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The San Francisco 49ers dominated the Los Angeles Rams in their first game of the 2026 regular season. While things will change a lot between the end of Week 1 and the end of the regular season, it is always fun to extrapolate after the first week and have some initial overreactions.
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5 Overreactions to San Francisco 49ers Week 1 Win Against Los Angeles Rams
Brock Purdy will have a career year
If the first week of the season is any indication, Purdy is going to have a great season. The Rams have a talented defense, and Purdy threw for three touchdowns with a 73% completion rate.
The 49ers skill players are mostly healthy, and Purdy distributed the ball around well. Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel, and Demarcus Robinson all caught touchdowns. When Purdy is healthy and he has skill players who can make plays, he always performs well. This could be a great season.
Kaelon Black will eat into Christian McCaffrey’s workload all season
The 49ers drafted Black to back up McCaffrey and take some work away from him. They leaned on him too much last year and need to keep him fresh. However, Black looked so good in his rookie debut that the split might be bigger than we initially realized.
McCaffrey was still highly efficient with 10 rushes for 68 yards and five catches for 20 yards. Still, McCaffrey averaged 24 touches per game last year, so 15 is quite the drop.
With 15 touches for 70 yards, Black showed they can keep this split.
Mike Evans will be an All-Pro
If Evans is healthy, the 49ers offense will go through him. The team did not use him much in the second half, but he finished with six catches for 49 yards and a touchdown. If Evans looks like this, the 49ers are going to get a massive season from him.
George Kittle’s best days are behind him
Kittle was targeted five times and had two catches for 12 yards. He looked a bit slow. While he is fresh off an Achilles injury, the reality is that it might take more than a couple of weeks for him to get back to his old ways.
Fred Warner could win DPOY
The defense looks completely different with Warner on the field. He had 11 tackles and set the tone. If the unit plays like this all season, Warner is going to get the credit for the turnaround.
Today’s best reads
- 10 Players Who Will Define 49ers’ 2026 Season
- Grading the 49ers After Their 27-7 Win Over the Rams in Australia
- Why the 49ers Will Need to Rely on Their Offense to Win Week 1
- 10 Biggest Takeaways From 49ers Week 1 Australia Win vs. Rams
- The 5 Greatest Strengths of the 49ers Heading Into 2026
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/49ers/onsi as 5 Bold 49ers Overreactions After Dominant Week 1 Win.
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