Broncos come-from-behind to top 49ers in punt-fest, 11-10
Russell Wilson and the Denver Broncos won the battle of futile offenses Sunday night, knocking off the San Francisco 49ers, 11-10.
In front of a national audience, the Broncos and 49ers combined for 17 punts on Sunday night, and neither team surpassed 300 total yards of offense in the defensive struggle.
San Francisco opened the scoring near the midway point of the first quarter when Jimmy Garoppolo found Brandon Aiyuk on a three-yard touchdown pass to put the 49ers up 7-0.
Wilson and the Broncos finally got on the board, capping off their first drive of the second quarter with a Brad McManus 55-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 7-3 at halftime.
The Broncos continued to carve into the 49ers' lead early in the second half after a blunder by Garoppolo. Backed up in their own end, Garoppolo mistakenly stepped out of the back of the endzone for a safety, helping Denver climb to within two points of San Francisco at 7-5.
Robbie Gould gave the 49ers some breathing room as the third quarter expired, nailing a 51-yard field goal to increase their lead to 10-5 heading into the fourth quarter.
With the Broncos still trailing 10-5 with just over 10 minutes to go in the fourth, Denver put together their longest drive of the game. Wilson orchestrated a 12-play, 80-yard touchdown drive culminating with a one-yard score by running back Melvin Gordon.
On the ensuing possession, Garoppolo drove the 49ers down to the Denver 42-yard before a pass intended for wideout Deebo Samuel was tipped and intercepted by Jonas Griffith.
The 49ers would get one more chance, but Broncos forced a fumble by Jeff Wilson with 1:15 to go, sealing the victory for Denver.
Denver improves to 2-1 on the season. Next week, the Broncos travel to take on the NFL's only three-loss team, the Las Vegas Raiders, next Sunday.
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