The 49ers couldn’t have started worse as JaMycal Hasty fumbled the opening kickoff. The defense appeared to give up a touchdown, but the call was reversed after it was reviewed. Then, after a Fred Warner pass breakup and Jaquiski Tartt jumping a flat route, the Niners held the Falcons out of the end zone on four straight downs.
Many will say, “it’s Atlanta,” but those are the types of stops that resonate with defenses. It’s how you play, not always who you play. On the following drive, missed tackles from Tartt and Josh Norman on a 3rd & 6 extended a drive that allowed a Falcons field goal to make it 3-0, Atlanta.