49ers' injuries make nightmare Christmas that much worse

The San Francisco 49ers fell completely flat in primetime as they suffered an emphatic 33-19 defeat to the Baltimore Ravens in their Christmas Day blockbuster.

Brock Purdy had no answer for a swarming Ravens defense and tossed four interceptions in a performance that may well put an end to his hopes of winning the MVP.

But of greater concern to the 49ers and to Purdy will be the latest injury to All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams and several other offensive linemen.

Williams left the game in the third quarter with a groin injury and did not return, with Kyle Shanahan revealing afterward that the trainer advised him against it.

The 10-time Pro Bowler is an integral piece of the 49er offense. He missed two games earlier in the season because of an ankle injury. San Francisco lost both those games.

Purdy was already enduring a chastening evening before Williams left the game.

Without him, the 49ers' quarterback was under near-constant duress and left the game himself in the fourth quarter after suffering a recurrence of a stinger. He was cleared but did not return.

Williams' replacement Jaylon Moore suffered a concussion, forcing the 49ers to move guard Spencer Burford to right tackle and shift Colton McKivitz to left tackle. They then lost left guard Aaron Banks late on to a toe injury, with Ben Bartch taking his place.

San Francisco faces the Washington Commanders on the road on a short week on Sunday, meaning the 49ers are pressed for time to get any of those players back for a game they can't afford to lose.

The 49ers will still clinch the number one seed in the NFC if they beat Washington and the Los Angeles Rams to finish the regular season, but that task becomes much harder if Purdy is forced to play behind a decimated O-Line.

Games in which Purdy endures the dreadful luck with deflections that he did on three of his interceptions are likely to be rare. Conventional wisdom suggests he should be able to brush his Christmas horror show off.

However, a sudden lack of options on the O-Line is a significantly harder problem to overcome, and the 49ers must cross their fingers and hope that they get good news on Williams and Banks on Tuesday.