Brock Purdy threw three touchdown passes and the San Francisco 49ers made themselves at home in Australia with a dominant 27-7 win over the Los Angeles Rams in a daytime Friday game at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Purdy completed 25 of 34 passes for 205 yards, Christian McCaffrey had 88 total yards and San Francisco rushed for 174 yards to wear down the star-studded Los Angeles defense.
San Francisco trailed 7-3 before rattling off 24 unanswered points to win the first-ever regular-season game in Australia.
The Rams were 2 of 9 on third down and 1 for 3 on fourth down, while their defense struggled to get off the field. It was only the second time in his last 85 starts Matthew Stafford was held under 10 points.
Stafford watched Stetson Bennett run the offense on the final drive. He finished 15 of 25 for 155 yards. Kyren Williams scored the only touchdown for the Rams, a 5-yard plunge in the second quarter.
The Rams served up a momentum shift on a silver platter when head coach Sean McVay eschewed a short field goal to cut the deficit to seven points and rolled the dice with a quarterback sneak on 4th-and-goal inside the 49ers’ 1. But San Francisco stuffed Stafford, taking possession leading 17-7 with 3:41 on the clock in the third quarter.
With Purdy using his arm and legs to keep the chains moving, the 49ers proceeded to leave the Rams in the dust.
Fatigue appeared to be a factor for the Rams as Purdy marched the 49ers 99 yards on 11 plays with Purdy capping the drive by scrambling away from pressure to his right to fire a 15-yard TD pass to Deebo Samuel for a 24-7 lead.
Dre’ Greenlaw ripped the ball away from Tyler Higbee to set up Eddy Pineiro’s 56-yard line-drive field goal and a 27-7 San Francisco advantage.
Marquee acquisition Myles Garrett spent multiple series on the sideline in the second half. He had no QB hits or sacks.
Purdy moved past a first-half interception when he connected with former Rams wide receiver Demarcus Robinson for a 39-yard score in the second quarter that gave San Francisco a 10-7 lead. He hit Mike Evans for a 2-yard TD in the third quarter.
Evans and Samuel had six receptions apiece. Rams wide receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams combined for eight catches for 100 yards.
McCaffrey, Purdy, Samuel and Kaelon Black all had carries for 12-plus yards.