San Francisco, CA
Kurtenbach: Clinching the No. 1 seed early is exactly what the doctor ordered for the 49ers
How much better are the 49ers than the rest of the NFC?
San Francisco didn’t need a full regular season to clinch the conference’s top playoff seed.
The Niners, by pairing their own 27-10 win over Washington with an improbable Arizona Cardinals win over the Eagles, clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs Sunday, giving them home-field advantage up to the Super Bowl and a coveted playoff bye week.
Oh, and by clinching the top seed with a week of the regular season still to be played, the Niners effectively picked up another bye week in the process.
That’s not a bad way to end the year.
It’s also downright domination over the competition — the kind that, even with all his success, we haven’t seen in Kyle Shanahan’s tenure as the 49ers’ head coach.
Sure, there was a bit of luck involved in the process. The 49ers huddled in front of cell phones and a small TV in the corner of the visitor’s locker room to watch the Cardinals, a 13-point underdog, drive down the field in the final minutes to beat Philadelphia, the one team who could have taken the top seed from the Niners in the final week.
“Thank you, Cardinals,” Niners linebacker Fred Warner said, grinning from ear to ear.
The next two weeks will be a well-deserved — and much-needed — rest for the Niners.
Like any team that has played professional football for 17 weeks, the Niners’ roster is rife with bruises, scrapes, sprains, strains, and general pains. They even picked up a few more in Washington, with star running back and MVP candidate Christian McCaffrey spraining his calf and missing most of the second half.
Every team in the league could use a break. The Niners need the time off more than most.
San Francisco has the best roster in the NFL, but it’s top-heavy.
NFL teams love to ascribe to a “next-man-up” mentality, but the Niners are beyond that. They’re realistic — they know they need their stars on the field to win the Super Bowl.
These next two weeks will give them a great chance at having just that.
McCaffrey’s injury is unlikely to prove problematic with the Niners not playing another meaningful game until Jan. 20, at the earliest.
The break gives left tackle Trent Williams, who pushed through a groin injury to play in Washington, plenty of time to get right.
Defensive tackle Arik Armstead, who has missed the last four games with a foot injury, should be expected back for the playoffs, too. His absence has been glaring.
And Brock Purdy, who picked up shoulder stingers in back-to-back games coming into this week, can give that injury some attention now, too.
“Guys had to push through it at a number of spots. Hopefully, this will help them out,” Shanahan said.
Even the drop-off from lesser-known players to their backups has been massive for the 49ers.
Already a backup himself, safety Ji’Ayir Brown, a rookie, missed the game in Washington with a knee sprain. Brown’s replacement, veteran Logan Ryan, was signed at the beginning of December while on a cruise vacation with his family. He still looked like he was on vacation on Sunday.
Wide receiver Jauan Jennings doesn’t play many snaps, but his absence due to a concussion the last few weeks has shown how valuable he is when he does play. His blocking cannot be replicated by backups Ronnie Bell or Chris Conley, and his knack for getting open on third downs and in close-quarters situations was seriously missed on Sunday, despite the Niners’ comfortable win. San Francisco’s offense hasn’t looked fully operational without him.
Those guys aren’t Pro Bowlers, but they are two players San Francisco needs in the postseason. Thanks to Sunday’s events, they should be good to play the next time a Niners game matters.
Of course, with all good things, there is a downside.
The Niners need to figure out the appropriate way to handle this final regular-season game against the Rams — a contest Los Angeles might not care about, either.
“We’ll definitely try to rest some guys. But you can’t rest everybody,” Shanahan said. “You don’t have enough players.”
Indeed, like every other contest, the Niners can only make seven players inactive for the Week 18 game. Expect Williams and McCaffrey to be on that list. Purdy might join it, too, which would see him inhabit a role his injury in last year’s NFC Championship Game helped bring back to the league — emergency quarterback. (That role would make him inactive to start the contest but available to play should his two backups become injured or disqualified.)
But just because stars like George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, and Fred Warner haven’t been on the Niners’ injury report lately doesn’t mean they couldn’t use some rest, either. Everyone is injured at this juncture in the season — it’s merely a question of how severe the injury is.
Ultimately, some starters are going to need to play. The Niners will have 45 active non-specialist players for a game where 22 players must be on the field. Figuring out a way to keep those starters healthy while still having them play in an NFL game will undoubtedly steal some hours of sleep from coaches this week.
