Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images
There may not be a team in the entire NFC with more talent than the San Francisco 49ers.
San Francisco cruised to a 38-10 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Monday’s NFC West clash at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. It extended its winning streak to three and improved to 6-4 on the season.
The 49ers defense was dominant against a Cardinals offense that had Colt McCoy under center, with Kyler Murray sidelined by a hamstring injury. However, it was their plethora of offensive weapons that stood out the most.
George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk each scored two touchdowns, while Deebo Samuel also found the end zone. The running back combination of Christian McCaffrey and Elijah Mitchell looked like the perfect pairing, and Jimmy Garoppolo let the weapons around him make plays.
All that talent caught the eye of social media:
Bleacher Report @BleacherReport
How the Cardinals look trying to tackle the 49ers pic.twitter.com/3v36pHUdQG
Rich Eisen @richeisen
Look out, folks.
The @49ers are putting it all together and will take a division lead into Thanksgiving Week.
Tom Kessenich @TomKessenich
And this is what makes the #49ers so dangerous. The #AZCardinals take CMC away, but Jim G stays patient and finds Aiyuk for the TD. That’s how it should work for a team with so many weapons.
B/R Gridiron @brgridiron
George Kittle splits the defenders for six ‼️
Bleacher Report @BleacherReport
DEEBO TAKES IT 39 YDS TO THE HOUSE 💨
NFL @NFL
AIYUUUUUUUK. @49ers
📺: #SFvsAZ on ESPN
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/bpbiHXgG41 pic.twitter.com/zx0bwsT2Qn
NFL Rumors @nflrums
Right now #49ers Deebo Samuel is the leading rusher for the team and Christian McCaffrey is the leading receiver.
Hard to stop when you can mix it up like that.
ESPN Stats & Info @ESPNStatsInfo
This is the first time since 2000 Week 4 that the 49ers have had two players with multiple rec TD in the same game.
Jerry Rice and Terrell Owens did it that day vs the Cowboys pic.twitter.com/R3OFzhNdal
When the 49ers are operating on all cylinders, it simply isn’t fair.
Samuel is a wide receiver, but he used his speed to sprint past the defense for a 39-yard touchdown on an end-around run. McCaffrey is a running back, but he was one of the team’s top receiving threats.
And then Kittle and Mitchell added a physical element by powering through arm tackles whenever they had the ball. That’s not even accounting for Aiyuk, who proved to be a dangerous red-zone threat when the defense had to account for everyone else.
There may still be lingering questions about whether Garoppolo can lead a team to a Lombardi Trophy, but his job, at this point, is to simply avoid mistakes. With a defense featuring the likes of Nick Bosa and Fred Warner rounding into form and a seemingly endless list of talented playmakers on offense, a Super Bowl title is a realistic goal.
The 49ers will look to continue building toward that goal when they host the New Orleans Saints in Week 12.
