Instant analysis: 49ers lose first game of season, 19-17 to Browns

The 49ers (5-1) lost 19-17 to the Browns (3-2) after rookie kicker Jake Moody missed a 41-yard field-goal try with six seconds remaining.

CLEVELAND – The 49ers were denied a franchise-record 16th straight regular-season win Sunday as they failed to rally past the Browns.

Rookie kicker Jake Moody missed a 41-yard field-goal attempt wide right with six seconds remaining to send the 49ers home with a 19-17 loss, their first of the season.

The 49ers (5-1) positioned themselves for victory behind quarterback Brock Purdy’s late-game completions to Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings, the latter of whom drew a pass-interference penalty on the Browns to supercharge that desperation drive.

The 49ers had rallied earlier in the fourth quarter for a 17-13 lead, which they took on Jordan Mason’s 8-yard touchdown run, one snap after Deommodore Lenoir interception.

Moody, a rookie third-round pick, had never missed a field goal attempt until entering the game. But he missed a 54-yard attempt in the first quarter following a Fred Warner interception. He did rebound to nail a 25-yarder for a 10-0 lead midway through the second quarter, but that proved not nearly a big enough lead.

Offensive catalysts Deebo Samuel (shoulder) and Christian McCaffrey (oblique) exited before that furious fourth quarter, so it was up to the 49ers’ defense to hold the lead. Nick Bosa’s third-down sack forced the Browns (3-2) to settle for a 50-yard field goal with 3:21 remaining, but the 49ers’ offense went three-and-out to give the Browns ample time for a go-ahead drive that ultimately provided the winning points.

Cleveland got a late reprieve when 49ers safety Tashaun Gipson Sr. drew a penalty for hitting a defenseless receiver on third-and-10. Backup quarterback P.J. Walker and the Browns marched downfield, and after Oren Burks failed to snag a potential interception in the end zone, Dustin Hawkins kicked a go-ahead 29-yard field goal with 1:40 remaining. It was Hawkins’ fourth field goal of the second half.

McCaffrey, the 49ers’ offensive catalyst since arriving last October, sustained an oblique injury in the third quarter against the Browns’ suffocating and top-ranked defense. The 49ers had already lost Samuel to a first-quarter shoulder injury, and the Browns’ top-ranked defense proved as tough as advertised.

If a 10-7 halftime lead seemed too small for the 49ers, that’s probably because it was their lowest-scoring first half all season, despite McCaffrey’s 13-yard touchdown catch on the opening drive and Fred Warner’s interception on the Browns’ first possession.

Casting a pall over that first half – and a long first quarter – were injuries to Samuel (shoulder) and Trent Williams (ankle). Samuel headed to the locker room with his injury, and Williams was able to remain in the game. McCaffrey also was banged up along the way. He sustained an oblique injury in the third quarter, and, at that point, he had run for 43 yards on 11 carries, five of which went for no gain or negative yardage.

The Browns’ defense forced Purdy to throw his first interception in 249 attempts, a stretch dating to New Year’s Day. Purdy targeted Brandon Aiyuk with a third-down pass on the 49ers’ first drive after halftime, but the ball and instead sailed into the hands of Martin Emerson at midfield.

The 49ers’ defense responded by forcing a three-and-out, with Randy Gregory making a third-down sack in his debut, nine days after getting traded from the Denver Broncos. While Gregory was debuting, that 49ers defense was playing for the first time this season without Dre Greenlaw (hamstring).

How would the 49ers ramp up their intensity after last Sunday night’s 42-10 rout of the Dallas Cowboys? That answer came before kickoff, when about 15 players from each side got into a scrum. Browns players appeared to take exception to Aiyuk and Samuel, and Williams rushed in to shove Elijah Moore away from Samuel.

Per their every-game routine, the 49ers scored on their opening possession, and they did so with a touchdown for the fifth time in six games. Sunday’s 7-0 lead came via Purdy’s 13-yard, shovel pass to McCaffrey to cap an 84-yard drive. That extended McCaffrey’s franchise record to 15 consecutive games (playoffs included) with a touchdown.

McCaffrey catapulted that opening drive into Browns territory with a 27-yard run, ending with Greg Newsome’s 15-yard penalty for pushing McCaffrey into the 49ers bench. Another 15-yard Browns penalty came two snaps later, when McCaffrey was tackled for a 2-yard loss but Za’Darius Smith grabbed McCaffrey’s facemask in the process.

Warner’s interception in 49ers territory halted the Browns’ opening drive. It was Warner’s second interception in as many games, and came against Walker, who started in place of the injured Deshaun Watson.

The 49ers did not convert Warner’s interception into points.

The 49ers’ shutout bid ended in the second quarter, when they loaded the box for a third-and-1 run that resulted in Kareem Hunt’s 16-yard score 5:38 before halftime. Cleveland pulled into a 10-10 tie with Dustin Hopkins’ 42-yard field goal on the second half’s opening series, which was sparked by Amari Cooper’s 27-yard catch against Charvarius Ward.