49ers give Rams a 27-7 beatdown Down Under

The popular question coming into Thursday's game in Melbourne, Australia between the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams was which team chose the right strategy in terms of when they arrived Down Under. The 49ers flew in several days in advance and practiced in Australia while interacting with local fans, while the Rams chose to fly out of California late and arrived just over 24 hours before the game, leading to intrigue over who took the right approach. If the final result of the game serves as the verdict on which coach made the correct decision, then the credit clearly goes to 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, who will fly back to California with a decisive win.

The 49ers put in a complete performance at Melbourne Cricket Ground in their season opener, pulling away from the preseason Super Bowl favorite Rams in the second half for a 27-7 win. Quarterback Brock Purdy completed 25-of-34 passes for 205 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, while the 49ers churned out 174 yards on the ground using a running attack led by Kaelon Black (65 yards, 14 carries) and Christian McCaffrey (68 yards, 10 carries). On defense, the 49ers turned two takeaways and a goal line stand into 17 points, while multiple key plays on special teams helped seal the win in the first-ever NFL game in Australia.

Reigning league MVP Matthew Stafford finished with 155 yards on 15-of-25 passing with zero touchdowns and one interception for the Rams.

49ers capitalize off second quarter interception to take halftime lead

The Rams began the game with a three-and-out, then the 49ers took over at their own 33-yard line after a punt. The 49ers moved 65 yards in 15 plays on their opening drive, which included three third-down conversion catches by wide receiver Mike Evans. But after falling short on a 3rd-and-goal attempt from the 2-yard line, the 49ers chose to finish the drive with a 20-yard field goal by kicker Eddy Piñeiro to take a 3-0 lead.

The Rams took over at their own 25-yard line after the field goal and moved 15 yards on six plays before punting back to the 49ers. The 49ers then went three-and-out after starting their second possession at their own 17-yard line, then the Rams began at their own 44-yard line following the 49ers' punt. The Rams quickly moved into a 1st-and-goal situation with a 41-yard completion to wide receiver Puka Nacua on the second play of their possession, then they finished the drive with a 5-yard touchdown run by running back Kyren Williams to give them a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter.

The 49ers' next possession ended with Purdy's first interception of the season. The 49ers moved across midfield after taking over at their own 31-yard line, but after a successful third-down conversion run on the fifth play of the drive, Purdy fired a pass downfield into the hands of safety Quentin Lake, who gave the Rams the ball at their own 31-yard line.

The Rams moved to the 49ers' 35-yard line on four runs by running back Blake Corum, but the 49ers wound up bringing the drive to a halt with an interception of their own. On a 3rd-and-10 from the 35, Stafford threw downfield for Nacua and was picked off by cornerback Renardo Green, who gave the 49ers the ball back at their own 13.

The 49ers cashed in on the interception with their first touchdown of the year, which went to wide receiver Demarcus Robinson on a 39-yard reception. After a series of eight plays that included another third-down conversion by Evans and five runs by Black, Purdy went deep for Robinson on a 2nd-and-6 to put the 49ers up 10-7 with 4:28 remaining in the first half.

The Rams took over at their own 35-yard line after a touchback and quickly moved across midfield on a 16-yard reception by Williams. But after another gain of seven yards on a run by Williams, the Rams moved backwards on a holding penalty and were soon forced to punt.

The 49ers began at their own 8-yard line with 2:43 remaining and moved across the 40-yard line with a 12-yard run by Deebo Samuel, a 7-yard run by Christian McCaffrey, and a 15-yard penalty for roughing the passer. But the drive stalled before reaching midfield and the 49ers punted back to the Rams with 20 seconds remaining. The Rams took a knee to end the half, sending the 49ers to the locker room with the lead.

The 49ers outgained the Rams 208 to 137 in the first half while holding a time of possession edge of 18:19 to 11:41. Purdy finished the half with 141 yards, one touchdown and one interception on 17-of-25 passing, while Stafford managed just 65 yards on 4-of-11 passing with one interception.

49ers ride all three phases to pull away in second half

The 49ers got off to a fast start in the second half with a seven-play, 51-yard drive that ended in Evans' first touchdown as a 49er for a 17-7 lead. Samuel got things going for the 49ers with a 45-yard kickoff return, then McCaffrey turned in runs of 14 and 16 yards to put the 49ers at the Rams' 21-yard line. An 11-yard completion to Robinson gave the 49ers a 1st-and-goal at the 6, and two plays later Purdy connected with Evans on a 3rd-and-2 to put the 49ers up 10.

