Two quarters after head coach Kyle Shanahan’s exquisite play-calling made life relatively easy for Mac Jones, the San Francisco 49ers quarterback’s existence became uncomfortable and then, ultimately, excruciating.
Payton & Nix Comments Could Foreshadow a Big Courtland Sutton Day in Philly
Posted October 5, 2025
Veteran wide receiver Courtland Sutton's importance to Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix was reflected in the four-year, $92 million extension he received this past summer. Their chemistry together has paid off in back-to-back games.
The Broncos' undisputed No. 1 receiver has delivered big numbers, grabbing 11 balls for 199 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Sutton made a huge difference-maker against the Cincinnati Bengals last week, excelling as a big-bodied go-to guy who comes down with the ball in the red zone.
Sutton is a bona fide X-factor, impressing Broncos head coach Sean Payton. Sutton offers Payton a deep bag of tools to go to in the red zone.
“He has a handful of his traits, relative to how he prepares, is fantastic. He’s strong with strong hands in traffic, and in the red zone, there’s generally traffic," Payton said of Sutton. "So it favors certain players, and then there’s certain players maybe it doesn’t favor as much. He’s one of those guys, and we’ve seen a number of times it’s kind of covered, traffic, and yet he can high-point a ball and catch it properly.”
Sutton uses his total package of physical abilities to outmuscle defenders for scores in the red zone, which was on display on Monday night in his touchdown just before the half against the Bengals.
Sutton paid the price physically, as he landed heavily on his back in the end zone, but his quarterback fully appreciates the selfless and clutch receiver he has at his disposal.
“It’s great. He’s an experienced guy who understands defenses, understands space and time," Nix said about Sutton on Thursday. "He’s got great body control. When one-on-one, you can literally throw it up to him. You feel comfortable that he is going to come down with it, but he’s just wise beyond his years. He allows us to scheme him up. He’s a smart football player, and I mean, he’s proven it time and time again. He forces teams to really take him away, and it’s our job to get him open.”
Scheming to get Sutton open when the Broncos' offense is under the shadow of the goalposts will be more difficult against Vic Fangio's defense this Sunday in Philadelphia. If the .500 Broncos are going to take down the currently
undefeated Philadelphia Eagles, they'll have to capitalize on any opportunities in the red zone.
Sutton will be the major focal point for the Broncos' passing offense when they get inside the 20-yard line, so he knows that doing his homework will make all the difference when his number gets called.
“What they do well in the field is just amplified. I was just talking to someone earlier today about how when Coach [Vic] Fangio was here, that was one thing that if we were not statistically in a high category anywhere else in terms of team stats, red zone defense was always something he did a really good job at," Sutton said on Thursday. "I think it’s the way he coaches it. He’s a really good teacher... It will be on us to make sure that we are sound in our technique, our execution, the game plan, and going out there and taking advantage of the opportunities that come when they do come. They do a really good job of making sure they are sound in that part of the field.”
One of the most compelling subplots on Sunday will be how Fangio tries to nullify the Nix-to-Sutton connection. Fortunately, everyone within the Broncos' inner circle has gotten the memo.
Game on.
Kyle Shanahan’s Genius Play-Calling Lifts Mac Jones Despite Painful Hits
The most impressive part of Jones’ brilliant, 342-yard performance in a 26-23 overtime win over the Rams on Thursday night didn’t come during consecutive game-opening drives that he punctuated with passes that accounted for the 49ers’ only touchdowns. Instead, it was during a nine-play, third-quarter sequence that ended with him writhing in agony instead of celebrating a well-designed score.
There’s no question that Jones, now 3-0 as the 49ers’ fill-in starter, is benefiting from Shanahan’s QB-friendly system. But Shanahan doesn’t get an assist for the accuracy, touch and toughness Jones displayed in the face of unfriendly pass rushers during a stretch that began about three minutes after halftime.
First, on first down from the Rams’ 49-yard line, Jones unloaded perhaps the best of his 49 passes. A moment before he was decked by edge rusher Jared Verse, Jones feathered a 19-yard sideline completion to wide receiver Kendrick Bourne that was just beyond the outstretched right arm of safety Kam Curl.
Jones got up hobbling. Verse’s hit aggravated Jones’ left knee injury that required a bulky brace, and the shots just kept coming. Three plays later, on 3rd-and-3, Jones delivered another pinpoint pass as Verse teed off. This time, Jones fit a 10-yard slant to Bourne between linebacker Nate Landman and safety Quentin Lake, who was nearly draped over Bourne’s back.
Jones’ next trick? Two snaps later, he completed a 6-yarder to Bourne near the right sideline while center Jake Brendel was shoved into Jones’ lap by defensive end Braden Fiske, preventing Jones from following through.
The painful sequence ended when Jones grabbed his left leg after he was decked by pass rusher Byron Young on a 3rd-and-goal incompletion and was briefly facedown on the turf. Jones looked the picture of defeat, but he had just thrown three gutsy and gorgeous passes that illustrated why he has been winning.
- 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.”
