The NFL's Final Four look an awful lot like most people's pre-season favorites, don't they? Oh, sure, there were those who cast their votes for Atlanta, or Houston, or both, to be in it (guilty as charged, we are), but in the main this Championship Sunday field has an air of inevitability about it. We have the Team No One Wants to Play, we have the Record-Setting Juggernaut, we have, of course, the Eternal (or is that Infernal?) Empire, and, last but not least, we have our own faves, the Unfinished Business Boys. Both top seeds survived the past weekend, which is kinda rare in itself, and there isn't a Plucky Underdog left. You can slice and dice the upcoming Super Bowl four different ways, and all of those potentialities are good matchups. Parity may have ruled the regular season; this postseason has seen excellence rise to the top.
The semifinal games just concluded, while not as exciting as the previous weekend's slate, were illustrative in that each winning team played its unique brand of football en route to victory. The losers, while certainly competitive and, in some cases, more so, never took the winners out of their game plans or forced a change in style.
Seattle held, hit, blocked, and tackled-- hard. Marshawn Lynch's power running was almost negated by Russell Wilson throwing more than his quota of hideous passes-- but Wilson also hit on two huge downfield completions that helped decide the game. Had Mark Ingram not fumbled on his own 20-yard-line, would the result have been different? Outside that play the game was essentially a stalemate, but while the Seahawks' few drives stalled in field-goal range, Drew Brees and Co. never got into scoring position at all until they were sixteen points to the bad. The Seahawks' frustrating, disruptive style of play takes opponents out of their games on a regular basis; but given that Seattle's own plan is simply to make no mistakes on offense, trust the defense, and keep the game close, it's doggone hard to get them off their script. Early in the year, certainly including the 49er game, Seattle was known for jumping out to an early lead and then simply suffocating the other team for the duration. That hasn't happened in a while-- but they're still winning.
Who could have figured the New England Patriots would reinvent themselves as the 1973 Miami Dolphins? OK, Tom Brady throws more than eight passes a game, but the parallels are striking. How about the three-headed running back-- big bruiser LeGarrette ("Four-- count 'em-- four, touchdowns") Blount, quick-to-the-hole Stevan Ridley, and all-purpose Shane Vereen? Anyone else see the ghosts of Csonka, Morris, and Kiick? And whom does Julian Edelman resemble more than Howard Twilley? Meanwhile, as Brady and Bill Belichick search for their version of Paul Warfield, the rest of us see a defense that recalls the "No-Name" squad of old-- a bunch of NFL nobodies who drove the brilliant but overburdened Andrew Luck into mistake after mistake. (No longer anonymous: rookie linebacker Jamie Collins). And if there's any coach today who bears a resemblance to the great Don Shula, it's Belichick, with his uncanny acumen that enables him to find the right role for the player, no matter who he may be (or whom he may be asked to replace).
Even in defeat, the San Diego Chargers played their game-- if not their season in microcosm. Appalling in their offensive ineptitude for nearly three full quarters, the 'Bolts' came alive in the final period and gave themselves a chance to win, unlikely as it sounds. But Peyton Manning and his offensive lieutenants had already struck for enough points to set the tone, and they answered back the Chargers' first score with a definitive drive of their own to re-establish supremacy. Manning didn't need to throw five, six, or seven touchdowns, and it's presumptuous to say he could have if he wanted to-- San Diego's defense kept them in the game against long odds. But who's to say that if and when the occasion calls for it, Peyton won't simply dial up yet another record-setting performance, no matter who the opposition may be? And we ought to take note that the Bronco defense, lately held to be the team's weakness, if anything put out a more consistent winning effort than did the offense.
That leaves our 49ers for last. There isn't a better second-half team in football, and hasn't been for some time, than Jim Harbaugh's group. We saw it in the Super Bowl, we saw it last week, and we saw it Sunday, demonstrated with a vengeance. Early on, the Carolina Panthers were playing their game-- tight, hard-hitting defense, verbal intimidation, Cam Newton keeping the pass rush honest-- and then Cam and Steve Smith hit the critically important big play, a 31-yard strike that wiped out an early interception and a 49er goal-line stand, and which all of a sudden put the Panthers ahead.
The 49ers' resulting 17-0 steamroller job thus was a sight to behold. They beat the Panthers at their own game-- which is the Niners' game, too-- and overcame some of their own deficiencies in the process. We'd started grinding our collective teeth early on, as two promising drives ended unsatisfactorily in field goals-- our continuing goal-to-go frustrations piling up. And unlike Green Bay, against whom we'd opened in near-identical fashion the week before, Carolina has a great defense, and that defense saw those field goals as wins: All we need is the lead. And they had the lead as Colin Kaepernick and his offensive mates faced yet another goal-to go at the end of a snappy, three-minute, 11-play, 79-yard drive just before halftime. Second down from the one and "Kap" rolled right, waiting for what seemed like forever, and then zipped one into the corner that for all the world looked like it would fall incomplete-- and even when Vernon Davis unexpectedly grabbed it, it still was incomplete, according to the officials. Thankfully, replay proved Vernon had dragged his left foot in bounds and the call went our way--as did most of the calls, and penalties, on this day, excepting only one egregiously bad example (look up Dan Skuta on the highlight films if you must; we can't bear it).
But we'd scored. A touchdown. On a short pass into a well-defended end zone. Finally. That was the important thing.
Kaepernick and Anquan Boldin answered Newton and Smith back with a beautiful deep pass for 45 yards four minutes into the third quarter, a perfect throw and catch which a faster man would have taken in for the touchdown. (Not that we'd trade "The Quan" for any receiver in the NFL right now-- Boldin may be the San Francisco 49ers' most valuable player this year, and is certainly the team's top trade pickup since Fred Dean). "Kap" then let 'em see a glimpse of the read-option as he weaved past defenders into the end zone to make it 20-10. The remaining nine minutes of the third quarter played out a drama that decided the game.
Though not known as a comeback team, the Panthers had rallied late against the New Orleans Saints to win the NFC South division a few weeks earlier, and here Newton led them on a six-minute 13-play march across midfield and down inside the 49er 30-yard-line, eating up clock and putting his team in position to make it a three-point game. Working out of the shotgun, Newton and Ron Rivera may have been thinking of the bomb to Smith from this same location earlier. In any case, the 49ers' Vic Fangio, who doesn't dial up the blitz often, sent his linebackers after Newton on successive dropbacks. First Navorro Bowman and then Ahmad Brooks nailed the QB for crushing sacks, dropping Carolina back 16 yards, nearly to midfield and out of field-goal range. There were still 40 seconds left in the third quarter, but even the Carolina fans knew something had been irrevocably lost, and when Brad Nortman punted on fourth down, the Panthers' victory hopes sailed away with the kick.
