The biggest story from the San Francisco 49ers' 9-0 victory over the Washington Redskins in Week 7 might not necessarily be the Niners' dominant defense or how the team improved to a perfect 6-0 on the season.
Instead, it's likely going to be the weather in Landover, Maryland, and how it impacted conditions at FedEx Field on Sunday.
Rain and a soggy field contributed into what was an offensively challenged contest for both teams. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo managed just 10 passing yards in the first half, while Redskins quarterback Case Keenum was held to a mere 77 yards passing entirely. Garoppolo later admitted to reporters the ball was much heavier, making his attempts far more difficult.
And he wasn't the only one to chime in about the weather and field conditions.
"Mud Bowl 2019 champions," cornerback Richard Sherman joked after the game. "I've never seen anything like that. We've had a mud bowl like that in high school. We won, and it was ugly and it was terrible, 7-6. But I never had anything like that.
"It was fun, guys out there had a good time. We played hard and we won."
San Francisco's defense pitched a shutout for the first time since Week 1 back in 2016, when the Niners won 28-0 before eventually finishing 2-14 on the season. And while the lack of offensive output from the 49ers won't help their offensive standings, allowing the Redskins zero points in the score column surely will push San Francisco even higher in an already-impressive season for head coach Kyle Shanahan's defense.
Even if they had to rely on some bad field conditions in the process.
"That was as bad as I've seen," Sherman continued, when asked about the conditions. "I've played in this stadium once before in the playoffs, and it was pretty bad. That was the year [quarterback Robert Griffin III] went down with a knee injury, and the field was pretty awful. It was mostly sand. It was like playing in a sand pit.
"Today, it was rain and everything was going bad."
Shanahan also admitted it was tough to prepare his team for the unfavorable conditions.
"You talk about it," the head coach said. "But it's really tough to prepare for. It's really tough to make it rain in California and ruin our field."
But if the weather hampered San Francisco's offense, it also hindered nearly everything Washington tried to do, too. And the 49ers defense used the opportunity to frustrate Keenum and the Redskins pass attack throughout the game.
And the Niners are now 6-0 as a result.
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Written by:Peter Panacy has been writing about the 49ers since 2011 for outlets like Bleacher Report, Niner Noise, 49ers Webzone, and is occasionally heard as a guest on San Francisco's 95.7 FM The Game and the Niners' flagship station, KNBR 680. Feel free to follow him, or direct any inquiries to his Twitter account.
