SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) For all the stars the San Francisco 49ers may have been missing, they still had Christian McCaffrey.
That proved to be the difference against the Atlanta Falcons.
McCaffrey ran for 129 yards and two touchdowns and had his 200-yard game from scrimmage in six years as the short-handed 49ers finally delivered a strong ground game to beat Atlanta 20-10 on Sunday night.
“That should be our plan every time,” left tackle Trent Williams said of feeding McCaffrey. “He’s one of the best players on our team, so getting the ball in his hands as much as possible is a good thing for us.”
The usually run-oriented 49ers (5-2) had struggled to generate much on the ground all season before returning to their old style against the Falcons (3-3) with help from the return of tight end George Kittle.
“It’s a different game when he’s in there,” McCaffrey said. “Even though he doesn’t have a big statistical game, the attention he draws opens up so many things.”
McCaffrey had his first 100-yard rushing game since his Offensive Player of the Year campaign in 2023 and his 201 yards from scrimmage was his most since playing with Carolina in 2019.
“He’s the most consistent player I’ve been around,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “He just keeps you on track. He gains every yard in the running game and then some. What he does in the passing game, it’s rare that you throw him the ball and can’t finish it.”
The Niners won for the fourth time in five starts this season with backup quarterback Mac Jones playing in place of Brock Purdy.
San Francisco’s defense also shined despite losing All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner to an ankle injury last week and playing without star rusher Nick Bosa.
The 49ers made two key plays in the fourth quarter to maintain the lead. The Falcons led 13-10 and got a third-and-1 at the San Francisco 35. But the Niners stopped Bijan Robinson for no gain, then Chase Lucas broke up a pass from Michael Penix Jr. to Drake London on fourth down to end the threat.
“Anytime you get a chance to throw it to one of your best players, you feel pretty good,” coach Raheem Morris said. “They played a great game.”
San Francisco then moved the ball downfield before Jones hit McCaffrey on a 17-yard pass on third-and-14 to go down to the 4 against a defense that had just 10 men on the field.
“It was absolutely embarrassing,” Morris said. “It was my fault. I’m going to get it fixed.”
McCaffrey then scored on the next play with help from rookie offensive lineman Connor Colby, who hauled it into the end zone in a move that is technically a penalty but was almost never called.
“I wouldn’t say worn,” Colby said. “His legs were still moving. I was just helping him.”
Jones threw for just 152 yards with one interception after averaging a league-high 313 yards through the air in his first four starts.
Penix finished 21 of 38 for 241 yards with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Robinson, but the Falcons offense managed just two scores on nine drives.
The running game helped San Francisco take a 7-3 lead on a 1-yard run by McCaffrey and the pass rush helped make the score 10-3 at halftime.
Bryce Huff’s sack of Penix set up Eddy Pineiro’s 55-yard field goal. San Francisco then forced Penix into an intentional ground penalty when Atlanta was within field goal range, leading to a 10-second run off that ended the half.
Falcons: LB Divine Deablo (forearm) left the game in the first half and did not return.
49ers: C Jake Brendel (hamstring) and CB Renardo Green (toe) left in the first half and did not return.
Falcons: Host Miami on Sunday.
49ers: At Houston on Sunday.
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