There were no fumbles in the game, and the only two interceptions were Newton's, though neither especially crippled his team's chances. It may be simplistic to assert those two sacks made the difference in toto, but we're hard-pressed to remember back-to-back plays that echoed with such significance. Defeating Carolina, a team that plays in the hard-nosed, grabby, intimidating manner as does Seattle, and doing so on the road, is proof positive that the 49ers have the capability to do the same this Sunday. That they will of course, is the "thing"-- the thing nobody knows. But we're quite certain that no game, and no opponent, could have better prepared the Niners for what they're about to face than did the Carolina Panthers. They'll be back.
And as far as being back goes, all it will take for the 49ers to get back to the Super Bowl is to do this again, one more time-- and do it maybe just a little bit better.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Thursday, January 9, 2014
Road Trap?
Well, to hear the cognoscenti do their cognoscentin', one might conclude Sunday's upcoming tussle with the Carolina Panthers is already locked, stocked, and barrelled. Once again, the San Francisco 49ers are everybody's favorite team, and the Panthers are a plucky bunch of overachievers who benefited from a soft schedule and a series of injured opponents. The same people who proclaimed Colin Kaepernick a flash-in-the-pan at midseason are now busy anointing him as the quickest, slickest, shootin'est QB in the league. Overwhelmingly, San Francisco is the talk of the NFL and the Panthers have been relegated to Washington Generals status.
In other words, it's time for us 49er fans to be concerned. Very concerned.
That the Niners, at full strength and on a memorable roll, ought to beat the Panthers on their home field is a reasonable expectation. But that they will is another. Last weekend's win over Green Bay, thrilling and rewarding as it was, left some concerns in its wake. Principally, those two first-quarter red-zone series which resulted in field goals instead of touchdowns bore an awfully uncomfortable resemblance to the frustrating finish in Super Bowl XLVII. Six times "Kap" was asked to deliver short "touch" passes into the tightest coverage scheme in pro football, the end-zone defense. Six times the Niners came up short. Oh, sure, they could have called interference on at least one of those plays, but this isn't the first time this has happened, and it's beginning to look uncomfortably like a habit. Might coach Harbaugh consider mixing in a few running plays in goal-to-go situations Sunday?
Carolina is a team who win games in a manner we all will find familiar; one thing we don't want to see is the 49ers playing to the opponent's strength, and risk getting beaten at our own game. Cam Newton is capable of making big game-breaking plays as does "Kap," and the Panthers' defense is built a lot like our own, with phenomenally active linebackers and a front four that can deliver pressure without resorting to the blitz. One advantage in the 49ers' favor is that the venerable Steve Smith may be at less than full strength, while our own Vernon Davis, Anquan Boldin, and Michael Crabtree are all playing at top level. We think the 49ers will win this game, but we expect it to be every bit as close as the exhaust-o-thon just completed.
As opposed to his goal-line struggles, Kaepernick was in much better shape on the medium-range throws to Crabtree (has he ever dropped a catchable pass?) and especially on that spectacular post-pattern perfecto to Davis which split two defenders and re-established the 49ers' advantage-- for good, as it turned out. And of course, no San Francisco-Green Bay game these days is complete without at least one sensational run by "Kap." This one had three, all of which set up scores and all of which showed off our QB's tremendous speed and athletic ability-- particularly that dagger-through-the-heart sideline scramble on the game's ultimate drive.
That five-minute possession was a defining moment for the young quarterback. The goal was clear from the outset: not only to drive to the winning score, but to use the clock in such a manner as to ensure Aaron Rodgers would not get back on the field unless a missed field goal forced overtime. And both Harbaugh and Kaepernick directed the action perfectly. Just as important as the third-down pass to Crabtree and the above-mentioned quarterback run was Frank Gore's short plunge for a critical first down that took the clock away from the Packers' control. Without naming names, we'll just say that controlling the final five minutes of a game while holding onto the the football is a 49er trademark we remember from the glory days, and this was a most timely delivery of the new updated version. Everybody take a bow!
As Alex Smith sliced and diced the Indianapolis Colts' defense during the first 35 minutes of Saturday's postseason opener, we were feeling awfully warmhearted toward the 49ers' former Number One pick. He showed flashes of the pinpoint accuracy and the heads-up running that carried the Niners past New Orleans two postseasons ago, and in our mind we were already composing lyrical prose about redemption and a possible scarlet-on-scarlet showdown come February. Then Andrew Luck happened, and-- well, is this how those selfsame Saints of an earlier generation felt watching a youngster named Montana back in December of 1980? In the end, it's hard to be too upset with this calamity, if that's what it is, because we believe the Colts match up well against the Evil Empire, whom they'll be facing Saturday night. People go broke betting against Belichick and Brady, but we think the Colts are physical enough, and Luck brilliant enough, to carry the day (or night).
Speaking of the Saints, who would have figured they'd win on the road with their running game and defense overcoming a mediocre effort from Drew Brees? Yet that's just what they did, and after 47 long years the New Orleans Saints have finally won a postseason game outside the Superdome. If they're going to continue this and pull off a colossal upset at Buster Eardrums Field up in Seattle Saturday, they'll need to depend on guys like Khiry Robinson and, Mark Ingram as much as on Brees, and they'll need to "out-physical" the Seahawks both ways. Still a longshot, especially in that outdoor insane asylum, but we'll be here pulling for 'em. And we hardly need cry for the Eagles (especially those few who went public with sore-loser comments) considering how far they came in one year with a brand-new system and the likelihood they'll be right back in it next year.
"Air Coryell" they're not, but the 2013 San Diego Chargers aren't chopped liver either. They got stronger and stronger as the Cincinnati game went on last Sunday, choking the life out of the game against a strong defense. Everybody seems to be blaming Andy Dalton for this loss, but howzabout we give Mike McCoy, his game plan, and his offensive line some credit for the win? Phillip Rivers is exactly the kind of quarterback who'll thrive in a game where he only has to throw six passes in the first half, and if Mr Less-Is-More is going to have any chance at upsetting Peyton Manning and his record-setting crew on Sunday, he'll need another grind-it-out clock-eating effort from Danny Woodhead, Ryan Matthews, and the offensive line. We don't think it'll be enough, even if it does work, but hey-- that's why they play the games, right?
In other words, it's time for us 49er fans to be concerned. Very concerned.
That the Niners, at full strength and on a memorable roll, ought to beat the Panthers on their home field is a reasonable expectation. But that they will is another. Last weekend's win over Green Bay, thrilling and rewarding as it was, left some concerns in its wake. Principally, those two first-quarter red-zone series which resulted in field goals instead of touchdowns bore an awfully uncomfortable resemblance to the frustrating finish in Super Bowl XLVII. Six times "Kap" was asked to deliver short "touch" passes into the tightest coverage scheme in pro football, the end-zone defense. Six times the Niners came up short. Oh, sure, they could have called interference on at least one of those plays, but this isn't the first time this has happened, and it's beginning to look uncomfortably like a habit. Might coach Harbaugh consider mixing in a few running plays in goal-to-go situations Sunday?
