What we learned as Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey fuel 49ers' win vs. Raiders

49ers Observations What we learned as Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey fuel 49ers' win vs. Raiders The San Francisco 49ers improved to 7-1, thanks to big performances from quarterback Brock Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey. By Ali Thanawalla and Matt Maiocco, 49ers Insider • Published 5 hours ago • Updated 4 hours ago BOX SCORE The 49ers' offense was refreshed, and it showed in a 38-17 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday at Levi's Stadium. Watch NBC Bay Area News free wherever you are WATCH HERE Coming off their bye week, the 49ers rode quarterback Brock Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey to the Week 9 victory. San Francisco improves to 7-1 this season, while the Raiders fall to 4-5. Purdy completed 17 of 25 passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception. The 26-year-old also achieved a career milestone by throwing his 100th regular-season touchdown. McCaffrey, who recovered from a hamstring injury during the bye week, carried the ball 18 times for 68 yards and one touchdown. He also caught two passes for 19 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown reception. The 49ers' defense forced five turnovers, with rookie linebacker Jaden Dugger , safety Renardo Green and safety Malik Mustapha intercepting Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins. Veteran linebackers Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw each recovered Las Vegas fumbles. San Francisco 49ers San Francisco 49ers Nov 6 Brandon Aiyuk arrives at 49ers business office as receiver hopes for reinstatement Brock Purdy Nov 6 Five key players to watch as 49ers return from bye to face Raiders in Week 9 The 49ers suffered a potentially devastating loss late in the win when rookie defensive tackle Gracen Halton was carted off with a leg injury that required an air cast. Here are Matt Maiocco's takeaways from the 49ers' win: Piecing it together at WR The 49ers played their second straight game without wide receivers Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel . Now, the question is whether San Francisco feels confident enough to stand pat at Tuesday's NFL trade deadline. Second-year player Jordan Watkins came through with one of the plays of the game when he made a contested, leaping grab for a 37-yard touchdown late in the third quarter. Jordan Watkins comes down with his first-career touchdown 🙌 pic.twitter.com/Q3ODvdN9Ms — 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) November 8, 2026 The 49ers’ receivers did just fine on Sunday. Demarcus Robinson returned to action after missing five games with a high-ankle sprain. He caught an 11-yard pass on the first play from scrimmage. Purdy seemed more inclined to target his wide receivers on Sunday, and he got all five active wide receivers into the action in the first half. Robinson caught two passes for 16 yards. Watkins had a 24-yard reception, KhaDarel Hodge added one catch for 17 yards, and Brandin Cooks had a 13-yard grab. The other 49ers wide receiver was Jacob Cowing . He drew a defensive pass interference penalty in the end zone, which led to Purdy’s 1-yard scoring run in the first quarter. Pick six and punch outs The 49ers appear to have gotten one of the steals of the 2026 NFL Draft in the fifth round with their selection of Dugger out of Louisiana. Dugger made his fourth start of the season and continues to be a valuable situational contributor to the defense. Dugger scored points for the 49ers’ defense, and well-aimed punches from Warner and cornerback Upton Stout provided two other huge takeaways. Dugger registered his first career interception on the first play of the second half and turned it into his first career touchdown. JADEN DUGGER PICK SIX 😤 pic.twitter.com/WIPYB3ynmH — 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) November 8, 2026 The play started poorly enough for the Raiders, then it got considerably worse. Cousins lost the handle of the ball after a play-fake. Then, Cousins tried to fit the ball into wide receiver Tre Tucker along the right sideline. Dugger stuck with Tucker, then put his 6-foot-5 frame to work to make the leaping catch. From there, he took it back 29 yards for a touchdown just 17 seconds into the second half to give the 49ers a 28-10 lead. Later, the 49ers defense came up with huge forced fumbles against tight ends Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer. Stout’s forced fumble against Mayer came at the goal line to prevent a touchdown. Warner recovered it in the end zone in the third quarter. McCaffrey is all right When the 49ers last left the playing field, there were major concerns surrounding McCaffrey's health. The bye week did him good. McCaffrey, who sustained a mild hamstring strain against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 7, showed no signs of physical issues on Sunday. He was a huge part of the 49ers’ offensive performance, just as always. He ran the ball. He caught the ball. McCaffrey got the 49ers on the board with a 1-yard touchdown run to cap the first drive of the game. Then, he added a 12-yard touchdown pass from Purdy to give the 49ers a 21-7 lead with 5:15 remaining in the first half. Purdy to CMC 🔥 pic.twitter.com/SaLmHcZYMy — 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) November 8, 2026 It was the 36th touchdown catch of McCaffrey’s career, as he surpassed Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk for the most touchdown receptions for a running back in the Super Bowl era. Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast This article tagged under: 49ers Observations Brock Purdy Christian McCaffrey