Kyle Shanahan’s Genius Play-Calling Lifts Mac Jones Despite Painful Hits

• Jones’ evening ended fittingly. After his back was wrenched while he was sandwiched on a third-down incompletion in overtime, he was doubled over in pain and appeared to be dry heaving as backup QB Adrian Martinez assisted him to the sideline.

Martinez appeared destined to throw his first career regular-season pass more than once Thursday due to Jones’ physical issues. Linebackers coach Johnny Holland gave Martinez a go-get-’em pat on the shoulder pads when Jones stayed down after he was drilled by Young. And Shanahan began searching his call sheet for Martinez-friendly plays after being told late in the game that Jones couldn’t continue due to severe cramping in his right forearm.

Running back Christian McCaffrey termed Jones an “absolute warrior.” And Jones’ ability to play through pain wasn’t the only example of his leadership. After Bourne dropped a 3rd-and-5 slant in the second quarter, Jones ran directly to him, patted him on the helmet and offered words of encouragement. Jones also is earning points in the locker room for accountability: He blamed himself for the lone sack the 49ers allowed (which came in OT) because he was indecisive.

“I gave up one sack at the end,” Jones said.

• It almost ended very poorly for Jones. With the score tied at 20 with three minutes left in regulation, he was fooled on 3rd-and-11 from the Rams’ 41, one snap before Eddy Piñeiro drilled his 59-yard field goal.

Linebacker Josaiah Stewart crept to the line of scrimmage before the snap, showing blitz, before he dropped into coverage — and dropped the pass Jones threw directly to him. Jones was targeting tight end Jake Tonges with a short, over-the-middle throw to set up a more manageable attempt for Piñeiro, but he failed to see Stewart. And he didn’t locate Curl, who was also in position for a pick if his teammate wasn’t in his way.

• Stewart’s drop was part of a forgettable evening in pass coverage for Rams linebackers. Jones completed 9 of 13 passes for 92 yards and a touchdown when targeting Stewart, Omar Speights, Troy Reeder and Landman.

The Rams don’t invest heavily in linebackers as part of a roster-building philosophy that emphasizes their front four, the primary reason Los Angeles entered Thursday ranked second in the NFL in sacks. And Shanahan’s opening-game brilliance — the 49ers had 163 net yards on 25 plays on their back-to-back TD drives — featured plenty of quick passes that neutralized Los Angeles’ pass rush and often exposed the second level of its defense.

Jones completed 11 of 13 passes for 131 yards on the first two possessions and his average depth of target on his completions was 4.9 yards. On his first scoring pass, a 6-yarder to Tonges, the tight end was left uncovered in the middle of the end zone because Speights vacated the area to cover McCaffrey in the right flat. On Jones’ second TD toss, McCaffrey, aligned in the left slot, easily beat Reeder’s 1-on-1 coverage for a 1-yard grab in the corner of the end zone.

•  The 49ers’ first two drives began a theme. The Rams managed just one sack and Jones was 16 of 19 for 157 yards on throws that were less than 10 yards downfield between the numbers, according to Pro Football Focus.

So why did the 49ers manage only four field goals in their final eight drives after scoring 14 points on their first two possessions? Part of the answer: Shanahan came out swinging and used the most diabolical calls on his laminated, color-coded, front-and-back sheet with much of his first-string offense sidelined.

On the first drive, Jones faked a screen left to McCaffrey, faked a screen right to running back Brian Robinson and pirouetted before delivering a 6-yard completion to Tonges. On the next possession, Shanahan called a double-reverse, flea-flicker that ended with Jones throwing a throwback screen to McCaffrey that gained 8 yards.

• Rams coach Sean McVay blamed himself for his team’s failed final snap: The 49ers defense walked it off by stuffing running back Kyren Williams on 4th-and-1 from the 49ers’ 11-yard line.  

“The play selection was very poor,” McVay said. “I’m sick right now because I put our players in a s—y spot and I have to live with that.”

McVay was likely kicking himself because he basically ran the same play on 3rd-and-1 with 12 minutes left in regulation and on 4th-and-1 in the second quarter. On each play, the Rams overloaded one side of their offensive line with tight end Davis Allen and wide receivers Puka Nacua and Jordan Whittington bunched together outside the tackle.

In the fourth quarter, the threesome was on the right side, as they were in overtime, and Whittington, who was aligned outside Nacua, motioned inside to serve as the lead blocker. In the fourth quarter, it worked: Williams gained 3 yards over the right side. In the second quarter, when Allen, Nacua and Whittington were on the left side, it also worked: Williams gained 4 yards up the middle.

Given that, linebacker Fred Warner’s response makes sense when he was asked if he worried about QB Matthew Stafford throwing on 4th-and-1 in overtime.

“You could just tell the way that they lined up that they were going to run the ball,” Warner said. “Sometimes you can just tell if they line up and (the formation is) a little bit looser — you might have a chance to have some sort of play-action pass on that play. But you could tell by the way they came out that they were going to run.”