Eli Manning Leads Giants On 75-Yard Drive To Beat 49ers 27-23
Nov 13, 2018, 12:00 AM | Updated: Jan 4, 2019, 11:36 am
(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
by Andrew Pasquini – Sports 1140 KHTK
The San Francisco 49ers came within 21 yards of a Nick Mullens comeback victory but the game ended with Eli Manning’s 36th career game-winning drive.
Down three with 2:46 remaining in the game, the Giants started their drive at their own 25-yard line. Manning would finish the drive completing five of his ten attempts, leading the Giants on a 75-yard drive that resulted in a three-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Shepard with 53 seconds remaining giving the Giants a 27-23 win.
The 49ers aided the Giants offense twice on the final drive with the first being a defensive holding against Malcolm Smith on a 3rd-and-12 where a pass intended for Saquon Barkley fell incomplete. Instead of a 4th-and-12, the holding by Smith gave the Giants ten yards and an automatic first down.
Just three plays later on 2nd-and-20 from their own 49, Manning attempted a pass to Odell Beckham when the refs called a pass interference against Ahkello Witherspoon, giving the Giants another first down and moving the ball into New York territory. Manning connectsd on a 23-yard pass to Barkley to set up the three-yard score to Shepard.
Nick Mullens would have just 53 seconds to answer Manning, starting the drive with a fifteen-yard roughing the passer penalty, setting up the 49ers at their own 40-yard line.
The bulk of the yardage came when Mullens connected with Marquise Goodwin for 26 yards with eight seconds remaining but with no timeouts remaining, the 49ers had to rush to the line to spike the ball and were able to with just one tick left on the clock. Mullens then threw the ball through the back of the end zone, dropping the 49ers to 2-8 on the season.
Mullens struggled to capture the magic he had last week against the Oakland Raiders, completing 27 of 39 passes for 250 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. His one touchdown pass was to Matt Breida in the second quarter, giving the 49ers a 10-7 lead
Breida finished the game with 17 carries for 101 yards and three receptions for 31 yards, scoring both a rushing and receiving touchdown on the night. He became the first 49er since Bruce Ellington in 2014 to record both a rushing and receiving touchdown in the same game.
The 49ers have a bye week next week and will take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Tampa Bay on November 25 at 10am.
