Trey Lance conceded the San Francisco 49ers made too many mistakes in their shock opening defeat to the Chicago Bears in a game Kyle Shanahan felt they had control of.
The 49ers were seemingly given a soft landing to start the season by going on the road to face a Bears team starting a rebuild under new head coach Matt Eberflus.
San Francisco looked to be cruising to victory when they led 10-0 early in the third quarter following Robbie Gould's short field goal.
However, Justin Fields' improbable 51-yard touchdown pass to former 49er Dante Pettis on a third-down scramble turned the tide in the Bears' favour.
The Bears scored 19 unanswered points to claim a stunning 19-10 win, with the 49ers unable to mount a comeback after falling behind amid a deluge at Soldier Field.
San Francisco committed two turnovers, a Deebo Samuel fumble in the red zone in the first quarter and a Lance interception that led to the Bears' final touchdown.
The 49ers went one for three in the red zone and had 12 penalties accepted against them for 99 yards, two of which extended Bears scoring drives.
Those mistakes ensured the 49ers lost a game in which they outgained the Bears 331 yards to 204, with Shanahan believing a failure to punch the ball in from the Bears' two-yard line and Fields' subsequent touchdown throw to Pettis to be the turning point.
"We felt very in control... I thought we had every chance to run away with it in those first three quarters, especially those first two drives," Shanahan said.
"Having a fumble inside the 10, and the next drive getting down there and ending up getting a sack on third down that knocked us out of field goal range.
"Getting all the way down there [in the third quarter] and only come up with the field goal. I thought we had every chance to run away with it. We were going to get it right back to go again, then that penalty on third-and-long gave [the Bears] new life and they scored a touchdown. We never got the momentum back."
Lance pinned much of the blame on himself. Beginning his first season as the Niners' starting quarterback, Lance completed 13 of his 28 passes for 164 yards and an interception and carried the ball 13 times for 54 yards.
The 2021 third overall pick produced some impressive downfield throws but was frustrated by one he missed in the first quarter to tight end Tyler Kroft, who was wide open and likely would have strolled in for a touchdown.
"We made too many mistakes. Defense kept us in the game. I had a big miss to Tyler Kroft in the end zone," said Lance.
"I tried to throw a perfect ball, but I should've just put it right on him, he was wide open. Turned the ball over, took a sack, then knocked us out of field goal range. I shouldn't have missed Deebo Samuel on the third down, missed another third down to Jauan Jennings – just too many mistakes.
"I have a lot of stuff to clean up for sure. But man, I'm excited. I've still got my head up. I'm excited to get ready to go next week."
'I know I'm going to be a Cowboy' - Parsons confident over Dallas stay
Micah Parsons is confident he will remain with the Dallas Cowboys but is currently more focused on winning than signing a lucrative extension.
The Cowboys have already signed Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb to new deals, with Parsons next in line to be given a new contract.
He is in the final year of his four-year rookie contract, with Dallas already exercising their $21million fifth-year option on his deal.
The former Defensive Rookie of the Year could land a deal that makes him the NFL's richest defensive player.
However, Parsons is in no hurry to put pen to paper as he knows his future lies in Texas.
"I know I'm going to be a Cowboy," he said on Monday on his 'The Edge with Micah Parsons' podcast. "There's nothing like Cowboy Nation. I think the love is very mutual.
"As for me, I'm just focused on winning games. I want to win those big games. I want to win those playoff games, get to the Super Bowl. For me, the contract is not really what I'm worried about."
Prescott and the Cowboys agreed to a four-year deal worth $240m hours before they opened the season with a win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, while Lamb signed his four-year, $136m contract two weeks earlier, making him the second-highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
Parsons was happy to see his team-mates commit their future to the club, in particular heaping praise on Prescott's influence.
"We're happy it gets done because now, it puts a lot of talk to the side," Parsons added. "We're like, 'Man, we got our quarterback now.'
"We can really just focus, like Dak said, on winning games. ... So, having our guys, CeeDee Lamb and Dak done, it means the world to us.
"Dak is that guy, no BS. He deserves everything that he [gets]. He never cheated the game, he comes in every day with a positive attitude, great work ethic, and he's always first one in, last one out. Consistently being the best person/player you could possibly be.
"He never cheats the game, and that's the most important part. So, when a guy like that gets his money, you say he earned every single dollar. I could not be more happy for him."
The Cowboys will play their first NFL home game of the season against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
Cousins 'rusty' not injured despite struggling in Falcons loss
Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons made a disappointing start to the NFL season with a defeat, but coach Raheem Morris says he was not hindered by injury.
The quarterback struggled in an 18-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, playing his first game since suffering a torn Achilles in week 8 last season.
Against the Steelers, he was 16-of-26 for 155 yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions overall. In the second half, Cousins had just 19 passing yards, the lowest total of his career.
The 36-year-old did not play in pre-season, but Morris believes his performance likely came from "some rust from not playing for so long".
"I feel like Kirk is healthy," Morris said on Monday. "He's been healthy since he's been here.
"With Kirk being here, we've been doing the same thing since he's been here, and that's how we've planned on playing and we've played that way throughout."
Many thought new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson's play-calling was designed to protect Cousins after his lengthy lay-off, though it did not pay off as the Steelers' defense dominated much of the game.
"We played, I thought, winning football in two phases of the game, and we didn't play winning football in our offensive phase of the game," Morris added.
"The plan was to go out there and win the football game, but it exposed some things inside for us.
"We want to get better. But we got to play better at the [quarterback] position, we got to play better around him."
The Falcons’ next game is against the Philadelphia Eagles.
'No excuses' - Rodgers disappointed on Jets return
Aaron Rodgers says there are "no excuses" for the New York Jets after mistakes saw them fall to a 32-19 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in their NFL opener.
Rodgers, making his first appearance since rupturing his Achilles tendon in the Jets' first game of 2023, struggled for much of his return.
He was held to just 167 yards on 13-of-21 passes and had an interception that led to one of five field goals for San Francisco, though he did throw one touchdown pass to Allen Lazard in the third quarter.
The 40-year-old was less than impressed with his first start in 20 months and is already looking for improvements.
"That's an excuse [none of the starters playing in pre-season]. I'm not going to use that," Rodgers said. "I don't think we should. We expect greatness when we step on the field.
"This is a tough opener for us, travel-wise and schedule-wise, but no excuses. We have to play better, and I have to play better, and we'll bounce back."
Rodgers became just the 22nd quarterback in the Super Bowl era (since 1966) to play after his 40th birthday, and despite the disappointing result, he was pleased to be back out on the field.
"It felt great," he added. "A lot of gratitude just to be back in pads. So many people helped me get to this spot.
"I'm really thankful for my surgeon, my loved ones, my friends, the staff and the training staff to help me get back. Obviously, I wanted to take a shot and feel the physicality of it.
"Once I threw a couple of balls and took a shot, it felt good."
The 49ers played without star running back Christian McCaffrey, who was ruled out shortly before kick-off due to a calf and Achilles injury.
Jordan Mason stepped up in his absence, playing a starring role for the Super Bowl runners-up as he finished with a career-high 28 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown.
"I thought he runs like he always does," coach Kyle Shanahan said.
"When you get him the ball, he breaks tackles, usually gets more than we block for. When we had the good lanes, he always hit them, and we got a bunch."
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