Carolina is a team who win games in a manner we all will find familiar; one thing we don't want to see is the 49ers playing to the opponent's strength, and risk getting beaten at our own game. Cam Newton is capable of making big game-breaking plays as does "Kap," and the Panthers' defense is built a lot like our own, with phenomenally active linebackers and a front four that can deliver pressure without resorting to the blitz. One advantage in the 49ers' favor is that the venerable Steve Smith may be at less than full strength, while our own Vernon Davis, Anquan Boldin, and Michael Crabtree are all playing at top level. We think the 49ers will win this game, but we expect it to be every bit as close as the exhaust-o-thon just completed.
As opposed to his goal-line struggles, Kaepernick was in much better shape on the medium-range throws to Crabtree (has he ever dropped a catchable pass?) and especially on that spectacular post-pattern perfecto to Davis which split two defenders and re-established the 49ers' advantage-- for good, as it turned out. And of course, no San Francisco-Green Bay game these days is complete without at least one sensational run by "Kap." This one had three, all of which set up scores and all of which showed off our QB's tremendous speed and athletic ability-- particularly that dagger-through-the-heart sideline scramble on the game's ultimate drive.
That five-minute possession was a defining moment for the young quarterback. The goal was clear from the outset: not only to drive to the winning score, but to use the clock in such a manner as to ensure Aaron Rodgers would not get back on the field unless a missed field goal forced overtime. And both Harbaugh and Kaepernick directed the action perfectly. Just as important as the third-down pass to Crabtree and the above-mentioned quarterback run was Frank Gore's short plunge for a critical first down that took the clock away from the Packers' control. Without naming names, we'll just say that controlling the final five minutes of a game while holding onto the the football is a 49er trademark we remember from the glory days, and this was a most timely delivery of the new updated version. Everybody take a bow!
As Alex Smith sliced and diced the Indianapolis Colts' defense during the first 35 minutes of Saturday's postseason opener, we were feeling awfully warmhearted toward the 49ers' former Number One pick. He showed flashes of the pinpoint accuracy and the heads-up running that carried the Niners past New Orleans two postseasons ago, and in our mind we were already composing lyrical prose about redemption and a possible scarlet-on-scarlet showdown come February. Then Andrew Luck happened, and-- well, is this how those selfsame Saints of an earlier generation felt watching a youngster named Montana back in December of 1980? In the end, it's hard to be too upset with this calamity, if that's what it is, because we believe the Colts match up well against the Evil Empire, whom they'll be facing Saturday night. People go broke betting against Belichick and Brady, but we think the Colts are physical enough, and Luck brilliant enough, to carry the day (or night).
Speaking of the Saints, who would have figured they'd win on the road with their running game and defense overcoming a mediocre effort from Drew Brees? Yet that's just what they did, and after 47 long years the New Orleans Saints have finally won a postseason game outside the Superdome. If they're going to continue this and pull off a colossal upset at Buster Eardrums Field up in Seattle Saturday, they'll need to depend on guys like Khiry Robinson and, Mark Ingram as much as on Brees, and they'll need to "out-physical" the Seahawks both ways. Still a longshot, especially in that outdoor insane asylum, but we'll be here pulling for 'em. And we hardly need cry for the Eagles (especially those few who went public with sore-loser comments) considering how far they came in one year with a brand-new system and the likelihood they'll be right back in it next year.
"Air Coryell" they're not, but the 2013 San Diego Chargers aren't chopped liver either. They got stronger and stronger as the Cincinnati game went on last Sunday, choking the life out of the game against a strong defense. Everybody seems to be blaming Andy Dalton for this loss, but howzabout we give Mike McCoy, his game plan, and his offensive line some credit for the win? Phillip Rivers is exactly the kind of quarterback who'll thrive in a game where he only has to throw six passes in the first half, and if Mr Less-Is-More is going to have any chance at upsetting Peyton Manning and his record-setting crew on Sunday, he'll need another grind-it-out clock-eating effort from Danny Woodhead, Ryan Matthews, and the offensive line. We don't think it'll be enough, even if it does work, but hey-- that's why they play the games, right?
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Road Trip
File under "Change for Change's Sake:" The 49ers have become the poster boys for those who would revise the NFL's postseason alignment. With a 12-4 record, Our Boys will be facing the 8-7-1 Green Bay Packers tomorrow at Lambeau Field under "Ice Bowl" conditions, and more than a few have seized on this as evidence of the league's disparity. (Actually, we see it as evidence of parity, but this blog is not "Semantics Boogie", at least not yet.)
The carpers seem to fall into two general camps. First are those who would simply tweak the home-field advantage to reward the team with the better record, even if that team were the wild-card and their opponent the division winner. In that scenario this weekend's NFC home fields would be reversed, but nothing else would change. The Niners would host as the third seed with Green Bay the sixth, while Philly would play at New Orleans. Others favor more radical surgery: seed the teams 1-6 by record regardless of division titles or anything else. Presumably this would entail, in fact if not in appearance, one big 16-team conference with no divisions. This year's NFC qualifiers would thus be the Seahawks, Panthers, 49ers, Saints, Cardinals, and Eagles, with the Packers sidelined. The Washington Redskins would man the caboose in 16th place-- and as was once said by a baseball owner in 1969, explaining why the leagues adopted divisional play, "Who in the @#$%&! is gonna root for a 12th (or, we might add, 16th) -place team?"
The issue could also be addressed by consolidating the four divisions into two 8-team divisions (East and West in the NFC, North and South in the AFC) while qualifying four wild-cards, which would all but guarantee that the division winners would have the best records. But as one critic pointed out, 14 of each team's games would thus be played within their division. Even if the season expanded to 18 games, such a configuration would radically change the regular season.
So the best answer is to do nothing, play it as it lays, and by all means resist any efforts to expand the postseason derby to 14 teams. (Back, infidel Goodell!) Good thing the 49ers have played well on the road, isn't it?
Okay, a few quick and topical one-liners before the show starts:
Kansas City at Indianapolis. Y'all know the Chiefs are our favorite AFC team, but we like the Colts, too. (Did you know that next year, their 31st in Indianapolis, they'll have been in Indy as long as they were in Baltimore?) Two well-coached teams, two Number One Pick quarterbacks... we're pulling for Alex and his mates, but if we had to throw down we'd go with the home team, by a field goal, possibly in OT.
New Orleans at Philadelphia. The whole house here is pulling for the Saints to win and then go up to Seattle and avenge that 2010 playoff defeat, but reality tells us that 10-degree weather and LeSean McCoy will overcome Drew Brees and a lousy run defense. We see Philly pulling away in the second half before Brees mounts an exciting but too-late rally that falls short by a TD or so.
San Diego at Cincinnati. A repeat of 1982's "Freezer Bowl?" Perhaps so. Andy Dalton ain't no Ken Anderson, but whether the Chargers' defense can force him into mistakes is the question. And if he doesn't screw up, the Bengals roll. Too bad, because we like this San Diego team, but the Bengals stay unbeaten at home and win their first playoff game since 1990. Then it's on to Foxboro...
49ers at Green Bay. Weather or not, Our Boys have too many weapons for a Packer defense that may be without Clay Matthews. Three quarters of Kap-versus-Rodgers, big plays, back-and-forth-- and then a fourth quarter of Frank Gore, Navorro Bowman, and disgruntled Cheeseheads abandoning their seats for their cars. Niners by 14.
