Niners quarterback Brock Purdy looks to pass to fullback Kyle Juszczyk (44) during the second half against the Denver Broncos at Levi’s Stadium on Oct. 4. The 49ers defeated the Broncos 24-14.
Stephen Lam/S.F. Chronicle
The substation jokes haven’t stopped. And, still, the San Francisco 49ers can’t be stopped. What is going on here?
The 49ers are one of the NFL’s three undefeated teams, still unblemished despite all their annual injuries. This summer, their overall health was viewed as one of the biggest keys to the season. With an aging roster, and presumably less margin for error, they couldn’t afford so much attrition. So much for that.
Five weeks into the season, they already have 16 players on injured reserve, a group that doesn’t include Nick Bosa, who has added to their only-in-Santa Clara injury stories: The All-Pro pass rusher has missed the past three games after straining his calf while warming up.
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The defensive line has been so decimated that unrecognizable names (Khalid Kareem, Ogbo Okoronkwo) are playing meaningful minutes. The wide receiver corps has been so compromised that they signed ex-draft bust Dante Pettis as practice-squad insurance. (Pettis, of course, landed on injured reserve after one full practice.)
Yes, the 49ers are beat up. And battering opponents. They whipped the Super Bowl favorite Rams in Australia, toppled the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks in Seattle and own the NFL’s highest point differential (plus-61).
So, again, what is going on here? Here are the five biggest reasons they are 5-0.
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A great quarterback
A great QB can mask a host of flaws. And I can hear the responses: Is Brock Purdy actually … great? Let’s answer with a statistic: With five more pass attempts, Purdy’s career pass rating (105.4) will qualify as the best in NFL history. That qualifies as better than very good.
Purdy outclassed Tom Brady in his first NFL start and was a league MVP candidate in his second season, but the 2026 version has been, well… should Joe Montana and Steve Young start making room?
Purdy leads the NFL in passing touchdowns (13) and QBR (84.0), ranks fourth in yards per attempt (8.4) and completion percentage (69.0) and his pocket feel and scrambling ability were a major reason the 49ers became the first team in 21 years to not allow a sack in the season’s first four games.
Steve Young has talked about elite QBs reaching a career sweet spot when their Xs-and-Os knowledge allows them to toy with defenses. He has said that a problem for many is that once they reach that level of mental mastery, their physical skills have diminished. At 26, Purdy may not have achieved genius QB status yet. But something is clearly clicking in his fifth season in Kyle Shanahan’s system.
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“The game is so slow to him now,” linebacker Fred Warner/ said. “So he’s out there kind of just manipulating things.”
Tell us your thoughts on the 49ers’ win over the Seahawks
Did the refs get the call right on the final play of the game?
Most RecentTop Responses
Kevin F
Vallejo, CA
10/14/26
I was just hoping for no serious injuries. But the Seahawks complete lack of a running game has put them at a massive disadvantage this season.
Bruce L
Arcata, CA
10/12/26
The replays did not provide evidence to overturn the call on the field.
There were plenty of other calls and non-calls botched by this officiating crew.
It’s unfortunate when the officials have an outsized impact on a game.
Tom M
San Carlos, CA
10/12/26
They got it right. Here is a point often overlooked. A defensive player can not leave the field of play by going over the sideline to make a defensive play on the ball carrying player. Therefore, Cooper Kupp in this case, can not advance the ball once it crosses the sideline. The advancement of the ball ends at the side line.
Now, just don’t get me going on the goal line pylon which acts as both sideline and goal line. I can’t explain that one.
The refs had given lousy spots to the 49ers before that when the Niners were just short of a first down on two running plays so it made sense that they did the same to the Seahawks. At least they were consistent!
Tom M
Santa Rosa, CA
10/12/26
I am very happy. Forty niners need to improve their tackling as seen throughout the game and in the final sequence. Lenoir remains awful, always behind the play and loving to run along behind the action.
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A Hall of Fame wide receiver
Speaking of greatness, Mike Evans has given the 49ers a desperately needed counterpunch when facing Seattle’s great defense.
Last season, 49ers wide receivers combined for 83 yards in their two January losses to the Seahawks. On Sunday, Evans had 75 receiving yards … on one possession, the 49ers’ had-to-have-it, second-half touchdown drive in their 32-29 win at Seattle.
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Niners wide receiver Mike Evans makes a catch against Seahawks cornerback Josh Jobe during the fourth quarter in Seattle on Sunday.
