Look for: Check the yard line when San Francisco takes possession after a Washington mistake.

If you see it: The 49ers begin close to midfield or already in Washington territory.

Here's what it means: Their offense has less ground to cover. A touchdown on a short drive may say as much about the defense’s contribution as the offense’s yardage total.

Look for: When 49ers receiver Mike Evans runs downfield, look for a Washington defender deeper than him.

If you see it: The receiver gets beyond that defender, or the defender stays between him and the end zone.

Here's what it means: The first picture creates room for a long throw; the second may make 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy choose a shorter target. The defense is deciding how much of the field it will protect.

Washington Commanders · Quarterback (QB)

His touchdown runs against New York covered 38 and 26 yards. Watch what is left in front of him when a 49ers defender charges toward the pocket; a hurried quarterback is not necessarily a contained quarterback.

San Francisco 49ers · Quarterback (QB)

He found receiver Brandin Cooks for the fourth-quarter touchdown that put San Francisco ahead. Watch whether Washington makes him check to a shorter throw or lets him reach a receiver beyond the first-down line.

San Francisco 49ers · Wide Receiver (WR)

He caught seven passes for 113 yards and a touchdown at Seattle, including three gains of at least twenty yards. Watch where Washington positions its deepest defender when Evans goes downfield.

San Francisco 49ers · Safety (S)

He stopped Seattle’s final fourth-down completion one yard short of a first down. Against a mobile quarterback and receivers looking for extra yards, the point where he finishes a tackle can matter as much as whether a pass is completed.

Washington Commanders · Wide Receiver (WR)

Daniels found him for a two-point conversion and a sixteen-yard overtime completion against New York. When Washington needs a useful gain rather than a spectacular one, watch whether McLaurin gives his quarterback a clear place to throw.

San Francisco’s defense supplied an immediate scoring opportunity and a touchdown of its own at Seattle. Washington does not need to stop taking chances, but it needs to distinguish a useful risk from a play that gives the opponent an easy possession. When Daniels abandons a throw and runs out of bounds, the modest result may have protected the next chance.

The 49ers reached Seattle’s quarterback five times for sacks. Daniels presents a different problem because his running helped produce two touchdowns last week. A defender who makes him move has started the job; the next defender decides whether that movement ends the play or turns into a useful gain.

Evans was a major factor at Seattle, while Cooks caught the fourth-quarter touchdown. Washington can reduce one receiver’s space without solving the entire passing game. If Purdy moves promptly to a second option, watch whether the defense still has someone in position to make the tackle before a short completion becomes a much larger gain.

San Francisco had four takeaways and still needed a late field goal. Washington has to make the 49ers earn the whole field.

Getting near Daniels and actually stopping him are two different jobs.

That last Seattle pass was complete, but it still lost the game. The first-down line is the number that mattered.