The carpers seem to fall into two general camps. First are those who would simply tweak the home-field advantage to reward the team with the better record, even if that team were the wild-card and their opponent the division winner. In that scenario this weekend's NFC home fields would be reversed, but nothing else would change. The Niners would host as the third seed with Green Bay the sixth, while Philly would play at New Orleans. Others favor more radical surgery: seed the teams 1-6 by record regardless of division titles or anything else. Presumably this would entail, in fact if not in appearance, one big 16-team conference with no divisions. This year's NFC qualifiers would thus be the Seahawks, Panthers, 49ers, Saints, Cardinals, and Eagles, with the Packers sidelined. The Washington Redskins would man the caboose in 16th place-- and as was once said by a baseball owner in 1969, explaining why the leagues adopted divisional play, "Who in the @#$%&! is gonna root for a 12th (or, we might add, 16th) -place team?"
The issue could also be addressed by consolidating the four divisions into two 8-team divisions (East and West in the NFC, North and South in the AFC) while qualifying four wild-cards, which would all but guarantee that the division winners would have the best records. But as one critic pointed out, 14 of each team's games would thus be played within their division. Even if the season expanded to 18 games, such a configuration would radically change the regular season.
So the best answer is to do nothing, play it as it lays, and by all means resist any efforts to expand the postseason derby to 14 teams. (Back, infidel Goodell!) Good thing the 49ers have played well on the road, isn't it?
Okay, a few quick and topical one-liners before the show starts:
Kansas City at Indianapolis. Y'all know the Chiefs are our favorite AFC team, but we like the Colts, too. (Did you know that next year, their 31st in Indianapolis, they'll have been in Indy as long as they were in Baltimore?) Two well-coached teams, two Number One Pick quarterbacks... we're pulling for Alex and his mates, but if we had to throw down we'd go with the home team, by a field goal, possibly in OT.
New Orleans at Philadelphia. The whole house here is pulling for the Saints to win and then go up to Seattle and avenge that 2010 playoff defeat, but reality tells us that 10-degree weather and LeSean McCoy will overcome Drew Brees and a lousy run defense. We see Philly pulling away in the second half before Brees mounts an exciting but too-late rally that falls short by a TD or so.
San Diego at Cincinnati. A repeat of 1982's "Freezer Bowl?" Perhaps so. Andy Dalton ain't no Ken Anderson, but whether the Chargers' defense can force him into mistakes is the question. And if he doesn't screw up, the Bengals roll. Too bad, because we like this San Diego team, but the Bengals stay unbeaten at home and win their first playoff game since 1990. Then it's on to Foxboro...
49ers at Green Bay. Weather or not, Our Boys have too many weapons for a Packer defense that may be without Clay Matthews. Three quarters of Kap-versus-Rodgers, big plays, back-and-forth-- and then a fourth quarter of Frank Gore, Navorro Bowman, and disgruntled Cheeseheads abandoning their seats for their cars. Niners by 14.
Friday, January 3, 2014
TV or Not TV
Has anyone else noticed that empty seats are becoming more and more common at NFL games? This sight, which we've noticed even at such hallowed locations as Heinz Field in Pittsburgh and FedEx Field in Washington, cannot be a pleasant one for Roger Goodell and the NFL braintrust. While it can be understood that Redskins fans might stay away during the Kirk Cousins auditions over the season's final weeks, seeing empty yellow chairs on Sunday night a few weeks ago when the Steelers beat the Bengals at home and and improved their playoff chances was truly surprising.
Okay, maybe they were all out for beer and brats at the concessions. That's always possible. But earlier this week ESPN reported that the Colts, Bengals, and Packers had yet to sell out their upcoming quarterfinal playoff games this weekend, and that those games-- playoff games, yet-- might be blacked out in the teams' home towns as a result.
Packer fans were quick to the defensive: apparently the team had sent out its postseason ticket order forms in early December, when the locals were 5-6 and Aaron Rodgers was still under doctors' care. Few indeed would shell out under those circumstances, and Cheesehead Nation firmly denies that "fear of the 49ers" had anything to do with the slow advance sales. Indeed, the last we saw, the unsold block had dropped from 40,000 to about a thousand, with those expected to go today-- and we're confident they will.
The Colts dodged the blackout bullet yesterday, thanks to the corporate folks at Meijer, whose fine gesture will allow military families a chance to see the game up close and personal. Similar acts of kindness toward our servicemen and servicewomen are being reported from Cincinnati, though their blackout risk remains as of this hour. Considering the Bengals have hosted exactly two postseason games since 1990, and the last was in 2009, this one is hard to figure.
In his fine book America's Game, author Michael MacCambridge differentiates the NFL's rush to embrace television with major-league baseball's concurrent stodginess as a key reason why pro football became the nation's number one spectator sport in the 1960s. "Why give our product away for free?" was the baseball lords' argument. The football people, epitomized by commissioner Pete Rozelle, realized that TV exposure sold not only the game, but the stadium experience, as well as the team and league brands, to previously untapped audiences. It was taken for granted that a good percentage of that audience would become interested enough to buy into the entire game-day experience, and that the remainder would be numerous enough that advertisers would pay top dollar to try and grab their attention. As we know, it all worked.
But the advent of high-definition TV, packages like "NFL Sunday Ticket," the proliferation of highlights from other games, and the incredibly sophisticated camera techniques now deployed by the networks give the TV viewer an experience that the fan in the stands can't match. Add to that the traffic, crowding, and winter weather conditions which accompany the stadium experience, and the increasing reports of dangerous parking lot conditions, especially after dark, and the disincentive side of the equation also gets heavier. Back in San Francisco we were on the waiting list for 49er season tickets; by the time we left the area twelve years ago it was already an open question whether we'd even want them if our number somehow came up. The consensus around here is that once, maybe twice, a season might be fun, but the rest of the time we'd rather watch the whole 14-game Sunday-afternoon circus from our command center-- uh, family room, that is.
Yes, the games are still selling out, for the most part-- but where are the people? We have to figure Goodell and his minions cringe whenever the camera reveals rows of empty seats during a late-season playoff-position battle. As perhaps the most interventionist commissioner since Bert Bell, will Goodell do anything about it?
Speaking of TV, we note this postseason is not exactly an advertising man's wet dream. Of the top ten markets in the league, only two-- Philadelphia and Boston-- are represented in the playoffs, while five of the bottom ten-- Green Bay, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Kansas City, and New Orleans-- made it. No Giants, no Cowboys, no Redskins. Sure, we know small-market teams like the Packers and Steelers, not to mention our mid-market 49ers, have fans all over the country, but when you consider numbers alone, how excited will the marketing people be over, say, a Bengals-Panthers Super Bowl?
Aren't we glad it's not our problem?
Just for fun, here are the 32 NFL teams ranked by size of home base, and presumed home TV audience, according to 2012 US Census figures. (We split NYC between the Giants and Jets, and split the Bay Area between the Niners and Raiders as well, then added San Jose to the 49er base. Of course, this can't take nationwide fan bases into account, but TV audience estimates have to be based on something.)
