49ers grades: The latest on Brock Purdy’s injuries, Jake Moody’s status, and more

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Sunday’s win by the 49ers over the Seattle Seahawks came at a cost. That much was apparent in the locker room after the game.

And on his day-after conference call with reporters, coach Kyle Shanahan revealed that the 49ers took even more significant damage than they initially realized in the Pacific Northwest: Quarterback Brock Purdy suffered shoulder and toe injuries, both of which are threatening his ability to play Sunday in New Orleans.

Shanahan said Purdy’s toe injury is more serious than his shoulder issue, which is on the left, non-throwing shoulder. Purdy suffered that one when a Seahawks defender drove him into the ground on a first-half pass attempt to receiver Ricky Pearsall.

The 49ers will continue evaluating Purdy over the next couple of days. If he can’t go against the Saints, Mac Jones will start.

“If he has to go this week, he’ll lead the guys, guys will believe in him, and he’ll do his job at a really high level,” Shanahan said of the backup.

Here are snap counts, grades, and further injury tidbits covering the entire 49ers roster exiting their Week 1 win.

Quarterback: Purdy (76 snaps)
Game grade: A-

The narratives around Purdy seem to again be barreling out of control. Was he perfect? Of course not. Everyone saw his two interceptions. But he dropped back to pass 42 times. He made the correct decision about 40 of those times. The result: an efficiency-and-accuracy composite that ranked No. 3 in the NFL this weekend, behind Lamar Jackson and Jordan Love.

Purdy guided a comeback victory without Deebo Samuel (who scored a touchdown in a productive first game for the Washington Commanders), his top receivers from 2023 and 2024 (Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings), and his all-world tight end (Kittle). Seattle also pressured Purdy on nearly 58% of snaps, the highest rate of the young QB's career.

And Purdy still managed top-flight efficiency numbers against what looks like it will be one of the NFL’s best defenses. This game illustrated why Shanahan and general manager John Lynch were so bullish on paying Purdy this past offseason. Now they’re crossing their fingers for QB health in Week 2.

Running back: Christian McCaffrey (58), Brian Robinson Jr. (18), Kyle Juszczyk (37)
Game grade: A-

Never in doubt, right? McCaffrey reassumed workhorse duties, although Robinson did spell him throughout the game. The 49ers’ run game never truly clicked, finishing at only 3.2 yards per carry. But there were clearly some run-blocking struggles and it's way too early to pass judgment on a complex outside-zone blocking operation after just one game.

Only this much is certain: McCaffrey remains Purdy’s favorite target. He caught a team-high nine passes and led the way with 143 all-purpose yards. The lead-up to Sunday was dramatic for the outside (fantasy football) world, but McCaffrey remains one of the game’s best players when healthy. He topped 4,500 career receiving yards Sunday (4,539), becoming the fastest running back to reach that mark since at least 1970.

Now, wait until McCaffrey has more running room.

Wide receiver: Ricky Pearsall (64), Jauan Jennings (50), Russell Gage (28), Marquez Valdes-Scantling (27), Skyy Moore (3)
Game grade: A

Pearsall and Purdy, locked in over training camp, picked up right where they left off. The receiver’s four catches for 108 yards all came on anticipatory throws. A consistent month-plus of practice has done wonders for Pearsall.

Now, consider the benefits if this continues: Brandon Aiyuk will be able to ease back into action when ready if Pearsall can continue lifting this much weight. And then that duo can theoretically spearhead a very potent receiving corps featuring the likes of new signee Kendrick Bourne.

There’s no firm update yet on Jennings, who hurt his shoulder Sunday. But Shanahan did say Jennings has a chance to return this week.

Tight end: Luke Farrell (44), Jake Tonges (30), George Kittle (21)
Game grade: A

Kittle, as expected, was a major part of Shanahan’s game plan, so his hamstring injury threw a big wrench into the 49ers’ day. But Farrell, who recovered from early false start penalty, and Tonges saved it.

The loss of Kittle certainly contributed to the 49ers’ run-blocking woes. And Farrell is still new to the scheme, although Shanahan is confident he has the physical skillset to ultimately replicate what tight end Charlie Woerner brought the 49ers at the No. 2 tight end position. But better overall run blocking is the clear next step for the offense.

Kittle is expected to miss three to five weeks with his hamstring injury, making him a candidate for injured reserve — which carries a four-game minimum.

