SANTA CLARA — It doesn't take analytics to figure out why a highly anticipated Christmas Eve showdown between the 49ers and Ravens turned into a rout in Baltimore.
The 49ers entered the Week 16 game with an NFL-best turnover difference plus 13, but on Monday night, they lost the battle 5-0. So, there's not much mystery behind the Ravens' 33-19 win at Levi's Stadium.
“I think when you turn the ball over five times, that's usually what happens,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Tuesday on a conference call with reporters. “You can't have five turnovers and not get anything. You can't get more than 100 yards in a shootout.” [the 49ers had 10 penalties for 102 yards]”.
San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy threw the worst four interceptions of his career. Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton picked off a Purdy pass in the end zone on the 49ers' first drive of the game, and the QB's next three picks — each on redirected pass attempts — were immediately picked off for 17 Baltimore points.
Each of Purdy's transformations was different, featuring a combination of bad decisions and bad luck.
Simple story, right?
“It was just a loss,” Shanahan said, declining to give a deeper meaning to the defeat that dropped the 49ers' record to 11-4 this season. “You play a good team and you have five substitutions and you get all those penalties, and that makes it difficult to win.”
The Ravens opened the game with a 17-point lead in the third quarter after taking a 16-12 lead at halftime. In addition to the giveaways, the 49ers packaged another touchdown for the Ravens when punter Mitch Wishnowsky was penalized 15 yards for a late hit out of bounds at the end of a 23-yard punt return early in the third quarter.
“When you play sloppy with those turnovers and those penalties and you play a good team, it makes it difficult to win,” Shanahan said.
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