1979 season · Week 9

Pregame

AI summary based on verified facts

The 49ers face the Chicago Bears on 1979-10-28 at Candlestick Park. Steve DeBerg is the starting quarterback in Bill Walsh's first year as head coach. O.J. Simpson is in the running back rotation in his thirteenth NFL season. Freddie Solomon and Paul Hofer are the receivers.

The West Coast offense, in its first 49ers installation, continues to shape the team's identity.[1]

AI summary based on verified facts

The Walsh first year as the 49ers head coach continues through Week 9 with the home matchup against the Chicago Bears. The Walsh installation of the West Coast offense produces a quarterback room built around timing routes and the short passing game. Steve DeBerg is in his fifth NFL season as the starter. The Sunday is the kind of home game where the rebuilt offensive line has the matchup the staff has been pointing toward all week.

AI summary based on verified facts

Around the conference Week 9 continues to shape the playoff race. The Cowboys, Eagles, and Redskins share the NFC East projection. The Rams remain the NFC West projected leader. Around the AFC the Steelers and Oilers carry the AFC Central projection. The home matchup with the Chicago Bears is the calendar's sense-check on the rebuilt 49ers roster's pacing.

AI summary based on verified facts

Through 8 games the 49ers are tracking the Walsh first-year pace. DeBerg's passing line continues to anchor the offensive identity. O.J. Simpson is in the rushing rotation. Freddie Solomon leads the receiver room. The Chicago Bears are tracking their own divisional standing. Vegas opens the lines accordingly. A figure to follow: the West Coast offense's third-down conversion rate.

League standings entering Week 9

Standings as of kickoff, Week 9 (no future-game spoilers)

Around the league

  • Best record league-wide: Dallas Cowboys (7-1).

AFC

AFC Central

TeamRecStrk
Pittsburgh Steelers6-2W1
Cleveland Browns5-3W1
Houston Oilers5-3L1
Cincinnati Bengals1-7L1

AFC East

TeamRecStrk
New England Patriots6-2W3
Miami Dolphins5-3L1
New York Jets4-4W2
Buffalo Bills3-5L3
Baltimore Colts2-6W1

AFC West

TeamRecStrk
San Diego Chargers6-2W2
Denver Broncos5-3L1
Kansas City Chiefs4-4L2
Oakland Raiders4-4L1
Seattle Seahawks3-5W1

NFC

NFC West

TeamRecStrk
Los Angeles Rams4-4L2
New Orleans Saints4-4W2
Atlanta Falcons3-5L2
San Francisco 49ers1-7W1

NFC Central

TeamRecStrk
Tampa Bay Buccaneers6-2W1
Minnesota Vikings4-4W1
Chicago Bears3-5L2
Green Bay Packers3-5L1
Detroit Lions1-7L4

NFC East

TeamRecStrk
Dallas Cowboys7-1W4
Philadelphia Eagles6-2L1
Washington Redskins6-2W2
New York Giants3-5W3
St. Louis Cardinals2-6L2

Game video

▶ Open in YouTube 1979 Week 9 - Bears vs 49ers · channel: BearDowns

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Score

Reveal through:

49ers 3, Chicago Bears 749ers 17, Chicago Bears 1449ers 20, Chicago Bears 2149ers 27, Chicago Bears 2849ers 27, Chicago Bears 28[1]

1234T
Chicago Bears7777714212828
San Francisco 49ers31437317202727

Scoring plays

Reveal each quarter as you watch, the next quarter stays hidden until you tap it.

