San Francisco's second offensive drive saw three-straight passes from Garoppolo, including a 24-yarder to Deebo Samuel, followed by two snaps from Lance. The drive culminated in two snaps from Lance, the latter, a 2-yard rushing touchdown by the rookie quarterback to extend the lead 14-0.
Lance closed out the first half and finished his day 6-of-13 passing for 46 yards and a rushing score. Garoppolo finished his two series 4-of-7 passing for 64 yards and his own rushing score.
Shanahan hinted that the 49ers shuffle at quarterback could be an option in the regular season.
"That in and of itself, benefits the team," Garoppolo said. "We had two successful drives with it, scored on both of them. It's tough for defenses to handle that. And I've never been in that situation, but just seeing it firsthand here today, it's hard on them. So, whatever's best for the team, I'm here for it."
Nate Sudfeld took over in the third quarter and closed out the contest. His second drive resulted in a three-play series where he connected with River Cracraft for a 23-yard pickup. Two plays later, JaMycal Hasty hit a hole and found the end zone for a 35-yard score.
San Francisco's offensive line kept the 49ers trio of quarterbacks clean, allowing no sacks on the day. The unit also aided in San Francisco's 242 yards on the ground.
Defensive Dominion
San Francisco's defense forced a quick three and out to open the game that featured run stops from Tartt, Javon Kinlaw and Fred Warner. Samson Ebukam notched two quarterback pressures in back-to-back plays in San Francisco's second defensive drive. The 49ers managed to hold Las Vegas out of the end zone for the entirety of the first half.
Eddie Yarbrough got the 49ers first sack of the day. At the top of the fourth quarter, Jordan Willis and Zach Kerr recorded back-to-back sacks forcing a Raiders punt.
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who is in the mix for a final spot at safety, set up San Francisco's fourth touchdown of the day. A pressure by defensive lineman Alex Barrett led to an intercepted pass by Clinton-Dix, who returned the pick 36 yards. Two rushing plays later, Hasty notched his second rushing score of the day.
Special, Special Teams
Rookie running back Elijah Mitchell had a day on special teams, opening the contest with a tackle on Las Vegas kick returner Dillon Stoner to start them at their own 15. He also saw reps at kick return. The rookie ran the ball midfield for a 45-yard return. The rookie totaled 60 yards on both of his kick returns.
Rookie corner Ambry Thomas was also in the mix, returning a kick 22 yards.
Nsimba Webster, Travis Benjamin and River Cracraft, who are all also in the running for the final few vacancies at wide receiver, exchanged punt return duties.
Mitch Wishnowsky notched a beauty of a punt – a 63-yarder in the third quarter that pinned the Raiders inside their own 5. In the fourth, he kicked 75 yards to Las Vegas' 13. Wishnowsky finished the day with four punts for 247 yards (61.8 average).
Injury Update
Lance jammed his finger on one of his handoffs, however it did not appear to be serious.
"I'm not too worried about it at all," Lance said.
Benjamin left the game in the third quarter while being evaluated for a concussion.