1. New York Giants 9,900,000
New York Jets 9,900,000
3. Chicago Bears 9,500,000
4. Dallas Cowboys 6,700,000
5. Houston Texans 6,200,000
6. Philadelphia Eagles 6,000,000
7. Washington Redskins 5,900,000
8. Miami Dolphins 5,800,000
9. Atlanta Falcons 5,500,000
10. New England Patriots 4,600,000
11. Arizona Cardinals 4,300,000
12. Detroit Lions 4,300,000
13. San Francisco 49ers 4,000,000
14. Seattle Seahawks 3,600,000
15. Minnesota Vikings 3,400,000
16. San Diego Chargers 3,200,000
17. Tampa Bay Bucs 2,800,000
18. St Louis Rams 2,800,000
19. Baltimore Ravens 2,800,000
20. Denver Broncos 2,600,000
21. Pittsburgh Steelers 2,400,000
22. Carolina Panthers 2,300,000
23. Oakland Raiders 2,200,000
24. Cincinnati Bengals 2,100,000
25. Cleveland Browns 2,100,000
26. Kansas City Chiefs 2,000,000
27. Indianapolis Colts 1,900,000
28. Tennessee Titans 1,700,000
29. Jacksonville Jaguars 1,400,000
30. New Orleans Saints 1,200,000
31. Buffalo Bills 1,100,000
32. Green Bay Packers 311,000
Okay, maybe they were all out for beer and brats at the concessions. That's always possible. But earlier this week ESPN reported that the Colts, Bengals, and Packers had yet to sell out their upcoming quarterfinal playoff games this weekend, and that those games-- playoff games, yet-- might be blacked out in the teams' home towns as a result.
Packer fans were quick to the defensive: apparently the team had sent out its postseason ticket order forms in early December, when the locals were 5-6 and Aaron Rodgers was still under doctors' care. Few indeed would shell out under those circumstances, and Cheesehead Nation firmly denies that "fear of the 49ers" had anything to do with the slow advance sales. Indeed, the last we saw, the unsold block had dropped from 40,000 to about a thousand, with those expected to go today-- and we're confident they will.
The Colts dodged the blackout bullet yesterday, thanks to the corporate folks at Meijer, whose fine gesture will allow military families a chance to see the game up close and personal. Similar acts of kindness toward our servicemen and servicewomen are being reported from Cincinnati, though their blackout risk remains as of this hour. Considering the Bengals have hosted exactly two postseason games since 1990, and the last was in 2009, this one is hard to figure.
In his fine book America's Game, author Michael MacCambridge differentiates the NFL's rush to embrace television with major-league baseball's concurrent stodginess as a key reason why pro football became the nation's number one spectator sport in the 1960s. "Why give our product away for free?" was the baseball lords' argument. The football people, epitomized by commissioner Pete Rozelle, realized that TV exposure sold not only the game, but the stadium experience, as well as the team and league brands, to previously untapped audiences. It was taken for granted that a good percentage of that audience would become interested enough to buy into the entire game-day experience, and that the remainder would be numerous enough that advertisers would pay top dollar to try and grab their attention. As we know, it all worked.
But the advent of high-definition TV, packages like "NFL Sunday Ticket," the proliferation of highlights from other games, and the incredibly sophisticated camera techniques now deployed by the networks give the TV viewer an experience that the fan in the stands can't match. Add to that the traffic, crowding, and winter weather conditions which accompany the stadium experience, and the increasing reports of dangerous parking lot conditions, especially after dark, and the disincentive side of the equation also gets heavier. Back in San Francisco we were on the waiting list for 49er season tickets; by the time we left the area twelve years ago it was already an open question whether we'd even want them if our number somehow came up. The consensus around here is that once, maybe twice, a season might be fun, but the rest of the time we'd rather watch the whole 14-game Sunday-afternoon circus from our command center-- uh, family room, that is.
Yes, the games are still selling out, for the most part-- but where are the people? We have to figure Goodell and his minions cringe whenever the camera reveals rows of empty seats during a late-season playoff-position battle. As perhaps the most interventionist commissioner since Bert Bell, will Goodell do anything about it?
Speaking of TV, we note this postseason is not exactly an advertising man's wet dream. Of the top ten markets in the league, only two-- Philadelphia and Boston-- are represented in the playoffs, while five of the bottom ten-- Green Bay, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Kansas City, and New Orleans-- made it. No Giants, no Cowboys, no Redskins. Sure, we know small-market teams like the Packers and Steelers, not to mention our mid-market 49ers, have fans all over the country, but when you consider numbers alone, how excited will the marketing people be over, say, a Bengals-Panthers Super Bowl?
Aren't we glad it's not our problem?
Just for fun, here are the 32 NFL teams ranked by size of home base, and presumed home TV audience, according to 2012 US Census figures. (We split NYC between the Giants and Jets, and split the Bay Area between the Niners and Raiders as well, then added San Jose to the 49er base. Of course, this can't take nationwide fan bases into account, but TV audience estimates have to be based on something.)
1. New York Giants 9,900,000
New York Jets 9,900,000
3. Chicago Bears 9,500,000
4. Dallas Cowboys 6,700,000
5. Houston Texans 6,200,000
6. Philadelphia Eagles 6,000,000
7. Washington Redskins 5,900,000
8. Miami Dolphins 5,800,000
9. Atlanta Falcons 5,500,000
10. New England Patriots 4,600,000
11. Arizona Cardinals 4,300,000
12. Detroit Lions 4,300,000
13. San Francisco 49ers 4,000,000
14. Seattle Seahawks 3,600,000
15. Minnesota Vikings 3,400,000
16. San Diego Chargers 3,200,000
17. Tampa Bay Bucs 2,800,000
18. St Louis Rams 2,800,000
19. Baltimore Ravens 2,800,000
20. Denver Broncos 2,600,000
21. Pittsburgh Steelers 2,400,000
22. Carolina Panthers 2,300,000
23. Oakland Raiders 2,200,000
24. Cincinnati Bengals 2,100,000
25. Cleveland Browns 2,100,000
26. Kansas City Chiefs 2,000,000
27. Indianapolis Colts 1,900,000
28. Tennessee Titans 1,700,000
29. Jacksonville Jaguars 1,400,000
30. New Orleans Saints 1,200,000
31. Buffalo Bills 1,100,000
32. Green Bay Packers 311,000
Thursday, August 15, 2013
If You Had a Choice of Colors, Which One Would You Choose, My Brothers?
With apologies to Curtis Mayfield, Jerry Butler, and the Impressions, today's subtext is, "Scarlet and Gold, or Crimson and White?"
And one answer to our musical question is, "Both"-- at least in the cases of Steve DeBerg, Joe Montana, Steve Bono, Elvis Grbac, and now Alex Smith.
