Jauan Jennings did not have a touch on any of the 49ers’ lengthy first three drives on Sunday, but his impact was enormous. San Francisco ran 34 plays over roughly 20 minutes en route to a 17-0 lead in the first half, and would not have done so without Jennings’ efforts.
On the first drive of the game, Jennings recovered a Jeff Wilson Jr. fumble in Jags territory to keep the drive going. But it was Jennings’ play later in the first half that will be remembered.
At the end of a play, Jennings and Jaguars safety Rayshawn Jenkins got into it after an extended block. Jennings lost his helmet and kept talking to Jenkins, who lost his mind and threw a blatant punch. Jennings, meanwhile, was smiling the entire time, and got immediate plaudits from his teammates and coaches.
Jimmy Garoppolo shoved Jennings to hype him up, and as Jennings headed to the sideline, head coach Kyle Shanahan high-fived Jennings for getting under Jenkins’ skin.
The play was massive; it came on a third-down stop, keeping the 49ers’ third drive going. It finished with a third-down touchdown to Brandon Aiyuk to create that 17-point margin.