49ers can’t get too high despite handling Giants, as injury strikes yet again

“The ruling on the field is that a New York Giants player — both of them — ran into the returner.”

That was referee John Hussey on Sunday, pointing out a Giants blunder in their 34-24 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Correction: That was Hussey pointing out one of the Giants’ many blunders on Sunday.

Their injury-riddled secondary left one of the NFL’s leading receivers, Christian McCaffrey, completely uncovered twice, once on a 5-yard touchdown in the first quarter, then on a 39-yard catch-and-run in the fourth quarter, his longest play of the season. McCaffrey finished with 106 rushing yards, 67 receiving yards and scored both a rushing and receiving touchdown for an NFL-record 16th time in his career.

The Giants also missed a field goal, committed back-to-back false start penalties and seemed to have trouble handling the crowd noise from visiting 49ers fans.

“That was interesting,” Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart said. “I’ve never played at a home game where I felt like it was kind of lopsided in that department.”

And, as Hussey noted, a pair of Giants special teamers steamrolled their own return man, Gunner Olszewski, while he was looking up for the ball in the third quarter.

All of which is to say: The 49ers are unlikely to be overconfident about their season-high in points scored, their 380 total yards or their victory. Their defense still lapsed at the start and end of the game, they allowed 5.6 yards per carry and, most damning of all, an already-battered defensive line lost another key cog, Mykel Williams, perhaps for the season.

General manager John Lynch was still checking on trade possibilities even after acquiring defensive lineman Keion White from New England last week. Now, he might have to double his efforts ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline. The 49ers lost Nick Bosa for the season in Week 3 and on Saturday placed Yetur Gross-Matos on injured reserve after he aggravated a hamstring injury in Thursday’s practice.

As a result, White, who arrived Wednesday, played more than 30 snaps while another newcomer, Clelin Ferrell, played roughly 20. Ferrell, who was called up from the practice squad Sunday and had one of the team’s two sacks, could get a permanent elevation if, as feared, Williams is out for the season.

It’s entirely possible there will be another newcomer on the field with Ferrell and White next Sunday, when they host the Los Angeles Rams.

Before Williams’ injury, which came with around four minutes remaining and San Francisco up by 17, it seemed as if things finally might be getting better for the 49ers and their decimated roster.

Receiver Jauan Jennings, who’s been on the team’s injury report from the opener in Seattle onward, seemed closer to his old self on Sunday, catching two early third-down passes, including one for an 11-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

A healthy Jennings gives the 49ers an excellent option on third downs and also strengthens their running game. Their 159 ground yards Sunday was their second-highest total of the season behind the 174 yards they rolled up two weeks ago against the Atlanta Falcons. And with Ricky Pearsall and Brandon Aiyuk inching closer to returning, there’s a chance the team’s top pass catchers — including McCaffrey and George Kittle — could be together in the coming weeks for the first time this season.

The defense, meanwhile, started sleepily — the Giants opened the game with a 10-play touchdown drive — just like it did last week in Houston. Unlike a week ago, however, Robert Saleh’s unit woke up, especially middle linebacker Tatum Bethune, who finished with a career-best 16 tackles.

Though he had 14 against the Texans, many of those stops occurred well downfield, and his most visible play came when he stopped covering running back Woody Marks on a play on which Marks picked up 50 yards. Bethune looked recharged and in charge Sunday, with coach Kyle Shanahan saying afterward that even the linebacker’s one apparent blemish, an illegal hit on Dart, didn’t appear to be a penalty from his vantage point.

“He’s got a good real knack for playing football in terms of (being) in the box and making tackles,” Shanahan said. “I think he’s getting better and better in the pass game, and he had some big hits today. I can’t say enough good things about Tatum today.”

The 49ers’ coaches won’t like that Bethune and his mates couldn’t put away Dart and a weaponless Giants offense late in the game. Nearly half of New York’s total yards — and two of its three touchdowns — came on a pair of fourth-quarter drives.

Still, the busts that were prevalent against the Texans were kept to a minimum Sunday. And after the initial drive, the defense had good energy despite being on the longest trip of the schedule and a second straight 10 a.m. body-clock kickoff.

“We definitely did better,” said Shanahan, who noted he’s giving his players their first “victory Monday” of the year this week. “It still looked like we missed some tackles out there, got a little loose, especially there at the end, giving up some big plays. I wish we didn’t let them get in the end zone there at the end, but I was always real happy with the defense overall.”

The problem is every victory this season has been accompanied by a tough injury, whether it was Kittle and quarterback Brock Purdy in Week 1, Bosa and Pearsall in Week 3, Bryce Huff in Week 7 and now, perhaps, Williams in Week 9.

The 49ers can never get too high after a win because an injury always lays them low.

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