San Francisco 49ers

Cardinals vs. 49ers: The Good, Bad and Ugly in Week 5 from San Francisco

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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The San Francisco 49ers couldn’t pull off an upset against the visiting Arizona Cardinals and fell 33-21. Niner Noise looks at the good, bad and ugly from San Francisco’s Week 5 defeat.

October 6, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver John Brown (12) is tackled by San Francisco 49ers cornerback Rashard Robinson (33) during the first quarter at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

For nearly two quarters, signs were pointing to a very possible San Francisco 49ers upset over the scuffling Arizona Cardinals on Thursday Night Football.

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With both offenses struggling, the Niners opened up the scoring with a seven-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Blaine Gabbert to wide receiver Jeremy Kerley.

But the feel-good moments didn’t last long. And 49ers mistakes began to pile up, which ultimately led to San Francisco’s 33-21 defeat in a game which, seemingly, put Arizona back in the NFC West discussion.

The 49ers, now 1-4, could not take full advantage of a Cardinals team starting quarterback Drew Stanton over Carson Palmer (concussion).

Instead, an already depleted Niners team took multiple steps backwards as Arizona surged in the second half.

Niner Noise takes a look the Week 5 defeat and breaks down the good, the bad and the ugly.

Unfortunately, as has been the case ever since Week 1, the latter two categories will draw the most focus.

Oct 6, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jeremy Kerley (17) scores a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals during the second quarter at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

The Good

Are there any silver linings for San Francisco from Thursday night?

If so, we can take a look at first downs. The Niners managed 25 of them, which is the most head coach Chip Kelly’s squad has had since the Week 1 victory over the Los Angeles Rams.

San Francisco also had its first 100-plus yard receiver for a game, in Jeremy Kerley, who managed 108 yards on eight receptions with a touchdown on the night. And running back Carlos Hyde found the end zone again for his team-leading sixth touchdown of the year.

On defense, rookie cornerback Rashard Robinson continues to showcase why he belongs in a starting role moving forward. Robinson allowed just 11 yards on 31 coverage snaps on the night, per Mike Renner of Pro Football Focus.

Robinson should be starting over veteran corner Tramaine Brock, who we’ll get to shortly.

And, one could suppose, quarterback Blaine Gabbert’s 70 rushing yards on 10 attempts plus a end-zone score on the ground could be viewed as good, right?

Anything else? Not really.

Oct 6, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Blaine Gabbert (2) after an Arizona Cardinals safety during the fourth quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Arizona Cardinals defeated the San Francisco 49ers 33-21. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

The Bad

Even with the Niners converting 25 first downs, Blaine Gabbert and the offense still managed to go only 4-of-14 on third-down attempts.

Not exactly a winning formula.

Oct 6, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers cornerback Tramaine Brock (26) breaks up the pass intended for Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Jaron Brown (13) at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Gabbert finished with just 162 passing yards on 18 completions. While his touchdown pass to wideout Jeremy Kerley was a well-executed play above anything else, Gabbert’s two interceptions speak to the kinds of problems the 49ers’ No. 1 signal-caller is dealing with.

Oh, and Gabbert finished with a 56.1 passer rating on the night.

Saying Gabbert isn’t the long-term answer is redundant. Week 5 provided even more evidence of this, but it’s not as if the Niners have an ideal answer right now.

In total, San Francisco turned the ball over three times — not a winning formula for a team struggling on both sides of the ball against a Cardinals team, which on paper at least, is far superior to anything the 49ers can field.

We mentioned why rookie corner Rashard Robinson should start. And veteran corner Tramaine Brock is helping that cause, albeit not in the ideal way.

Brock gave up two touchdowns on the night. And the first, where he was easily beaten by Arizona wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald in the red zone, speaks to why Brock is becoming more of a liability than anything else.

And this is why Cardinals quarterback Drew Stanton, even with fewer passing yards under his belt (124) managed to outplay Gabbert.

Those two TD grabs proved to be the difference in the game. Well, at least on the scoreboard.

October 6, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Arizona Cardinals running back David Johnson (31) runs against San Francisco 49ers strong safety Jaquiski Tartt (29) and free safety Eric Reid (35) during the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Cardinals defeated the 49ers 33-21. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The Ugly

San Francisco’s special teams should either force themselves to watch film from this game on repeat between now and Week 6. Or they should erase the performance from memory altogether.

October 6, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald (11) catches a touchdown pass against the San Francisco 49ers during the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Cardinals defeated the 49ers 33-21. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Poor kick coverage, a fumble on the second-half opening kickoff return by Chris Davis or a costly running-into-the-kicker on a field-goal attempt all led to the Niners’ debacle here.

The 49ers committed just four penalties on the night. But they were costly. And this Niners team simply isn’t equipped to overcome such issues.

What about those issues? Well, San Francisco’s run defense isn’t going to climb out of it’s last place stand (140.5 yards against per game entering Week 5) after giving up 157 rushing yards and two touchdowns to Cardinals running back David Johnson.

Call it scheme, call it a lack of run-stoppers or call it sloppy execution, the Niners run defense stinks. And the rest of the league knows it.

Johnson was the lone reliable weapon with which Arizona could have come away with the victory. Feeding him worked.

On the flip side of the ball, San Francisco allowed a whopping seven sacks. This is more than double than the number allowed all season up to this point. Right tackle Trent Brown continues to be a liability in the running game, and his pass protection wasn’t much better.