Over the past quarter-century or so, the quarterback position for the Kansas City Chiefs has, about half the time, served as a landing strip for former 49er QBs, whether in mid-career or nearing career terminus. Indeed, over a 13-year stretch from 1988 through 2000, every year but one the position was manned by a quarterback who left a good part of his game, if not his heart, in San Francisco.
It all began in 1988, when Steve DeBerg won the quarterback job from veteran starter Bill Kenney. It wasn't enough to save coach Frank Gansz's job, but when the great Marty Schottenheimer took over as head coach in 1989, he established good ol' Steve as his starter and initiated the process of quarterback importation that would carry the Chiefs over the next decade-plus.
49er fans of a certain age fondly remember Steve as the good soldier who did his best for Pete McCulley and Fred O'Connor in the nightmare season of 1978, and then was transformed from zero to hero via the simple expedient of playing for Bill Walsh in 1979 and 1980. His career as "Chair-Warmer to the Greats" began in earnest when Joe Montana took over the job in 1980, and Steve began his colorful odyssey, first to Denver (where he preceded John Elway), and then to Tampa Bay (ditto, future 49er Steve Young).
Anyway, DeBerg quarterbacked the Chiefs for four years, during which they improved from 4 to 11 wins per season and began their 1990s run as playoff perennials. In 1992 Schottenheimer had the opportunity to employ one of the club's long-time nemeses, Dave Krieg, as his starting QB, and he took it. That lasted only one year, and of course 1993 saw the legendary, mega-controversial trade of Joe Montana to the Chiefs-- and the parade of former 49er quarterbacks to Kansas City began in earnest.
Joe played two years at Arrowhead, leading KC to the AFC Championship Game his first year and winning a September 1994 showdown with his 49er replacement, Young, his second year. After Joe retired, the Chiefs' braintrust went right back to the well and hauled in the Niners' other backup, Steve Bono, who had shown his capabilities in 1991 and 1992 when Young was briefly injured.
49er fans who had clamored for Bono instead of Young during those years may have felt vindicated when the former UCLA star led the Chiefs to football's best record in 1995. Not since the 1960s had a Kansas City team been so close to the Super Bowl, but a stunning upset loss at home to the 9-7 Indianapolis Colts, during which Bono threw three interceptions and kicker Lin Elliott missed three field goals, dashed those hopes. (The quarterback of those pesky underdog Colts? Guy named Jim Harbaugh.)
Both quarterback and team sagged the following season; Bono threw more interceptions than TDs, and KC missed the playoffs for the first time in seven years. Meanwhile, back at Candlestick, a guy named Elvis Grbac was serving as Steve Young's latest backup, and doing pretty darn well for all that. He started nine games over two years while Young battled concussions, and the team won six of those games despite carping comments about Grbac from such worthies as City Mayor Willie Brown. Thus the Chiefs, needing once again to make a change, needed look no further. After Young pronounced himself fit and healthy for the 1997 season, Grbac, tired of being the local Rodney Dangerfield, pronounced himself a wealthy new Chief.
While Young played on with rookies Jim Druckenmiller and Jeff Brohm standing behind him on the sidelines, Elvis, like Bono, led the Chiefs to football's best record and, like Montana, got revenge on his former team (a 44-9 thrashing before the Arrowhead faithful). But once more, "Martyball" wasn't enough to reach the 'Bowl, regardless of the quarterback: their season again ended in the semifinal round, though it could be argued both Elvis and his teammates mostly outplayed John Elway and the victorious Broncos that day.
Grbac continued with the Chiefs for three more years as the club's fortunes gradually declined. When Dick Vermeil took over the head-coaching job in 2001, he brought his favorite quarterback, Trent Green, with him, and at long last the open road from San Francisco to Kansas City was closed.
Until now. Tonight, Alex Smith lines up opposite Colin Kaepernick at Arrowhead Stadium. Sure, it's only preseason, but it's an irresistible story nonetheless. We'll allow our personal bias to surface as we confess that for over 40 years the Chiefs have been our favorite AFC team and second-favorite overall. Ever since Hank Stram's legendary 1969 club won the Super Bowl over Minnesota, we've wished the Chiefs well (except on certain afternoons that occur every four years or so). The much-anticipated Super Bowl matchup that could have occurred in 1993 or 1995 or 1997 never did, despite our best hopes, and it's unlikely this exhibition match will provide much competitive juice past the second quarter. But Alex Smith, who carried himself so well in near-impossible circumstances during those chaotic early years, and who was gloriously rewarded with a great season in 2011, is a class act. We wish him nothing but success working with the great Andy Reid in Kansas City, at least up through the AFC Championship Game, should it come about.
And we wish him well tonight, come what may. Here's to you, Alex. Nobody deserves success more than you, and here's hoping your tenure in Arrowhead resembles Joe's more than Elvis'. Six sigma, and all that.
And one answer to our musical question is, "Both"-- at least in the cases of Steve DeBerg, Joe Montana, Steve Bono, Elvis Grbac, and now Alex Smith.
Over the past quarter-century or so, the quarterback position for the Kansas City Chiefs has, about half the time, served as a landing strip for former 49er QBs, whether in mid-career or nearing career terminus. Indeed, over a 13-year stretch from 1988 through 2000, every year but one the position was manned by a quarterback who left a good part of his game, if not his heart, in San Francisco.
It all began in 1988, when Steve DeBerg won the quarterback job from veteran starter Bill Kenney. It wasn't enough to save coach Frank Gansz's job, but when the great Marty Schottenheimer took over as head coach in 1989, he established good ol' Steve as his starter and initiated the process of quarterback importation that would carry the Chiefs over the next decade-plus.
49er fans of a certain age fondly remember Steve as the good soldier who did his best for Pete McCulley and Fred O'Connor in the nightmare season of 1978, and then was transformed from zero to hero via the simple expedient of playing for Bill Walsh in 1979 and 1980. His career as "Chair-Warmer to the Greats" began in earnest when Joe Montana took over the job in 1980, and Steve began his colorful odyssey, first to Denver (where he preceded John Elway), and then to Tampa Bay (ditto, future 49er Steve Young).
Anyway, DeBerg quarterbacked the Chiefs for four years, during which they improved from 4 to 11 wins per season and began their 1990s run as playoff perennials. In 1992 Schottenheimer had the opportunity to employ one of the club's long-time nemeses, Dave Krieg, as his starting QB, and he took it. That lasted only one year, and of course 1993 saw the legendary, mega-controversial trade of Joe Montana to the Chiefs-- and the parade of former 49er quarterbacks to Kansas City began in earnest.
Joe played two years at Arrowhead, leading KC to the AFC Championship Game his first year and winning a September 1994 showdown with his 49er replacement, Young, his second year. After Joe retired, the Chiefs' braintrust went right back to the well and hauled in the Niners' other backup, Steve Bono, who had shown his capabilities in 1991 and 1992 when Young was briefly injured.
49er fans who had clamored for Bono instead of Young during those years may have felt vindicated when the former UCLA star led the Chiefs to football's best record in 1995. Not since the 1960s had a Kansas City team been so close to the Super Bowl, but a stunning upset loss at home to the 9-7 Indianapolis Colts, during which Bono threw three interceptions and kicker Lin Elliott missed three field goals, dashed those hopes. (The quarterback of those pesky underdog Colts? Guy named Jim Harbaugh.)