Olivia Vanni/Getty Images
Evans, 33, signed a bargain contract with the 49ers, eschewing more lucrative offers, because he was drawn to Shanahan’s offense. Just before Evans signed with the 49ers, he told his friend, former NFL running back LeSean McCoy, that he thought Shanahan’s system would allow him to run routes through wide open spaces.
McCoy agreed: “Mike’s going to get crazy, stupid busy,” he said on his podcast.
Evans arrived with Canton-worthy credentials, but, by some measurements, he’s never gotten this crazy, stupid busy in his 13-season career. Of Evans’ 24 catches (for 326 yards), 22 have resulted in first downs. His 91.7% first-down rate is a career high. And his 70.6% catch rate — he’s snagged 24 of 34 targets — would also be a career best.
And he might only get better. Evans has grimaced through the past two games while playing with two broken ribs.
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The defensive coordinator Shanahan always wanted
In January, the Cowboys hired Christian Parker as their defensive coordinator. Parker had no previous coordinator experience, and now he requires assistance: Dallas hired longtime defensive coordinator Mike Pettine on Monday to give Parker a hand with the NFL’s 31st-ranked defense.
The polar opposite of Parker’s hiring: The 49ers’ addition of Raheem Morris. The three-time NFL head coach and Super Bowl champion coordinator with the Rams has been so good that he’s made his well-regarded predecessor, Titans head coach Robert Saleh, look less impressive in comparison.
Morris is overseeing one of the NFL’s best defenses despite occasionally trotting out a spare-parts defensive line. With Bosa playing just two games, the 49ers rank third in the NFL in points allowed (18.6) and sixth in yards (297.2).
Morris, a safety at Hofstra, was a longtime NFL defensive backs coach, and he might have made his biggest impact in the secondary. The 49ers are still playing primarily zone, but Morris has introduced more match coverage, which allows zone defenders to closely attach to a receiver if a specific route is run.
The more aggressive style was a hit in training camp. Cornerback Renardo Green raised eyebrows by not so subtly taking a dig at Saleh while praising Morris.
“It’s easier to play faster,” Green said. “And I feel like he’s finer, more detailed with just realistic things. It’s a lot less thinking.”
Like many defenders, Green has raised eyebrows during the regular season. His three interceptions in five games are two more than he had in his first 31 career games, and one more than the 49ers cornerbacks had in 2025.
Kyle’s clicking, too
For starters, Shanahan’s presence made a huge impact before the season’s first snap: Evans and Morris, his close friend, probably wouldn’t be employed with the 49ers if he wasn’t the head coach.
But then there is also the matter of the job he’s done as the overseer of the NFL’s third-ranked scoring offense. Purdy has made it clear that his ongoing ascent is tied to Shanahan’s system and his increased understanding of its complexities. Shanahan told a Fox broadcast crew this season that Purdy is now starting to understand the “why” of his play calls.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan is an early Coach of the Year candidate after steering the 49ers to a 5-0 record and the best point differential in the NFL.
Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle
And many of those play calls have deserved a “wow” this season. The most obvious: The hook-and-ladder, 80-yard touchdown against the Cardinals in Week 3. That 36-30 win was sealed when no defender was within 20 yards of tight end George Kittle on a 20-yard touchdown catch when Arizona was expecting a clock-draining, 2nd-and-10 run.
Shanahan is “probably the biggest weapon we have on offense,” Puni said.
Shanahan is also an obvious early Coach of the Year candidate. He finished fifth last season and was second in 2022 and 2019.
The kids can play
The 49ers have enough All-Pros. This summer, it wasn’t clear whether their recent draft classes had produced enough reliable role players to assist their stars.
Niners defensive tackle Gracen Halton, pressuring Miami Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis at Levi’s Stadium on Sept. 20, is part of a rookie class that is providing valuable relief amid a rash of injuries.
Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle
So far, the young supporting cast has included several rookies (running back Kaelon Black, defensive tackle Gracen Halton, pass rusher Romello Height, linebacker Jaden Dugger), 2025 picks who have taken a second-year leap (cornerback Upton Stout, guard Connor Colby, safety Marques Sigle) and established starters from the 2024 class who appear primed for career-best seasons (Green, guard Dominick Puni).
That group doesn’t include bad-intentions safety Malik Mustapha, a 2024 fourth-round pick who smashed Seahawks wide receivers throughout his debut 2026 start last Sunday. And it doesn’t include a 2025 undrafted free agent, defensive tackle Sebastian Valdez, who has provided solid snaps off the bench after toiling on the practice squad last season.
Niners cornerback Upton Stout makes a stop against Denver Broncos running back during the first quarter at Levi’s Stadium on Oct. 4. Stout has made big strides in his second NFL season.
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