The San Francisco 49ers appeared to be building momentum late in the second quarter against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, holding a 14-9 lead. However, two consecutive fumbles by young running backs Jordan James and Kaelon Black disrupted the drive and allowed Atlanta to close the gap.
On the seventh play of the possession, James fumbled after a six-yard run, but the 49ers recovered. One play later, Black fumbled, and Falcons defensive tackle Gervon Dexter recovered.
Atlanta capitalized on the turnover, kicking a field goal on the ensuing drive to cut the 49ers' lead to 14-12 at halftime.
Veteran fullback Kyle Juszczyk, a leader in San Francisco's running back room, encouraged his younger teammates after their costly mistakes.
"I actually spoke to both of them during the game and after the game," Juszczyk said Tuesday morning on Bay Area radio station KNBR. "And I just told those guys, 'Listen, we're going to need you again. We're going to count on you to go out there and make a play again. So don't think that this is your final opportunity. You're going to have so many chances here going forward, and we're going to count on these guys, and we're going to need [you]. So flush this one.'"
Juszczyk also wanted to ensure that Black and James didn't spend their bye week dwelling on their mistakes. With no game scheduled for the weekend, the young running backs have extra time to reflect on the loss, making it important to move forward rather than let the errors linger.
"Specifically for this week, I told both of them, 'Don't let this ruin your bye week,'" Juszczyk continued. "'Don't beat yourself up about it. We've all done it. It's all happened. Let's not make it a thing. Let's not make it a common occurrence.'
"But we all know that nobody's trying to put that ball on the ground. And sometimes it just happens, and the defense makes a good play. Sometimes you just have to live with it. So I just want these guys to stay confident, keep playing fast, keep running strong, and not let that be sitting in the back of their mind all the time."
The 49ers are off until Monday, when they return to practice to begin preparing for their Week 9 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders at Levi's Stadium. San Francisco will look to bounce back from its first loss of the season and regain momentum after the bye week.
More info on: Kaelon Black, Jordan James, Kyle Juszczyk
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