Amid a quarterback controversy that had everyone including 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh pondering who San Francisco's QB would be come Sunday in America's game of the week against the New Orleans Saints, the last minute decision to go with the hot hand and start the young Colin Kaepernick over the veteran Alex Smith would prove to be a successful one. Despite having to play in one of the more hostile venues in the NFL for a visiting team, Kaepernick seemed virtually unscathed by the raucous crowd of 70,000 screaming Saints fans and sparkled in his first career start on the road.
After a dismal 0-4 start to their 2012 season, the New Orleans Saints have since been one of the hottest teams in the league, winning 5 of their last 6 games, including a win over the NFC leading Atlanta Falcons, their only loss of the season thus far. But with a stout 49ers team in town, Drew Brees and company would be stopped in their tracks. Sending pressure Brees' way early and often, the 49ers defense forced back-to-back three and outs before drawing first blood. A pair of passes to Mario Manningham for a total of 53 yards would set up Kaepernick for an easy 7-yard touchdown run to give San Francisco an early 7-0 lead. Answering right back, Drew Brees would lead New Orleans on a successful drive of their own, as David Thomas tied the game at 7 all with a 6-yard Touchdown grab.
Leading the league with the fewest giveaways this season, the 49ers would encounter two early turnovers, the first being a muffed punt by return man Ted Ginn Jr. which the Saints turned into seven points to take a 14-7 lead. After exchanging punts, Kaepernick would be picked off for the first time in his career on a pass intended for Kyle Williams. With New Orleans at mid-field and threatening to take a double-digit lead into the half, the 49er defense would step up when needed. With 31 seconds remaining before half time, linebacker Ahmad Brooks who's played second fiddle and has received little notoriety playing alongside the superstar tandem of Patrick Willis and Navarro Bowman, picked the perfect time to come up with his first interception of the season and first career touchdown as he picked off Drew Brees and returned the ball 50 yards to tie the game at 14-14 heading into the half.
Appearing to have stolen all momentum heading into the locker room at the half, San Francisco would open the second half just as strong as they finished the first. After hitting tight-end Delanie Walker from 45 yards out on third down, Kaepernick fed Frank Gore with a short 6-yard touchdown pass to give the 49ers a 21-14 lead. With a blink of an eye, that lead would extend to 28-14 just two plays later as Brees would be intercepted for another pick six, this time by Donte Whitner who returned a 42 yarder into the end zone. Finally redeeming himself for the 21 unanswered points scored by the 49ers, Brees would get the Saints offense back on track with his third touchdown pass of the ballgame to bring his team within seven points. That was until San Francisco put together an early fourth quarter drive that lasted over nine minutes long and covered 85 yards on 16 plays. The drive would also be San Francisco's longest this season and fourth longest of any team in the NFL this year which saw the 49ers convert on three consecutive third downs before having to settle for a David Akers field goal.
From then on the rampant 49ers defense would prove to be too much for the Saints as Brees was sacked for a total of five times, preventing any chance of a miraculous comeback from the Pro Bowl QB. Far from his awe inspiring performance against the Chicago Bears last week, Colin Kaepernick threw for 231 passing yards as his team routed the Saints by a final of 31-21 to improve to 8-2-1 on the year. Meanwhile, New Orleans fell to 5-6.
Week 13 Preview: Next Sunday will see the 49ers take on a St. Louis Rams (4-6-1) team in which they played two weeks ago in a 24-24 tie. And though a winner failed to be determined in their first meeting this season at Candlestick Park, a tie in the rematch is unlikely as the Rams get set to play host this time around. Since their week 10 tie just two weeks ago, the Rams have gone 1-1 where they lost at home to the lowly New York Jets and won at Arizona against the Cardinals. Whereas the 49ers have handily won both of their games the last two weeks at home against the Chicago Bears and on the road against the Saints. Having played some of their best ball the last two weeks and behind a red hot Colin Kaepernick, look for the 49ers to continue to ride the wave of their streaking quarterback and return home from their two game road trip with a 27-17 win over the Rams.
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Heading into Monday Night's 49ers-Bears game which featured two backup quarterbacks as well as the top two scoring defenses in the league, a hard fought battle between two NFC heavyweights was expected to be on display. Instead, fans would be treated to a one-sided shellacking as only one team showed up to play. Having lost their last eight meetings in San Francisco and without Jay Cutler, the Bears would turn to Jason Campbell who last started a game in October of 2011 with the Oakland Raiders. As for the 49ers, with Alex Smith sidelined with a concussion, coach Jim Harbaugh would be forced to turn to Colin Kaepernick who's first career start would end up being one for the books.
