Niners end skid with Win over Baltimore

Week 6 - Meeting for the first time since Super Bowl XLVII just three seasons ago, Sunday's match-up between the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens, both of whom entered the game last in their respective division's at 1-4, took on the look of two entirely different teams than the ones that met in the Super Bowl. Out of the 44 starters in that Super Bowl, a combined 10 remain on that team today. And unlike that game which ended in disappointment for San Francisco fans, it was the 49ers who prevailed on Sunday. Niners QB Colin Kaepernick would build off of his best outing of the season just a week ago, a heart-wrenching loss to the Giants, with an even better performance in this one.

Throwing for a season-high 340 passing yards, Kaepernick connected on long passes to Torrey Smith and Anquan Boldin who had big games against their former team as well as fullback Bruce Miller who totaled a career-best 89-yards receiving on three receptions. The biggest play of the game coming on a career-high 76-yard touchdown reception by Smith. On the play, Smith torched Ravens cornerback Shareece Wright who signed with the 49ers during the offseason and demanded to be released just a week ago. Picked up by the Ravens, the Baltimore defender was exploited all afternoon long as Boldin burned his former teammate on a 51-yard reception in the fourth quarter to put him over 100 yards receiving in the game, which then set up a 21-yard touchdown catch by Quinton Patton, the first of his career. Scrambling in and out of the pocket, Kaepernick found Patton wide-open in the end zone after Wright slipped on the play, adding salt to the wound and making his disappointing Ravens debut that much worse. The Niner defense also did their part as the Ravens ground attack was held to just 76 yards.

Baltimore's Joe Flacco threw for 343 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but was picked off twice on the afternoon. In a last-ditch effort and a chance to hand the Niners consecutive last-minute losses, the former Super Bowl MVP heaved one into the end zone only to have the ball batted down by San Francisco safety Eric Reid, sealing the victory for the 49ers. The win, San Francisco's first since Week 1, helped the Niners end a four-game losing streak and snap a six-game losing skid to the Ravens who fell to 1-5 on the season, their worst start in franchise history through the first six games. Despite having to settle for four Phil Dawson field goals in the 25-20 win, a number of nifty passes by Kaepernick, including two for touchdowns, helped stave off a 5-game losing streak and breathe life into an offense that has looked much improved from the offense that struggled out of the gates. Then again, Baltimore's defense isn't quite what it once was.

Week 7 Preview - With a short week ahead prior to the 49ers next game -- a Thursday night showdown with the arch-rival (2-4) Seattle Seahawks who are coming off a last-minute loss at home to the undefeated Carolina Panthers, San Francisco will look to claim their first win in the division and first winning-streak of 2015. While the 49ers have mirrored a completely different team this season than the one that made three consecutive trips to the NFC Championship which ended a season ago, the Seahawks have yet to look like a playoff team this season either and appear to be suffering from a Super Bowl hangover, having already blown a number of fourth quarter leads this year, including in back to back games (losses to Cincinnati and Carolina). And if not for an illegal tip in the end zone late in their Monday night meeting against the Lions three weeks ago, Seattle would be starring down a 1-5 record right now. Even given their recent struggles and new faces, these are still two teams that don't like each other as both teams look to shed the title of "last-place" in the division. 


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