49ers grades in gritty road victory over Saints to maintain undefeated start

The 49ers scraped together much of the same ingredients on Sunday from the same recipe that worked so well for San Francisco in Week 1.This time, it was Mac Jones at quarterback, in place of Brock Purdy, who did enough to lead the 49ers to the end zone for some clutch scores.And the defense stepped up when it was needed with veterans Fred Warner, Nick Bosa and Bryce Huff closing out the 49ers’ 26-21 victory over the New Orleans Saints in Week 2.The 49ers improve to 2-0 on the season with their second road victory, as they turn their attention to the home opener against the Arizona Cardinals a week from now.But, first, let’s take a look at the report card from the 49ers’ win in the Big Easy, which was anything but easy:Rushing offenseIt was clear that Saints defensive coordinator Brandon Staley was going to make it difficult for the 49ers to run the ball with his variety of stacked defensive fronts. As a result, the 49ers’ game plan did not feature as much of Christian McCaffrey as a ball carrier.McCaffrey carried just 13 times for 55 yards (4.2 yards per carry). Brian Robinson Jr. added 20 yards on six rushing attempts. There just was not a lot...