The Niners must also deduce how to best prepare themselves for postseason play. With at least 19 days between Sunday’s win and the next game with stakes, “rust” will be the buzzword of the month in Santa Clara.
The Niners are fortunate, though — who better for Purdy and the offense to prepare against than the 49ers’ defense, and vice versa?
“We’re going to have a big week of practice,” Shanahan said. “We’ll figure out our roster as the week goes and figure out our roster for Sunday.”
“We gotta make sure we’re our best when our best is needed,” Warner said.
That ample meantime is a good time to reflect.
The last time the Niners were in a position to take the NFC’s top seed, back in 2019, they needed every second and inch of the field to clinch it. Dre Greenlaw’s fourth-down tackle of Seattle’s Jacob Hollister at the goal line will be remembered forever.
Sunday’s win will ultimately be forgettable, save for what it accomplished. San Francisco played a relatively mediocre game by their standards and still won by three scores. The Niners’ performance was perhaps written over by players, in real-time, as they watched Arizona drive down the field on those small screens.
But that 2019 Niners team that pushed it to the limit in the regular season played in the Super Bowl.
This team is appreciably better. And they should have no excuse not to be at their best come when that first playoff game finally comes to town.
San Francisco, CA
Dolphins keep playoff hopes alive with 29-17 win over 49ers, who were eliminated Sunday afternoon
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — – Tua Tagovailoa threw for 215 yards and a touchdown, Jason Sanders nailed five field goals, and the Miami Dolphins kept their playoff chances alive by beating the San Francisco 49ers 29-17 on Sunday.
The 49ers were eliminated from the playoffs before the game because of wins by the Los Angeles Rams and Washington Commanders earlier Sunday. The loss ensured that last year’s NFC champions will have a losing season for the first time since 2020.
The Dolphins (7-8) helped their chances of making the playoffs for a third straight season, but will need to win their final two games and get help from losses by the Broncos, Chargers and Colts for that to happen.
Trailing by nine early in the fourth, San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy found tight end Eric Saubert for a 2-yard score that cut the lead to 19-17, but the Niners couldn’t get past self-inflicted wounds.
After punting the ball back to Miami with 6:45 left, San Francisco was hit with consecutive penalties for illegal substitution, unnecessary roughness and offsides to give Miami 25 yards, helping set up Sanders’ 48-yard field goal that stretched the Dolphins’ lead to five.
The 49ers were penalized 11 times for 90 yards.
Cornerback Kader Kohou then intercepted Purdy on the next drive, after the quarterback was pressured by defensive tackle Calais Campbell. Dolphins running back De’Von Achane sealed it with a 50-yard touchdown run.
Tagovailoa finished 22 of 34. Purdy was 26 of 40 for 313 yards and two touchdowns.
Tyreek Hill’s inconsistent season continued. He caught just 3 of 7 targets for 29 yards and a touchdown, with drops on the first two drives of the game and another on a potential touchdown in the third.
Jonnu Smith caught six passes for 62 yards to set the Dolphins’ single-season franchise record for receptions (76) and receiving yards (802) by a tight end.
Sanders was 5 of 5, including a 54-yarder, which made him 11 of 13 on field goals of 50-plus yards this year. San Francisco’s Jake Moody missed a 41-yarder in the third.
Deebo Samuel caught his first touchdown since Week 6 on a 16-yard score in which he muscled through several defenders on his way into the end zone.
Miami moved into 49ers territory three times in the first half but settled for field goals before Hill’s 3-yard touchdown catch from Tagovailoa that put the Dolphins ahead with 3:20 left in the second.
Purdy then drove San Francisco 67 yards down the field to set up Moody’s 21-yard field goal to cut Miami’s lead to 13-10 at halftime.
Injuries
49ers: LB Dre Greenlaw (right calf), LG Aaron banks (knee) and LT Jaylon Moore (quad) left with injuries. … DE Leonard Floyd played through a shoulder injury suffered in the first quarter.
Dolphins: WR Jaylen Waddle did not play because of a knee injury suffered last week. … CB Kendall Fuller (knee) and LB Jordyn Brookes (quad/knee) left in the second half.
Up next
49ers: Host Detroit on Monday Dec. 30.
Dolphins: At Cleveland next Sunday.
——
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nflbr/]
Copyright © 2024 ESPN Internet Ventures. All rights reserved.
