The San Francisco 49ers suffered one of the most embarrassing defeats of the Kyle Shanahan era with a 27-24 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, dropping to 1-2 on the season.

The 49ers trailed by just two seconds in the loss, but it was the most crucial two seconds of the entire game as the Rams kicked a 37-yard field goal to take a three-point lead at the end of the game.

The result was unfortunate, as the loss spoiled a crucial day for wide receiver Jauan Jennings, who was the engine of the 49ers’ offense when Deebo Samuel and Christian McCaffrey were out, recording 11 catches for 175 yards and three touchdowns.

In addition, it was an impressive performance by Sean McVay as a coach, who managed to keep his team within reach despite losing Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua and a whole host of players on offense, and finally secured an important win early in the season.

For San Francisco, this is only the third loss in the last twelve meetings between the two teams, after the 49ers dominated the season series in previous years.

Here are three quick takeaways from the 49ers’ 27-24 loss to the Rams on Sunday.

drops

One of the most important plays of the game was the 49ers’ final offensive play when they had a chance to win the game and stormed down the field.

When a 2nd & 10 attempt was pending at their own 43-yard line with 1:08 minutes left, Brock Purdy threw a long ball to Ronnie Bell, who got free further up front but dropped the pass.

This was a huge turning point for the 49ers, who probably would have been in position for the game-winning field goal with a minute left, but instead San Francisco had a 3rd & Long that ultimately ended in a punt.

Bell had a bad day, dropping what felt like three passes but only being targeted three times. The last pass proved extremely costly and was symbolic of how the day went for San Francisco.

Brock Purdy completed 22 of 30 passes on the day, but had receivers drop the ball six times, hurting the team’s consistency. The 49ers were slowed down after starting the game with two consecutive touchdown drives.

Now, there were a few other opportunities that Purdy could have taken advantage of, but the quarterback was constantly trying to extend plays by making some big throws while also using his feet to move the chains. In this game, his receivers weren’t helping him enough.

Punish

Penalties were not a problem for the 49ers in the first two weeks, as they allowed an average of four penalties per game for 35 yards. However, on Sunday they were a critical problem for San Francisco, as they allowed seven penalties for 113 yards.

Now it was not just a problem in the offense or defense, because there were problems with penalties on both sides of the ball, and these also occurred in crucial situations.

With the 49ers up 21-7, the defense suffered two brutal penalties when Isaac Yiadom was penalized for pass interference on a long ball from Matthew Stafford that had Tutu Atwell in his sights. Yiadom was constantly harassed throughout the game, and that penalty cost the 49ers 48 yards, giving Los Angeles great field position at the San Francisco 27-yard line.

Later in that drive, with the Rams facing a 3rd & 1 at the six-yard line, Renardo Green was given a penalty for holding in the end zone, giving Los Angeles a series of new attempts at the three-yard line, where Kyren Williams punched the ball in and cut the lead to 21-7.

A few drives later, the 49ers looked to tie the game 24-17 late in the fourth quarter. Before a 1st & 10 at the Rams’ 42-yard line, Kyle Juszczyk was penalized for holding, pushing the 49ers well past the post.

San Francisco could not recover and only made it to the Rams’ 37-yard line for a 4th & 5. Jake Moody had a chance to give the 49ers a 10-point lead, but missed the 55-yard field goal.

If this penalty were not called, the Niners would have a much better chance of getting closer to the red zone, buying more time, and at the same time scoring a cheaper field goal or even a touchdown.

The biggest problem, however, came on the final drive. With the Rams already in excellent field position, Matthew Stafford turned to DeVondre Campbell, who played 1-on-1 against tight end Colby Parkinson.

Campbell didn’t even turn his head, resulting in a 25-yard pass interference penalty on the defensive end, giving the Rams the ball at the 49ers’ 25-yard line, which ultimately led to the game-winning field goal.

The 49ers took far too many penalties in this game, including some extremely costly ones that helped tip the game in the Rams’ favor.

Special teams

You get the feeling that special teams have been a big problem for the 49ers for many years.

This continued on Sunday, as the 49ers made a series of blunders on their special teams that proved costly, especially towards the end of the game.

San Francisco had a good defense in the first half and backed the Rams up with a 2nd & 21 in the second quarter. That eventually led to a 4th & 6 where it looked like Los Angeles was going to punt the ball away. But they surprised the 49ers with a fake punt, allowing the Rams to continue their attack near the halfway line.

The Rams ultimately scored their first touchdown on the drive by breaking through the 49ers defense and using the momentum to increase their lead to 14-7.

Later in the fourth quarter, leading 24-17 with 6:15 remaining, San Francisco had a number of opportunities on that drive, including a Brock Purdy scrum that seemingly gave Brandon Aiyuk a clear path for a touchdown, but ultimately had to settle for a field goal.

With the game on the line, Jake Moody was called in and his 55-yard field goal missed just to the left, giving the Rams a chance to make a comeback.

That wasn’t the only costly mistake, however, as the 49ers punted the ball back to the Rams with 56 seconds left and Los Angeles only having one timeout. San Francisco had the ball at its own 45-yard line and had the perfect chance to pin Los Angeles deep in its own end zone, which would have sent the game into overtime.

Instead, the 49ers allowed Xavier Smith a 38-yard punt return after he caught the ball at the Rams’ 12-yard line, giving Los Angeles field position at the 50-yard line, and the rest is history.

San Francisco made way too many mistakes across the board in this game and the special teams were once again a disappointment.