Offensive line: Trent Williams (75), Ben Bartch (76), Jake Brendel (76), Dominick Puni (75), Colton McKivitz (76), Connor Colby (1), Spencer Burford (1)
Game grade: D

The 49ers earned “A” grades at all the offensive skill positions yet managed only 17 points. How is that possible?

Of course, special teams did leave six points on the table. But another culprit was undoubtedly the offensive line, which couldn't establish a consistent advantage over Seattle's defensive front.

When the 49ers can’t establish a run game, they’re especially vulnerable to aggressive pass rushers. And the Seahawks unloaded downhill pressure on Purdy throughout the afternoon, racking up 21 pressures and harassing the QB on most of his drop backs.

Yes, it’s surprising to see Williams struggle the way he did. But it’s not yet time to panic. He did miss a snap after going into the injury tent early and might still need to knock off in-game rust after not playing in the preseason. A one-game judgment on a future Hall of Famer would be foolish, but the 49ers can’t forget that Williams is 37 years old.

The 49ers simply weren’t cohesive enough in their blocking. But much credit there should also go to Seattle coach Mike Macdonald, who’s known for dialing up customized and challenging pressures. That’s especially hard for an O-line to handle in Week 1.

Defensive line: Nick Bosa (46), Mykel Williams (39), Bryce Huff (26), Jordan Elliott (25), Kalia Davis (24), Yetur Gross-Matos (17), Sam Okuayinonu (15), Alfred Collins (9), CJ West (7)
Game grade: A

The 49ers’ entire offseason renovation revolved around improving their run defense, which ranked No. 29 in expected points added last season. Even with defensive coordinator Robert Saleh back aboard, there were doubts that they’d be able to show enough improvement against a run-heavy Seattle team in Week 1.

I’ll be honest: Some of those doubts came from me, and I was wrong. The 49ers saw immediate return on their investments, holding Seattle to 3.2 yards per carry. Williams, the rookie first-round pick, set a firm edge. And although he hasn't yet refined his pass-rushing moves, Williams did command some double teams — including on the play that featured Bosa's game-winning strip-sack.

Bosa, of course, was the standout star. But less heralded names such as Davis (pronounced tackle for loss after bowling through Seahawks right guard Anthony Bradford) and Okuayinonu (big-time strip of Seattle receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba did work, too.

Rule of thumb: A defense that sees its No. 8 lineman force a game-changing fumble is usually a defense that's playing with great effort.

Linebackers: Dee Winters (52), Fred Warner (46), Luke Gifford (23), Tatum Bethune (3)
Game grade: A

The 49ers blitzed Seahawks QB Sam Darnold on 28% of drop backs, which is a big uptick from their passive ways of 2024 (17% blitz rate). But the splits are even more staggering. According to Pro Football Focus, Saleh blitzed just 15% of the time on early downs and 63% of the time on third and fourth downs (five of eight times)

Winters, especially, was deployed with great frequency — and he delivered easily the best game of his career.

Cornerbacks: Deommodore Lenoir (51), Renardo Green (51), Upton Stout (29)
Game grade: A

Lenoir spent much of the 2025 offseason talking trash to the Seahawks, especially Smith-Njigba. He followed that up by not allowing a single catch into his coverage over 28 snaps. It was very Richard Sherman-esque of Lenoir.

Darnold's damage came throwing against Green (who surrendered the 40-yarder to Smith-Njigba on the final drive) and the rookie Stout, who rebounded from a pair of first-half mistakes to notch a critical pass break-up on that final drive.

Safeties: Jason Pinnock (52), Marques Sigle (52)
Game grade: A

This is the fastest starting safety duo in 49ers history, and they played like it. Pinnock crashed in like a missile for an early run stop. Sigle racked up a handful of tackles and even impressed the 49ers when he maintained good form on his one missed tackle, not allowing any leaky yardage.

Sigle’s hustle enabled him to recover the fumble that Okuayinonu caused. That was a huge moment late in the 49ers' sterling defensive effort.

Special teams grade: F

Yeah, that was brutal. And there’s a chance kicker Jake Moody doesn’t have a job come Week 2.

“There are options; whether it’s to stay status quo, we could bring in guys for workouts, [for the] practice squad,” Shanahan said Monday. “I know the personnel department is going to look into all that stuff and give us those options.”

Stay tuned.