San Francisco, CA
SF is the only city where it's cheaper to buy a home now than in 2019
San Francisco is the only major U.S. city where it’s cheaper to buy a home now than it was five years ago, according to data from real estate listing site Zillow.
Of the 100 largest U.S. cities by population, San Francisco is the single example that saw home values fall between November 2019 and November 2024, based on what the company calls the “Zillow price index.”
The city saw the typical home price decline by 3.7% during that period. All other cities saw prices increase. Across the Bay, Oakland had the smallest increase, with the average home value rising 2.1%. Among other major U.S. cities, prices rose 37.58% in Los Angeles; 38.34% in Austin, and 69.26% in Miami.
Cheaper is one thing. But cheap? That’s a different story.
According to Zillow, the typical home value in San Francisco in November 2024 was $1.26 million, versus $1.31 million five years ago. In 2019, San Francisco had by far the highest typical home price across all major cities, coming in more than 30% over second-place San Jose.
In 2024, San Francisco was one of four cities, all in California, with typical home prices over $1 million.
Kara Ng, a senior economist at Zillow, said San Francisco was an outlier in the first place.
“Five years ago, San Francisco was far and away the most expensive city to buy a home in the U.S.,” Ng said, adding that the pandemic fueled the ability for a highly paid but price-constrained workforce to flock to more affordable areas.
San Francisco, CA
Drive-thru turkey drive in San Francisco collects holiday meals families in need
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Holiday help was there for a community in need.
A drive-thru turkey donation drive was held in San Francisco on Saturday, benefitting the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank. It brought a big donation response from the community, coming at a time when the need for food has never been greater.
Holiday turkeys and hams were arriving by the minute at a donation site near St. Emydius Church in San Francisco.
“Makes you feel good. That’s what you’re supposed to do,” said Ron Isola from Daly City.
The rainy weather didn’t stop anyone from showing up and helping out, especially Linda Peppars.
MORE: North Bay food bank issues holiday SOS for donations
“I live in the neighborhood and I just like helping people. God has blessed me. Why not bless other people? That’s the whole thing about life, especially today,” Peppars said.
It’s the 13th year for this turkey drive, started by volunteer Pierre Smit.
“I’m here from a different country. I came with nothing. If I had some some money, I would bring a few turkeys to St. Anthony’s,” Smit said.
It’s now a community-wide effort, benefitting the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank.
Hundreds of turkeys were donated, including lots of hams.
MORE: How Salvation Army’s Red Kettle campaign helps others achieve ‘2nd chance at a 1st-class life’
“We’re currently serving 50,000 households every week. These turkeys and hams will go to some of our agency partners who are putting on Christmas lunches and dinners,” Abbott said.
It comes at a critical time for most Bay Area food banks that responding to food insecurity.
One in six people in Santa Clara and San Mateo are getting help from Second Harvest of Silicon Valley.
That agency is feeding a half million people every month.
In Napa, demand for food assistance has tripled compared to this time last year, and the North Bay’s Redwood Empire Food Bank is serving thousands more families, just in the past five months.
MORE: Toys for Tots aiming to reach 70,000 gift goal in Alameda Co.
“Our number one concern is inflation. We purchase some of the food we distribute. It’s costing us two times what it did pre-pandemic,” Abbott said.
It’s why this food drive is so important.
“It’s hard. Everybody doesn’t have what you have and visa versa,” Peppers said.
As a show of thanks, everyone who donated got a round of applause from volunteers.
Copyright © 2024 KGO-TV. All Rights Reserved.
-
Politics1 week ago
Canadian premier threatens to cut off energy imports to US if Trump imposes tariff on country
-
Technology1 week ago
OpenAI cofounder Ilya Sutskever says the way AI is built is about to change
-
Politics1 week ago
U.S. Supreme Court will decide if oil industry may sue to block California's zero-emissions goal
-
Technology1 week ago
Meta asks the US government to block OpenAI’s switch to a for-profit
-
Business1 week ago
Freddie Freeman's World Series walk-off grand slam baseball sells at auction for $1.56 million
-
Technology1 week ago
Meta’s Instagram boss: who posted something matters more in the AI age
-
News1 week ago
East’s wintry mix could make travel dicey. And yes, that was a tornado in Calif.
-
Technology2 days ago
Google’s counteroffer to the government trying to break it up is unbundling Android apps