Both quarterback and team sagged the following season; Bono threw more interceptions than TDs, and KC missed the playoffs for the first time in seven years. Meanwhile, back at Candlestick, a guy named Elvis Grbac was serving as Steve Young's latest backup, and doing pretty darn well for all that. He started nine games over two years while Young battled concussions, and the team won six of those games despite carping comments about Grbac from such worthies as City Mayor Willie Brown. Thus the Chiefs, needing once again to make a change, needed look no further. After Young pronounced himself fit and healthy for the 1997 season, Grbac, tired of being the local Rodney Dangerfield, pronounced himself a wealthy new Chief.
While Young played on with rookies Jim Druckenmiller and Jeff Brohm standing behind him on the sidelines, Elvis, like Bono, led the Chiefs to football's best record and, like Montana, got revenge on his former team (a 44-9 thrashing before the Arrowhead faithful). But once more, "Martyball" wasn't enough to reach the 'Bowl, regardless of the quarterback: their season again ended in the semifinal round, though it could be argued both Elvis and his teammates mostly outplayed John Elway and the victorious Broncos that day.
Grbac continued with the Chiefs for three more years as the club's fortunes gradually declined. When Dick Vermeil took over the head-coaching job in 2001, he brought his favorite quarterback, Trent Green, with him, and at long last the open road from San Francisco to Kansas City was closed.
Until now. Tonight, Alex Smith lines up opposite Colin Kaepernick at Arrowhead Stadium. Sure, it's only preseason, but it's an irresistible story nonetheless. We'll allow our personal bias to surface as we confess that for over 40 years the Chiefs have been our favorite AFC team and second-favorite overall. Ever since Hank Stram's legendary 1969 club won the Super Bowl over Minnesota, we've wished the Chiefs well (except on certain afternoons that occur every four years or so). The much-anticipated Super Bowl matchup that could have occurred in 1993 or 1995 or 1997 never did, despite our best hopes, and it's unlikely this exhibition match will provide much competitive juice past the second quarter. But Alex Smith, who carried himself so well in near-impossible circumstances during those chaotic early years, and who was gloriously rewarded with a great season in 2011, is a class act. We wish him nothing but success working with the great Andy Reid in Kansas City, at least up through the AFC Championship Game, should it come about.
And we wish him well tonight, come what may. Here's to you, Alex. Nobody deserves success more than you, and here's hoping your tenure in Arrowhead resembles Joe's more than Elvis'. Six sigma, and all that.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
David "Deacon" Jones 1938-2013
The greatest defensive player in NFL history didn't play for the 49ers, he terrorized the 49ers for over a decade.
RIP Deacon. You changed the game in more ways than one. We'll always remember visiting your shrine at Canton. No worthier opponent ever lined up against the San Francisco 49ers.
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Weird Scenes Inside the Goal Line
Well, it started like this...
Then there was this....
Then this....
And finally this:
The 49ers' first Super Bowl loss sure was entertaining, wa'n't it? Five yards away from the greatest comeback in 'Bowl history, and all that. A little bit of everything, whether scripted, unscripted, A-listed or two-fisted. One of the Big Game's best quarterback duels. Ray Lewis "pulling an Elway"-- riding off into the sunset holding the Lombardi Trophy. Controversy up the yingyang. Enough second-guessing to last until training camp. And now we know what the New England Patriots and their fans felt like two months ago.
Does anyone else think the game turned, perhaps permanently, on the very first play? Colin Kaepernick fires a 20-yard strike to wide-open Vernon Davis, we jump up and start hollering-- and it's wiped out because Vernon lined up wrong. Three plays later, Niners punt, and Kap just doesn't look right for the rest of the half.
"They're catching everything he throws up there!" we texted to a family member late in the second quarter. Indeed, it took some doing to remember even one incomplete pass by Joe Flacco before halftime. No argument at all with big Number 5 winning the game MVP award, but if Flacco was the Super Bowl MVP, then Anquan Boldin was Flacco's MVP. "The 'Quan" made five huge catches in this game, three of them on the Ravens' two critical second-half drives when the Niners had Baltimore's defense on the ropes. This was the reason they signed him as a free agent a few years back, and as Boldin made tough catch after tough catch against tight coverage, we were reminded of one of the newest Hall of Fame inductees watching from the sideline-- Cris Carter.
It could be argued that the biggest play of the game was on defense-- a rare 49er blitz and Ahmad Brooks' third-down sack of Flacco six minutes after the power blackout. The Niners had scored their first touchdown barely a minute earlier, which at the time only served to make a 28-6 game slightly less embarrassing. But by forcing a 90-second three-and-out deep in Baltimore territory, that sack set up the ensuing full-throated comeback. On a tough, discouraging night, this was the defense's finest moment.
That said, the 49ers got only one sack from their standard four-man rush, late in the first quarter. Yes, it was a timely one as it drove the Ravens out of field-goal range. But for much of the game Flacco enjoyed plenty of time to throw, and despite the seven men back in coverage, he averaged nine yards a pass and seemed to get the ball to its target every time he really needed it. Those two second-half field-goal drives consumed 11 minutes, and ten of the 22 plays were passes, including the third-down interference call that kept the Ravens' last drive alive. Baltimore converted 56% of their third downs. Was it an ineffective pass rush, an ineffective secondary, or elements of both? The next few weeks between now and April's draft may give us a clue.
If anyone had posited an outcome in which the 49ers would outgain the opposition by over 100 yards, Frank Gore would rush for 110 and a touchdown, both Davis and Michael Crabtree would pass 100 receiving yards, and Kaepernick would outgain Ray Rice on the ground and also run for a score, we simply wouldn't have believed it could end in a loss. Then again, Mike Smith and Matt Ryan probably could tell us a thing or two about statistics and losses.
We're not sure if the 34-minute blackout energized the 49ers, enervated the Ravens, or both, but it certainly will go down in NFL legend. Any tales of Jim Harbaugh dispatching a low-level employee to run outside with a Sawzall and start cutting cables are almost certainly fiction. Perhaps descendants of the West Coast hackers who memorably altered the Rose Bowl scoreboard back in 1984 ("Caltech 31 -- MIT 9") had a hand in "creatively" disrupting the Superdome electrical grid. Though we hear DHS has launched an investigation, we prefer to believe this was a giant prank rather than a terrorist act until proven otherwise. It sure didn't terrorize anyone; apocryphal "I was there" stories are likely to swell the game's reputed attendance past several million by midsummer.
Bright moments: "Kap" emerging from the first-half detritus and having a second half for the ages; Delanie Walker's crushing block on Ed Reed as Frank Gore swept right for a touchdown; Crabtree pinballing off Bernard Pollard and Cary Williams without losing balance, speed, or direction; Randy Moss, still ringless after all these years, setting up the 49ers' last TD with a critical sideline catch; Tarell Brown leaping on Ray Rice's fumble at the Ravens' 24-yard-line; Ted Ginn's brilliant, 32-yard punt return to set up our second touchdown-- just watch the Ravens' sideline personnel sag as Ted rounds the corner and breaks into the open; David ("What, Me Worry?") Akers shrugging off a miss and drilling a perfect field goal on his second chance after the penalty.
