49ers vs. Saints Week 2 Predictions and Keys to the Game
The San Francisco 49ers travel to New Orleans to take on the Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. San Fran is coming off a nice road win in Seattle, a win they earned despite now ex-kicker Jake Moody missing two field goals (one blocked).
While they are taking on a team that looked bad in Week 1 in the Saints, they will be without star tight end George Kittle and starting Quarterback Brock Purdy. Kittle was placed on IR with a hamstring injury, and Purdy is expected to miss at least the next two weeks, potentially as many as five, with a toe injury.
Here are two keys to the 49ers overcoming their major injuries and earning another big win on the road.
Special Teams
With the team at full strength, the 49ers overcame missing six points from the two blown field goal chances. Eddy Piñeiro was the guy the 49ers signed to replace Moody, and I got to say I am very happy with his addition to the team.
Per StatMuse, he has the fourth-highest field goal conversion percentage in NFL history. After signing with the 49ers, he also revealed he was supposed to visit the Falcons, and when asked why he chose to come to the Bay, he said, “I want to win games.”
Piñeiro has been doing this for eight years now, and he should be a massive upgrade from Moody and help the special teams unit avoid leaving points on the board.
Mac Jones
The key to this game for San Fran will be the offense getting going as a whole, but Mac Jones will be the catalyst. He was a pro bowler his rookie year but has put up inconsistent numbers since then. I personally have optimism about his success.
Back in 2018, when Jimmy Garoppolo went down, Nick Mullens came in and had decent success with no starting experience. He had enough success to still be getting NFL contracts to this day. Mac Jones has the talent of a first-round pick in addition to having been a starter for multiple years. He’s been there and done that.
If Mac Jones can take care of the ball, this should still be an easy win for the 49ers. When the 9ers visit the Rams and Buccaneers, those will be games where they will need him to make some throws. But this week, avoiding turnovers and getting 20 points on the board should be plenty.
Prediction
The 49ers will lean on the run game since it is Mac Jones’ first start. Despite the injuries to Kittle and Purdy, I don’t see any way they lose this game to a Saints team that came out flat against the Cardinals last week.
49ers 23, Saints 13