SANTA CLARA — The 49ers’ quarterback competition received little clarity on Sunday in a 24-13 a loss to the Houston Texans.
On the 49ers’ first possession of the game — a three-and-out — Blaine Gabbert threw two wildly inaccurate passes to Carlos Hyde. On the team’s second possession, Hyde fumbled and Texans linebacker John Simon scooped and scored from 41 yards out. The slim amount of fans in attendance let out groans of disapproval.
But Gabbert overcame the shaky start and launched a strike to tight end Vance McDonald, who high-stepped his way into the end zone for a 43-yard touchdown, tying the score at 7 in the first quarter. Gabbert finished 4-for-10 for 63 yards passing, one touchdown and no interceptions.
Despite the touchdown pass, Gabbert was mostly unremarkable and the offense felt jerky under his control. He had a clear chance to take a giant leap forward as the team’s No. 1 quarterback, but provided little evidence to call this race over. Colin Kaepernick, who was held out with arm fatigue in his throwing shoulder, arguably gained ground in the quarterback competition without setting foot on the field.
The most impressive takeaway from the preseason opener was the 49ers’ rushing attack. Chip Kelly’s offense carried the football 21 times in the first half for 161 yards. A whopping 72 of those yards came on five carries from Mike Davis, who is vying to become Hyde’s backup in a thick running back competition. Davis had 58 yards rushing during his entire 2015 rookie season. The up-tempo 49ers ran 50 plays in the first half; the Texans ran just 25. It must be noted J.J. Watt, Jadeveon Clowney and Brian Cushing all missed the preseason opener.
On the defensive side of the ball, the 49ers look somewhat polished. Ahmad Brooks came up with a sack in the first quarter on Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler and Tramaine Brock made an athletic play in the air to break up a pass intended for Pro Bowler DeAndre Hopkins. Chris Davis continued to solidify his case as the team’s nickel back and broke up a fourth-down pass early in the second quarter. The second and third string units were not nearly as productive. Better than the other way around.
Both San Francisco’s starting defense and Houston’s starting offense remained in the game to start the second quarter, an unusual occurrence in the first preseason game.
Thad Lewis took over for Gabbert late in the first quarter and put points on the scoreboard during his first possession. Lewis was aided by a 44-yard burst from Davis down the sideline and Phil Dawson tacked on a 25-yard field goal when the drive stalled. This was on the heels of Davis’ solid showing Friday in a joint practice against the Texans. DuJuan Harris, a fellow competitor in the backup running back sweepstakes, fumbled near the goal line in the second quarter. Lewis left the game in the third quarter with a leg injury and did not return. He was replaced by Jeff Driskel, who went 4/12 for 20 yards, but added 61 additional yards on the ground.
Right tackle Anthony Davis made his much anticipated return to the field in the second quarter. He gave up a sack to Eric Lee. The 49ers are not handing Davis anything and continued to start Trent Brown at the position against the Texans.
DeForest Buckner and Joshua Garnett made their respective debuts as 49ers. Buckner had a crushing hit and seemed to be mostly in position starting on the defensive line alongside Mike Purcell and Quinton Dial. Garnett played extensively in the second quarter, and like his teammate Anthony Davis, remains a second-stringer.
Texans quarterback Tom Savage threw two second half touchdown passes. The first to tight end Stephen Anderson in the third quarter, giving the Texans a 17-13 lead. The second was to running back Akeem Hunt in the fourth quarter, putting the Texans up for good, 24-13.