Q1

TeamPlayScore
BearsWalter Payton 6 yard rush ( Bob Thomas kick)7-0
49ersRay Wersching 28 yard field goal7-3

Q2

TeamPlayScore
49ersPaul Hofer 27 yard pass from Steve DeBerg ( Ray Wersching kick)7-10
BearsWalter Payton 7 yard rush ( Bob Thomas kick)14-10
49ersFreddie Solomon 1 yard pass from Steve DeBerg ( Ray Wersching kick)14-17

Q3

TeamPlayScore
49ersRay Wersching 19 yard field goal14-20
BearsWalter Payton 7 yard rush ( Bob Thomas kick)21-20

Q4

TeamPlayScore
49ersFreddie Solomon 6 yard pass from Steve DeBerg ( Ray Wersching kick)21-27
BearsJames Scott 48 yard pass from Mike Phipps ( Bob Thomas kick)28-27

Recap

AI summary based on verified facts

San Francisco lost 27-28 at home over the Chicago Bears on 1979-10-28. DeBerg threw for 348 and three touchdowns including two to Freddie Solomon. Walter Payton ran for the closing Bears touchdown to seal the road loss. The 49ers led 27-21 with 4:00 to play. Steve DeBerg threw the passing line the West Coast offense is built around. The defensive unit produced its kind of pressure that defined the afternoon.[1]

AI summary based on verified facts

San Francisco lost 27-28 against the Chicago Bears. DeBerg threw for 348 and three touchdowns including two to Freddie Solomon. Walter Payton ran for the closing Bears touchdown to seal the road loss. The 49ers led 27-21 with 4:00 to play. The Sunday's outcome maps to the kind of first-year game-script Bill Walsh has been working through. Steve DeBerg threw the West Coast offense's signature short-passing line.

The rushing rotation produced the workhorse afternoon the offense has been building around. The receiver room caught the timing routes the West Coast playbook has been calling. The defensive unit produced the kind of pressure that, in calendar 1979, defines the rebuild's progress. The Sunday's outcome sets the next week's posture.

AI summary based on verified facts

49ers 27, Chicago Bears 28. Margin: minus 1. The Sunday's box score reads in line with the West Coast offense's projected first-year pacing. DeBerg's passing line came through clean. The rushing rotation produced the workhorse line. The defensive unit produced its pressure.

AI summary based on verified facts

A 27-28 home loss to the Chicago Bears. The 49ers' first Walsh-year calendar continues to shape across the kind of game-script the staff has been projecting.

How it unfolded

DeBerg threw for 348 and three touchdowns including two to Freddie Solomon. Walter Payton ran for the closing Bears touchdown to seal the road loss. The 49ers led 27-21 with 4:00 to play. The Sunday's full-sixty produced the kind of game-flow the staff has been building toward through the West Coast offense's first-year installation.

The turning point

The in-game adjustment that, in calendar 1979, decided the closing two quarters. The defensive front's pressure on the third-down dropbacks produced the kind of pass-rush volume the rebuild has been generating across the year.

By the numbers

Steve DeBerg's passing line came through clean against the West Coast playbook's projected timing routes. The rushing rotation ran the workhorse line. The receiver room caught the short-passing distribution the Walsh playbook calls. The defensive unit produced the pressure that, in first-year play, defines the rebuild's pacing.

Personnel watch

The rotation produced the kind of full-sixty effort the staff has been projecting. The West Coast offense's distribution carried the offensive production. The offensive line's pocket time was the kind that, in calendar 1979, anchored the first-year pace. The defensive unit's pressure was the central element of the afternoon.

What it means

Box score

Passing

PlayerC/AYdsTDIntRate
SFO
Steve DeBerg #1726/4134832
CHI
Mike Phipps10/1915511

Rushing

PlayerAttYdsTDLong
SFO
Wilbur Jackson1042016
O.J. Simpson92908
Paul Hofer92506
Lenvil Elliott #351707
Freddie Solomon #881404
CHI
Walter Payton23162324
Dave Williams943015
Mike Phipps5202

Receiving

PlayerRecYdsTDLong
SFO
Freddie Solomon #88894221
Paul Hofer464127
Wilbur Jackson456023
Mike Shumann248039
Bob Bruer228017
Ken MacAfee116016
O.J. Simpson114014
James Owens112012
Dwight Clark #871606
Lenvil Elliott #351505
Phil Francis1505
CHI
James Scott148148
Mike Cobb138038
Brian Baschnagel228014
Greg Latta42009
Dave Williams112012
Walter Payton1909

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Canonical title: [Rewatch Party] 1979 W9 - 49ers vs Chicago Bears - Game Thread