Jaquiski Tartt didn’t lose the game for the 49ers, but he had a chance to make a play that might have won it.
With 9:55 left in the game, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford launched an ill-advised bomb deep down the field from his own 15-yard line. The ball landed in the chest of Tartt at the 49ers 35-yard line, and the veteran safety looked to have space in front of him for a run back. Shockingly, the ball bounced off his number and fell to the turf.
It was a devastating missed opportunity. The Rams, down 17-14 at the time, proceeded to march down the field and tie the game with a field goal. They would go on to win 20-17.
After the game, Tartt tweeted an apology for the missed opportunity, saying he let the team down.
“No excuses!!” Tartt wrote. “I deserve all the criticism my way! Opportunity I dream of I came up short!!! Let my brothers down!! It Still won’t define me as a person/player. Only will get stronger and better… #Believdat”