Washington Commanders at San Francisco 49ers

Purdy and the 49ers build a big lead and hold on to beat the Commanders 23-17

Purdy threw a touchdown pass, Christian McCaffrey ran for two scores and the 49ers made two late stops to hold off the Washington Commanders 23-17 on Monday night for their sixth straight win to open the season.

“You’re not always happy exactly with how some of the stuff was frustrating, but real proud of the guys for just the competitive stamina to keep it going all game,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “I was really proud of the defense for finding a way to overcome.”

The Niners followed up an emotional win last week at division-rival Seattle by building a 20-point lead and then escaping at the end when the defense stepped up.

Jayden Daniels threw two touchdown passes in the second half to cut a 20-point deficit to 23-17, but Malik Mustapha broke up a fourth-down pass to Treylon Burks near the goal line with 1:54 to play to preserve the lead.

“I’m just reading the stem of the receiver, and then he broke out, and I was just trying to race to the pylon,” Mustapha said. “Once we got to the catch point, I just wanted to be physical at the point of attack and get that ball out.”

Washington got the ball back at its 46 with 52 seconds remaining and moved down to the 28 before Daniels was called for intentional grounding, giving the Commanders one last play from the 40. Daniels was then sacked by Keion White and Ogbo Okoronkwo before he could throw up a desperation pass.

The Niners extended their best start of a season since winning their first eight games in 2019 on the way to a Super Bowl appearance.

“We dug ourselves in a hole, and it bit us at the end of it,” Daniels said. “We have to be a four-quarter team, not just a half team.”

Purdy started the game fast with a 24-yard strike to Mike Evans on the third play of the game and an 11-yard touchdown to George Kittle to finish that drive. Purdy went 21 of 29 for 264 yards and officially became the highest-rated passer in NFL history as he passed the 1,500-attempt threshold to qualify. His 105.6 rating is ahead of Lamar Jackson's 102.7.

The Commanders were unable to bounce back from New York Giants, when they mismanaged the clock in overtime to cost them a chance at a game-winning field goal.

The game was one-sided early, with the 49ers scoring touchdowns on the first two drives on Purdy's pass to Kittle and a 1-yard run by McCaffrey.

San Francisco expanded the lead to 20-3 late in the half on McCaffrey's second touchdown run as the Niners gained as many first downs (17) in the first half as the Commanders ran plays.

The 49ers outgained Washington 303 yards to 90 in the half but were held to three first downs and 72 yards after halftime.

“I’m obviously a little upset with how I finish the game,” Purdy said. “But I know that moving forward, every single game matters when it comes down to playoffs and getting in and all the things. So we’ll take this W as a team.”

Washington's best chance at scoring a touchdown in the first half ended when Daniels threw the ball away on fourth-and-2 from the 13.

“San Francisco’s already a tough team and we spent way too much time in the first half battling ourselves,” coach Dan Quinn said. “I’m sick about the ending, but we showed a lot of fight.”

Shanahan and Quinn renew their history The game featured a matchup of coaches with a history together, after Shanahan working for two years in Atlanta as offensive coordinator for Quinn. That run included a trip to the Super Bowl in the 2016 season when the Falcons blew a 28-3 lead against New England.

This is the second time they've squared off as head coaches since then, with Quinn winning with Atlanta in 2019 while Shanahan won three matchups when Quinn was the defensive coordinator in Dallas.

Shanahan has credited Quinn with teaching him the importance of people skills as a head coach.

Inju ries Commanders: WR Terry McLaurin exited in the first quarter with a left knee injury that required an air cast before he was taken off the field on a cart. Quinn said the team fears the injury is significant. ... DT Javon Kinlaw (knee) also left in the first half.

49ers: Evans left late in the first half with Achilles tendinitis. He missed practice this week because of soreness in the tendon and broken ribs. Shanahan said Evans won't need additional testing and the injury isn't believed to be long term. ... LB Luke Gifford (groin) and DB Upton Stout (shoulder) also left the game.

Up next Commanders: After a bye, host Philadelphia on Nov. 1.

49ers: Visit Atlanta on Sunday.

See AP’s full NFL coverage here

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