KYLE JUSZCZYK

The San Francisco 49ers got a jolt offensively when they made the bold decision in October to trade four draft picks to add Christian McCaffrey to an already deep group of playmakers.

San Francisco forced two fumbles from Alvin Kamara to become the first team in nearly 21 years to hold New Orleans scoreless and the 49ers beat the Saints 13-0 for their fourth straight win.

Christian McCaffrey became the 11th player in NFL history with a rushing touchdown, a passing touchdown and a receiving touchdown in one game, and the San Francisco 49ers extended their regular-season mastery over the Rams to four full years with a 31-14 victory over Los Angeles.

San Francisco 49ers playmaker Deebo Samuel will miss Sunday’s key NFC West showdown against the rival Los Angeles Rams with an injured hamstring.

The fullback position in the NFL has been fading for years, but only in the last decade has it neared the brink of total extinction.

San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan started training camp with a declaration that second-year player Trey Lance will be the starting quarterback and Jimmy Garoppolo will be moving on soon.

The Arizona Cardinals improved to 5-0 for the first time since 1974, riding a stellar defensive performance to a 17-10 win over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

Aaron Rodgers completed two deep passes to Davante Adams on a last-minute drive, setting up Mason Crosby’s 51-yard field goal on the final play of the game that gave the Green Bay Packers a 30-28 victory over the San Francisco 49ers.

Jimmy Garoppolo threw one touchdown pass and ran in for a score, leading the San Francisco 49ers to a 17-11 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

FILE - San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Trent Williams (71) looks on prior to an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals, in Glendale, Ariz., in this Saturday, Dec. 26, 2020, file photo. The San Francisco 49ers locked up their biggest potential free agent for the long term by agreeing to give star left tackle Trent Williams the richest contract ever for an offensive lineman. (AP Photo/Jennifer Stewart, File)SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The San Francisco 49ers locked up their biggest potential free agent for the long term by agreeing to give star left tackle Trent Williams the richest contract ever for an offensive lineman. “Trent’s a game changer,” said fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who signed a five-year contract to stay in San Francisco earlier in the week. Williams was graded as the top left tackle by Pro Football Focus and is now being paid that way as well.

San Francisco 49ers running back Jeff Wilson (30) celebrates his touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals with quarterback C.J. Beathard threw three touchdown passes, Jeff Wilson ran for 183 yards, and the San Francisco 49ers dealt a brutal blow to the Arizona Cardinals' playoff hopes by defeating them 20-12 on Saturday. If the Chicago Bears win their final two games, they will reach the playoffs because of a tiebreaker over the Cardinals. The 49ers (6-9) pulled ahead 14-6 in the third quarter on Beathard’s 9-yard touchdown pass to fullback Kyle Juszczyk. Cardinals: LB Haason Reddick (hamstring) left the game in the first quarter, but returned early in the second quarter.

Rookies Chase Young and Kamren Curl scored defensive touchdowns as Washington grabbed sole possession of first place in the division after a gritty 23-15 win over the San Francisco 49ers. He missed the second half with soreness in his surgically repaired right leg. “We were not clean today offensively,” San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said. Dwayne Haskins, the 15th overall pick in the 2019 draft, replaced Smith in the second half. San Francisco: travels to the Dallas Cowboys next Sunday.

– Jeff Wilson Jr. rushed for a career-high three touchdowns and 112 yards before leaving with an ankle injury and the San Francisco 49ers dominated in a 33-6 win over the New England Patriots on Sunday. San Francisco (4-3) has followed back-to-back losses with two wins and is 3-0 on the road. New England fell to 2-4 for the first since coach Belichick’s first season in 2000, when the Patriots went 5-11. Following a Patriots punt, San Francisco was pinned inside its 15. The lead grew to 23-3 with just under a minute to go before halftime on a 16-yard run by Wilson.

I think theres a lot of teams in the league right now that are dealing with all kinds of injuries.He's right. Teams all over the league were sent scrambling during camp. Certainly not during training camp when players are going hard to make the roster as the start of the regular season rolls closer. It's the soft tissue injuries and those things that you are trying to prevent with the ramp-up period," Bitonio said. That will certainly be something to monitor as the regular season begins and teams deal with injuries and potential replacements.