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          49ers take lead with 66-yard interception return

          • Nick Wagoner, ESPN Staff WriterDec 17, 2023, 04:42 PM ET
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              Nick Wagoner is an NFL reporter at ESPN. Nick has covered the San Francisco 49ers and the NFL at ESPN since 2016, having previously covered the St. Louis Rams for 12 years, including three years (2013 to 2015) at ESPN. In his 10 years with the company, Nick has led ESPN's coverage of the Niners' 2019 Super Bowl run, Colin Kaepernick's protest, the Rams making Michael Sam the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam's subsequent pursuit of a roster spot and the team's relocation and stadium saga. You can follow Nick via Twitter @nwagoner
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          GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Minutes after Deebo Samuel scored to tie the game, the San Francisco 49ers got on the board again with their first defensive touchdown of the season.

          On fourth-and-3 at San Francisco's 42, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray tried to fit a pass into tight end Trey McBride, but Niners cornerback Charvarius Ward was sitting on it.

          Ward jumped in front of the pass, caught it and raced 66 yards for the first touchdown of his career. Moody's extra point gave the Niners their first lead of the day at 14-7. It was not only San Francisco's first defensive score of the season but its first since a Week 5 win against the Carolina Panthers in 2022.

          After yielding an opening-drive touchdown to the Cardinals, the 49ers quickly answered back with another touchdown pass from quarterback Brock Purdy to Samuel.

          It was Samuel's seventh in the past four games but perhaps the easiest of those. On first-and-10 at Arizona's 12, Samuel motioned from the right to the left. As Purdy took the snap, the Cardinals did not cover Samuel, which left him wide open on the left side.

          Purdy lofted a pass to Samuel who strolled into the end zone for the 12-yard touchdown. Kicker Jake Moody's extra point tied it at 7.

          If Samuel can add a rushing touchdown in this game, he'd join former Bengals running back Pete Johnson circa 1981 as the only players in NFL history to score a receiving and rushing touchdown in three consecutive games.

          Ward hit a top speed of 20.64 MPH according to Next Gen on his interception, and Samuel had 12.6 yards of separation when he caught the pass on his touchdown.