The San Francisco 49ers improved to 6-4 on the year and regained control of the NFC West following their dominant 38-10 win over the Arizona Cardinals in Mexico City. The team shined offensively on "Monday Night Football," scoring four touchdowns through the air and one on the ground. Tight end George Kittle and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk each caught two touchdown passes from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo who recorded his fifth 100+ passer rating of the season. On the other side of the ball, the defense posted its third-straight second half shutout. The unit's performance was highlighted by 3.0 sacks and two interceptions; the picks were season-firsts for defensive backs Jimmie Ward and Samuel Womack III.
"They've (the team) really been gelling these last three weeks," head coach Kyle Shanahan said postgame. "I feel like it's gotten a little better each week, and it was nice to put a full game together today."
The 49ers put together their electric performance in front of 78,427 fans in attendance for the Mexico City game at Estadio Azteca. On paper, Monday night's game was a Cardinals home game, but the stadium was bursting with 49ers fans. The warm welcome from the Mexican fan base certainly played its role in energizing the 49ers for their primetime matchup.
"The reception that we got at the hotel Sunday night was incredible. The fans here tonight (Monday night) were fantastic," Kittle said. "It just had a completely different energy to it. You could tell how much it meant to each and every single fan that was there. The light show in the fourth quarter is probably one of the coolest moments of my career."
Here are San Francisco's top performers from Week 11:
Top Offensive Performers: Trent Williams and George Kittle
The 49ers All-Pro left tackle showed out in Week 11, earning a 94.4 overall grade for his 51 snaps of work, the highest of all players from Monday night's matchup. Additionally, the veteran offensive lineman posted a career-high 96.3 run-blocking grade.
Kittle was also near the top of the list of the 49ers offensive performers. The veteran tight end led the team in receiving yards, catching four passes for 84 yards and two touchdowns in Mexico City. He emerged from Week 11 with an 89.8 overall grade.
"George Kittle could not be stopped by the Cardinals," the PFF staff wrote in their game recap. "He scored two touchdowns on just four catches, with a game-high 149.3 passer rating when targeted. His 88.8 grade on first review is currently a season-high."
Top Defensive Performer: Charles Omenihu
The defensive lineman leads the unit with his 84.1 overall grade from 41 snaps of work. Omenihu was credited with eight pressures including one quarterback hit of Arizona's Colt McCoy.
"The fourth-year 49ers edge defender had an 85.2 pass-rushing grade on first review, nearly 20 points higher than any other defender on Monday night," the PFF staff added. "He picked up six pressures on 33 pass-rushing snaps to go along with a 30.3 percent pass-rush win rate."