The Chicago Bears entered Monday's game as one of only two teams who've yet to allow opponents to score on opening possessions this season (Packers the other). But a blazing start from Kaepernick would put an end to that as the second-year QB who set numerous records at the collegiate level with the Nevada Wolf Pack, got the 49ers on the board on their first four possessions sparked by a David Akers field goal on San Francisco's opening-drive. After marching down the field with ease on their first possession, Kaepernick would throw his first career touchdown pass on the following drive, a 3-yard toss to tight-end Vernon Davis. Showing no signs of a young inexperienced quarterback, Kaepernick's second possession would be even more impressive than his first as he drove the team down-field, setting up Kendall Hunter for an easy run in to cap off an 8-play, 96-yard scoring drive to put the 49ers up, 17-0, before later adding another Akers field goal.
Keeping the chain gang busy by picking up first down after first down, San Francisco's punting unit wouldn't be called upon until their fifth offensive possession, a three-and-out forced by the Chicago defense with 51 seconds remaining in the second quarter. Having been outplayed in every asset of the game in the first two quarters and a 20-0 score at the half to prove it, the Bears would face their largest deficit since 2010. A deficit that would increase to 27-0 once Kaepernick connected with Michael Crabtree in the end zone from 10 yards out. After a nightmare of a first half for Jason Campbell who tallied just 21 yards on 4-of-8 passing attempts and an interception, the only bright spot for the Bears second-string QB would be a 13-yard touchdown pass to receiver Brandon Marshall late in the third quarter. The rest of the game would be better off forgotten for Campbell who was under pressure almost all game long, mostly thanks to 49ers defensive end Aldon Smith who entered Monday's game with 9.5 sacks on the year before adding 5.5 more to pass Denver's Von Miller for the league lead with 15.
The duo of Aldon Smith and Justin Smith or better known as the "Smith brothers", would prove to be too much for a worn out Bears o-line that saw Campbell get sacked a total of six times and throw for two interceptions. The stingy 49ers defense also added a safety in the fourth quarter. With a league-best 31 takeaways, the Chicago defense would fail to add to their turnover total as Colin Kaepernick played a near perfect game, making the dominant Bears defense look rather pedestrian. With 243 yards through the air and a pair of touchdowns, Kaepernick finished Monday's stellar performance with a passer rating of 133.1. Coach Jim Harbaugh who was checked into a nearby hospital earlier in the week due to an irregular heartbeat, would have little to stress about in this one as his boys handily defeated the Bears by a score of 32-7, as Kaepernick became only the third QB over the last 10 seasons to win on Monday Night Football in his first career start.
Something Harbaugh might lose a little bit of sleep over in the near future however, is the quarterback controversy that is bound to surface once Alex Smith is cleared to play. Will he go with the guy that led the 49ers to within a game of the Super Bowl last year or this young kid coming off an impressive victory in his first career win? Whatever he decides to do, Harbaugh will be the first to tell you that having two good quarterbacks is a good problem to have.
Week 12 Preview: As the 49ers get set to hit the road for a 2-game road trip, their week 12 stop at New Orleans will be no walk in the park. After losing their first four games of the season, the Drew Brees led Saints (5-5) have recently caught fire, winning five of their last six games. And with the 49ers quarterback position currently in the air, whoever gets the nod will have to play through the raucous crowd that the Superdome has become known for over the years. Expect whoever is under center for the 49ers to get the job done on Sunday with a 24-21 win that could very well come down to the final possession.
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With the San Francisco 49ers coming off their bye week, Sunday's meeting against the division rival St. Louis Rams was expected to be just another day at the office for Jim Harbaugh's squad. Instead it would turn out to be anything but as both teams struggled to best one another in a game that would surpass the 4-hour mark and head to overtime. But even an extra quarter wouldn't be enough to help decide a winner as the Rams and 49ers became the latest teams to have their game end in a tie.
With St. Louis also fresh off a bye week, the 49ers looked as if they were still on theirs in the game's early going as the Rams jumped out to an early 14-0 lead. Former number one overall draft pick Sam Bradford showed no signs of intimidation against the league's number one ranked defense as he and Pro Bowl running back Stephen Jackson who eclipsed the 100-yard mark, marched down the field with ease on St. Louis' first two drives on offense. After being shutout in the first quarter, Alex Smith and the 49ers offense began to show signs of life as Smith found a wide-open Michael Crabtree for a 14-yard touchdown to put San Francisco on the board. But not before Smith had his bell rung with a shot to the head a few plays earlier when trying to scramble for a first down. Though Smith managed to complete the drive, he showed signs of discomfort while on the sideline and was escorted to the medical facility where he was later treated for a concussion.