The Rams answered with a long drive of their own, albeit one that came up empty. After taking over at their own 27-yard line, the Rams moved 72 yards in 12 plays, which included completions of 23 yards to Nacua and 13 yards to wide receiver Davante Adams and tight end Dennis Allen. But after Nacua was stopped just short of the goal line on a 3rd-and-goal pass, the 49ers bottled up Stafford on a 4th-and-goal from the 1-yard line to force a turnover on downs.

The 49ers followed with a backbreaker of a drive -- an 11-play, 99-yard possession that ended with a touchdown pass to Samuel to open up a 24-7 lead. A 14-yard completion to tight end Luke Farrell got the 49ers out of the shadow of their own end zone, then they ground down the Rams' defense with a series of runs by Purdy, McCaffrey and Black and two completions to Samuel for 19 yards. On a 2nd-and-8 play from the Rams' 15-yard line, Purdy rolled out and found Samuel one more time for his third touchdown pass of the game and a 17-point lead with just under 13 minutes remaining in the game.

Things got worse for the Rams on the next possession as linebacker Fred Warner gave the 49ers their second takeaway of the game. The Rams began at their own 23-yard line and moved out to the 39-yard line with the help of a third-down pass interference call on Green. But two plays later, Warner punched the ball out of the hands of tight end Tyler Higbee for a fumble that was recovered by defensive end Keion White at the 43-yard line. The 49ers turned the takeaway into a 56-yard field goal from Piñeiro to take a 27-7 lead.

Another turnover on downs gave the 49ers the ball back at their own 49-yard line with just under eight minutes to play. The 49ers kept the ball mostly on the ground to run some time off the clock and moved to the 34-yard line before bringing Piñeiro on for a 52-yard field goal attempt, which deflected off the right upright and fell no good with 3:34 remaining.

Stetson Bennett entered the game at quarterback on the next possession and helped move the Rams' offense inside the 49ers' 20-yard line before time expired. The 49ers (1-0) now hold a 4-0 record in international games, while the Rams (0-1) stand at 3-3 with the loss.

Game Notes

This was the first of two international games the 49ers will play this season. They are also scheduled to face the Minnesota Vikings in Mexico City on November 22... A crowd of 100,021 was announced for the game... Three key 49ers players -- tight end George Kittle, defensive end Nick Bosa, and Warner -- were in the lineup and played extensively after rebounding from serious injuries. Kittle tore his Achilles in a playoff win over the Philadelphia Eagles in January, while Bosa missed most of the 2025 season with a torn ACL and Warner saw his season come to an end after six games with a broken and dislocated ankle... 49ers rookie wide receiver De'Zhaun Stribling, who was coming off a strong preseason, was carted off the field in the second quarter with an ankle injury... Next up for the 49ers will be their home opener at Levi's Stadium on September 20 against the Miami Dolphins. Kickoff time will be 4:25 p.m. ET/1:25 p.m. PT (FOX).

Scoring Summary

• Q1 06:17 — SF 3, LA 0
  E. Pineiro 20 yd. Field Goal (15 plays, 65 yds, 7:13)
• Q2 15:00 — SF 3, LA 7
  K. Williams 5 yd. run (H. Mevis kick) (4 plays, 57 yds, 1:55)
• Q2 04:35 — SF 10, LA 7
  D. Robinson 39 yd. pass from B. Purdy (E. Pineiro kick) (9 plays, 86 yds, 4:24)
• Q3 11:07 — SF 17, LA 7
  M. Evans 2 yd. pass from B. Purdy (E. Pineiro kick) (7 plays, 51 yds, 3:57)
• Q4 13:04 — SF 24, LA 7
  D. Samuel 15 yd. pass from B. Purdy (E. Pineiro kick) (11 plays, 99 yds, 5:44)
• Q4 09:48 — SF 27, LA 7
  E. Pineiro 56 yd. Field Goal (4 plays, 5 yds, 1:25)

Game and Player Stats

Mentioned in this article: Kaelon Black, Nick Bosa, Jake Brendel, Ji'Ayir Brown, Jacob Cowing, Jaden Dugger, Mike Evans, Luke Farrell, Renardo Green, Dre Greenlaw, Khalid Kareem, George Kittle, Deommodore Lenoir, Christian McCaffrey, Malik Mustapha, Osa Odighizuwa, Brock Purdy, Demarcus Robinson, Deebo Samuel, Marques Sigle, Upton Stout, De'Zhaun Stribling, James Thompson, Corliss Waitman, Garret Wallow, Fred Warner, Keion White