49ers rout Super Bowl-favorite Rams in Australia, 27-7

Cam Inman, The Mercury News on Sep 10, 2026

Published in Football

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MELBOURNE, Australia – No worries, the 49ers enjoyed a season-opening win like no other in their 81-year history.

This 27-7 win over the Los Angeles Rams came with all the pomp and circumstance befitting the NFL’s regular-season arrival in Australia, before a sold-out crowd of 100,021 at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Once all the red-white-and-blue smoke cleared from the pregame ceremony, these NFC West rivals waged a back-and-forth affair in the first half, which went the 49ers’ way in a second-half closeout.

Brock Purdy threw two of his three touchdown passes after halftime, and he was not sacked once by a Rams defense that included Myles Garrett but not Aaron Donald, who did not make the trip after just coming out of retirement. Garrett won NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors last season with 23 sacks before being traded from Cleveland.

It was the 49ers’ defense that dominated more than any unit.

And no sequence proved more critical than a 49ers’ goal-line stand late in the third quarter.

Reminiscent of last season’s upset win over the host Rams, the 49ers’ defense delivered an astounding goal-line stand. After Deommodore Lenoir made touchdown-saving tackles on two receptions, Matthew Stafford tried to score on a fourth-and-1 sneak, only to have Fred Warner and rookie Gracen Halton credited with the stop. Last season, it was rookie defensive tackle Alfred Collins forcing and recovering a fumble just outside the goal line; Collins sustained a season-ending knee injury in Tuesday’s practice.

The 49ers responded with a 99-yard drive capped by Purdy’s third touchdown pass of the day.

That final scoring strike was a 15-yarder to Deebo Samuel for a 24-7 lead, with 13 minutes to count down until they could head for their double-decker jumbo jet home.

More defensive heroics came with 11 minutes remaining, when Fred Warner punched a reception out of Tyler Higbee’s grasp while Dre Greenlaw corralled him. Keion White recovered the fumble.

Another defensive highlight came in the second quarter with Renardo Green’s interception in the 49ers’ red zone, offsetting Rams safety Quentin Lake’s interception of Purdy the previous series.

Even the 49ers’ special teams enjoyed their walkabout here: kick-coverage tackles by Malik Mustapha and Ashtyn Davis; Samuel’s second-half kick return to midfield; and Eddy Pineiro’s opening-drive chippy from 20 yards before a 56-yard field goal made it 27-7 lead with 9 minutes to go. His doink later off the right upright from 52 yards and Purdy’s pick were about the only things that went wrong for Kyle Shanahan’s crew in the Australian sunshine.

The 49ers’ extended stay here undoubtedly had their body clocks adjusted and energized for the 60-minute show. Sleep experts now can dissect how two very different itineraries factored into this outcome. The 49ers arrived a week ago and conducted daily practices across Melbourne’s railroad tracks at AAMI Park. The Rams’ trans-Pacific flight got them here 28 hours before kickoff.

A 10-7 halftime lead wasn’t enough to pacify the 49ers, and they immediately attacked in the second half for a greater cushion.

Mike Evans caught Purdy’s third-and-2 lob for a touchdown to cap the opening drive after halftime, sparked by Samuel’s 45-yard kick return to midfield.

Of Evans’ five catches in the first half, four were third-down conversions, including a trio on the 49ers’ opening drive that ended in that short field goal from Piñeiro.

Purdy’s first touchdown pass of the season, a 39-yarder to Demarcus Robinson, put the 49ers back ahead, 10-7, with 4 1/2 minutes until halftime. Robinson’s role increased once rookie De’Zhaun Stribling left with an ankle injury, which required a cart to take him off the sideline before halftime.

Keeping that drive alive was an Evans third-down catch, followed by three consecutive runs from rookie Kaelon Black; Christian McCaffrey (10 carries, 68 yards; five receptions, 20 yards) earlier took a hard hit on a catch but looked ready to return.

Second-quarter setbacks swung the momentum strongly in the Rams’ favor, first with a Kyren Williams’ 2-yard touchdown run up the gut and then Lake’s interception on Purdy’s fifth target to George Kittle.

Notes

Stribling (ankle) and tight end Jake Tonges (knee) exited by halftime with injuries. … The 49ers were flying out Friday night for an awaiting three-game homestand, starting Sept. 20 against the Miami Dolphins at Levi’s Stadium. … Connor Colby started at left guard over Carver Willis. … The 49ers’ defense opened in three-and-out fashion, led by Warner’s pass breakup and second-down run stop, but also with Nick Bosa and White pressuring off the edge.