With the NFL's ruling on concussions and blows to the head as strict as ever, Smith would be unable to return and saw his day come to an early end as backup Colin Kaepernick prepared to take over the quarterback duties. After a successful college career for the Nevada Wolf Pack where he had just as much success running the ball as he did passing, Kaepernick would showcase his running ability in the fourth quarter. Trailing 17-7, coach Harbaugh drew up a run play for his second year QB who ran it in from 7-yards out to bring his team within a field goal. Having played 3+ quarters of turnover-free football, the game would then see its first hiccup from either team as the Rams fumbled on the ensuing kickoff, setting up San Francisco for a chance to take their first lead of the game. On the very next play Frank Gore would do just that, dashing into the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown run to put his team on top, 21-17.
After a miraculous turn of events that saw everything including the momentum shift in San Francisco's favor, Rams head coach Jeff Fisher would then go to his bag of tricks. With San Francisco awaiting a punt, Fisher had other plans as St. Louis' special team burnt that of the 49ers by converting on not one but two fake punts in the ball game, the second coming with just over five minutes remaining in regulation. Several plays after their display of trickery, Bradford found a wide-open Austin Pettis in the back of the end zone to reclaim the lead. In need of a field goal to tie or a touchdown to win, Kaepernick would be called upon to put together some late-game heroics with just over a minute remaining. And with a number of short passes and runs of his own, Kaepernick would setup kicker David Akers for a 33-yard field goal to send the game into overtime tied, 24-24.
But it would be in overtime where both teams struggled to put anymore points across the board as both team's kickers had chances at winning the game with field goals but failed. Greg Zuerlein who missed from 58 yards out after earlier knocking down a 27 yarder and David Akers who with the exception of his week 1 performance against Green Bay has been a ghost of his 2011 self, having missed six field goals already this season including a 41 yard try in OT which is usually a chip shot for him, would both fail to get their team a win on Sunday. With both teams unable to score in overtime, the 49ers and Rams would play to the NFL's first tie in 4 years (first since Eagles vs Bengals in 2008), an oddity in today's game. While the 49ers remain atop the NFC West at 6-2-1, a game ahead of the 6-4 Seattle Seahawks, the Rams sit at 3-5-1 behind the 4-5 Arizona Cardinals.
Week 11 Preview: With the exception of their week 7 meeting with the Seattle Seahawks, the 49ers have yet to run into a team that's better known for their defense than they are for their offense. That's exactly what they'll see in week 11 against the visiting 7-2 Chicago Bears on ESPN's Monday Night Football in a battle of NFC heavyweights. While defense is expected to steal the spotlight, the game could very well be a face off between backup QB's. Though it's currently unknown as to whether or not 49ers QB Alex Smith will be cleared by doctors to play on Monday, Chicago will be without quarterback Jay Cutler who also suffered a concussion last week and will be replaced by backup Jason Campbell. But unlike Campbell who's been a starter in the league for the past six seasons, Kaepernick is inexperienced outside of the handful of snaps he's taken this year and has yet to face a defense of this caliber. With the Bears defense leading the league with 30 turnovers and 19 interceptions, the second-round pick out of Nevada could be in for a long day if he's given the nod. But if Smith gets the green light, I like the 49ers chances of bouncing back from their sloppy performance on Sunday and coming out on top, 20-10.
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This off-season saw not one, but two blockbuster moves from the Los Angeles Lakers who put together an All-Star cast of players by acquiring Steve Nash and Dwight Howard to join Kobe Bryant and company in Tinseltown. But with big names comes big payrolls which often leads to high expectations. The Lakers are no different so it came to the surprise of many after L.A. finished their preseason with a franchise-worst 0-8 record. And though we thought the win-less preseason was nothing more than a rough patch of exhibition games that meant nothing, little did we know that the Lakers' struggles would follow them into the regular season where they'd begin their quest for a 17th NBA title 0-3 before finally logging a win at home on Sunday against the lowly Pistons, only to lose their next game against Utah, falling to a disappointing 1-4 on the year.
The slow start coupled with an injury to Steve Nash in the team's second game would lead to many overreacting and wanting answers as to why this supreme team had yet to gel together. Wasting little time to make an adjustment, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak decided to fire head coach Mike Brown less than a season and a half into his four-year, $18 Million deal. At the time of his hiring, Rick Adelman, Jeff Van Gundy and the more obvious Brian Shaw who was thought to be Phil Jackson's successor in L.A. having served under Jackson as an assistant for several years, were all better options to coach the Lakers than Brown. But Brown's resume which included a trip to the NBA Finals in 2007 and a defense-first mentality was what eventually won the Lakers front-office over and landed him the job. However, one of the reasons Brown was initially hired would also lead to his departure after.
When a team isn't playing stellar defense which just so happens to be the head coach's specialty, there's definitely a problem. And with the Lakers behind the pack in defense this season, something needed to be done. Although Brown wasn't the right guy to begin with, if you're going to stick with the guy heading into the season, you've gotta stick with him until the season ends or at the very least until mid-season if all else fails and things just aren't clicking. Instead Kupchak prematurely pulled the plug just five games into season two. To his credit, Kupchak knows the window of opportunity for this Laker team won't be open for long and is aware that losing is something this team could ill-afford with the All-Star cast of aging players that was built to win now. Something the team won't be able to do until finding a man fit for the job under the most brightest of lights.
Unfortunately, L.A.'s options will be limited as both Rick Adelman who is now the head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Brian Shaw who's an assistant coach for the Indiana Pacers have found work elsewhere since being turned down for the Lakers head coaching position a little over a year ago. That leaves Jeff Van Gundy who seems to have found his place as a commentator and analyst for ESPN as the only remaining option from those the Lakers had in 2011. Then of course there's the always popular thought of bringing back Phil Jackson. No matter how long he's away from the game, he's never too far from the Lakers given his longtime girlfriend Jeanie Buss is the team's vice president. Jackson was rumored to have been spotted at the Lakers' practice facility this week, but there's no telling if he was visiting with the GM Kupchak to discuss the head coaching position or just paying his lady friend a visit.
Sadly, unless fly-fishing season is over and he ran dry of peyote, I don't see the Zen Master returning for a third stint to coach the Lakers in hopes of winning a 12th championship. But according to sources, the job is Jackson's to lose. If he does return to utilize the triangle offense, it'll be the first time Jackson has coached since the 2010-11 season when the Lakers were swept in the Conference Semifinals by the eventual world champion Dallas Mavericks. Though Jackson is the most popular option among Laker fans, he's not the only option in Lakerland. Mike D'Antoni who served as Steve Nash's head coach for four years in Phoenix is said to be neck and neck with Jackson as the leading candidate. But those who've seen D'Antoni coach in Phoenix know he likes to utilize the run and gun offense, something this Lakers team wouldn't be very good at given their lack of youth, something D'Antoni had plenty of during his time with the Suns.
Longtime Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan, Nate McMillian and former Lakers coach Mike Dunleavy Sr. round out the rest of L.A.'s preferred list of possible head coaches. And while it remains unknown who will be the next coach at the helm of the Lakers, hopefully the next decision will be the right decision from Kupchak who told the media yesterday that we can expect a decision to be made sooner than later.
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After an off-season that saw the release of future Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning and the drafting of phenom sensation Andrew Luck who was taken with the no. 1 overall pick, the Indianapolis Colts were dealt a blow just three games into their season when the team received tragic news that first year head coach Chuck Pagano was diagnosed with leukemia. Putting a damper on the Colts locker room, the news added to the team's 1-2 start. In a situation in which most teams would feel lost without their coach and leader, the Colts instead used Pagano's fight with cancer as motivation to fuel their will to win. Proving just that was their miraculous win against Green Bay in their first game after it was learned Pagano had cancer.
After a difficult bye week which left more than football on the minds of Colts players and personnel alike, QB Andrew Luck led Indianapolis to an 18-point, second half comeback over the reigning MVP Aaron Rogers and the Packers. Following their 30-27 victory over Green Bay, interim head coach Bruce Arians delivered the game ball to the 52-year old Pagano's nearby hospital bed. On Sunday, Pagano who has since progressed in his fight against cancer, made his first trip to Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium since being diagnosed with leukemia and witnessed his quarterback make history by throwing for an NFL single-game rookie record with 433 passing yards, surpassing the previous mark of 422 yards set last year by Carolina's Cam Newton. Watching from a far, Pagano's Colts improved to 5-3 on the year with their 23-20 win over the Miami Dolphins. The best part of all, however, would be Pagano's emotional post-game speech following the win which sent chills down the spine of any true sports fan.
Though Pagano returned to the hospital on Monday to undergo his second of three chemotherapy treatments, he'll be with his team in spirit in week 10 when the team travels to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars. And in case you aren't convinced just yet that the Colts are the feel good story of 2012, on Tuesday players and coaches did the deed of shaving their heads in support of Pagano, proving that the group of guys Indianapolis has is more than a team, they're family. And after appearing to have started the season in the rear-view mirror of Washington's Robert Griffin, Andrew Luck has since leapfrogged RG3 in the race for the Rookie of the Year Award and is quickly becoming a fan favorite. Not to mention he's already paved his path to become a pretty darn good QB having already surpassed Peyton Manning's win total who finished 3-13 in his 1998 rookie campaign with the Colts. All of this has quickly made the Indianapolis Colts one of the teams to watch in the NFL once again and for undoubtedly many years to come. Get well soon, coach!
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