Everyone on this side of the fence is still agonizing over that non-call at the end, when Jimmy Smith clearly pinned Crabtree's arms and kept him from catching that fade pass-- and folks, it was as catchable as a cold. But the worst call of the night was seven officials somehow failing to notice Ed Reed at least three yards offside on the two-point-conversion attempt. Sure, there's no guarantee we'd have made it, and even a successful attempt might only have left the final score 34-33 instead of 34-31. But you gotta make that call.
Hand in hand with recriminations against the officials for the Crabtree non-call have come the complaints against Jim Harbaugh for calling three straight short passes to the right side on those last three goal-line plays. Haloti Ngata was injured and on the sideline, the weary, ragged Ravens' defense was clearly weak up the middle, and 51 of the 75 yards on that final drive had been gained on the ground. Sometimes a coach can outguess himself; certainly John Harbaugh knew his team was vulnerable to the run, and perhaps brother Jim, knowing this, figured John would keep an extra defender or two at home. Most of the 49er yardage on the night came on big plays; if Kaepernick still has anything left to prove it's his effectiveness as a 'touch' passer down deep in the red zone. If the final two minutes of Super Bowl XLVII was a test of that effectiveness, well... looks like we wait 'til next year, and, for now, congratulate the world champion Baltimore Ravens.
Then there was this....
Then this....
And finally this:
The 49ers' first Super Bowl loss sure was entertaining, wa'n't it? Five yards away from the greatest comeback in 'Bowl history, and all that. A little bit of everything, whether scripted, unscripted, A-listed or two-fisted. One of the Big Game's best quarterback duels. Ray Lewis "pulling an Elway"-- riding off into the sunset holding the Lombardi Trophy. Controversy up the yingyang. Enough second-guessing to last until training camp. And now we know what the New England Patriots and their fans felt like two months ago.
Does anyone else think the game turned, perhaps permanently, on the very first play? Colin Kaepernick fires a 20-yard strike to wide-open Vernon Davis, we jump up and start hollering-- and it's wiped out because Vernon lined up wrong. Three plays later, Niners punt, and Kap just doesn't look right for the rest of the half.
"They're catching everything he throws up there!" we texted to a family member late in the second quarter. Indeed, it took some doing to remember even one incomplete pass by Joe Flacco before halftime. No argument at all with big Number 5 winning the game MVP award, but if Flacco was the Super Bowl MVP, then Anquan Boldin was Flacco's MVP. "The 'Quan" made five huge catches in this game, three of them on the Ravens' two critical second-half drives when the Niners had Baltimore's defense on the ropes. This was the reason they signed him as a free agent a few years back, and as Boldin made tough catch after tough catch against tight coverage, we were reminded of one of the newest Hall of Fame inductees watching from the sideline-- Cris Carter.
It could be argued that the biggest play of the game was on defense-- a rare 49er blitz and Ahmad Brooks' third-down sack of Flacco six minutes after the power blackout. The Niners had scored their first touchdown barely a minute earlier, which at the time only served to make a 28-6 game slightly less embarrassing. But by forcing a 90-second three-and-out deep in Baltimore territory, that sack set up the ensuing full-throated comeback. On a tough, discouraging night, this was the defense's finest moment.
That said, the 49ers got only one sack from their standard four-man rush, late in the first quarter. Yes, it was a timely one as it drove the Ravens out of field-goal range. But for much of the game Flacco enjoyed plenty of time to throw, and despite the seven men back in coverage, he averaged nine yards a pass and seemed to get the ball to its target every time he really needed it. Those two second-half field-goal drives consumed 11 minutes, and ten of the 22 plays were passes, including the third-down interference call that kept the Ravens' last drive alive. Baltimore converted 56% of their third downs. Was it an ineffective pass rush, an ineffective secondary, or elements of both? The next few weeks between now and April's draft may give us a clue.
If anyone had posited an outcome in which the 49ers would outgain the opposition by over 100 yards, Frank Gore would rush for 110 and a touchdown, both Davis and Michael Crabtree would pass 100 receiving yards, and Kaepernick would outgain Ray Rice on the ground and also run for a score, we simply wouldn't have believed it could end in a loss. Then again, Mike Smith and Matt Ryan probably could tell us a thing or two about statistics and losses.
We're not sure if the 34-minute blackout energized the 49ers, enervated the Ravens, or both, but it certainly will go down in NFL legend. Any tales of Jim Harbaugh dispatching a low-level employee to run outside with a Sawzall and start cutting cables are almost certainly fiction. Perhaps descendants of the West Coast hackers who memorably altered the Rose Bowl scoreboard back in 1984 ("Caltech 31 -- MIT 9") had a hand in "creatively" disrupting the Superdome electrical grid. Though we hear DHS has launched an investigation, we prefer to believe this was a giant prank rather than a terrorist act until proven otherwise. It sure didn't terrorize anyone; apocryphal "I was there" stories are likely to swell the game's reputed attendance past several million by midsummer.
Bright moments: "Kap" emerging from the first-half detritus and having a second half for the ages; Delanie Walker's crushing block on Ed Reed as Frank Gore swept right for a touchdown; Crabtree pinballing off Bernard Pollard and Cary Williams without losing balance, speed, or direction; Randy Moss, still ringless after all these years, setting up the 49ers' last TD with a critical sideline catch; Tarell Brown leaping on Ray Rice's fumble at the Ravens' 24-yard-line; Ted Ginn's brilliant, 32-yard punt return to set up our second touchdown-- just watch the Ravens' sideline personnel sag as Ted rounds the corner and breaks into the open; David ("What, Me Worry?") Akers shrugging off a miss and drilling a perfect field goal on his second chance after the penalty.
Everyone on this side of the fence is still agonizing over that non-call at the end, when Jimmy Smith clearly pinned Crabtree's arms and kept him from catching that fade pass-- and folks, it was as catchable as a cold. But the worst call of the night was seven officials somehow failing to notice Ed Reed at least three yards offside on the two-point-conversion attempt. Sure, there's no guarantee we'd have made it, and even a successful attempt might only have left the final score 34-33 instead of 34-31. But you gotta make that call.
Hand in hand with recriminations against the officials for the Crabtree non-call have come the complaints against Jim Harbaugh for calling three straight short passes to the right side on those last three goal-line plays. Haloti Ngata was injured and on the sideline, the weary, ragged Ravens' defense was clearly weak up the middle, and 51 of the 75 yards on that final drive had been gained on the ground. Sometimes a coach can outguess himself; certainly John Harbaugh knew his team was vulnerable to the run, and perhaps brother Jim, knowing this, figured John would keep an extra defender or two at home. Most of the 49er yardage on the night came on big plays; if Kaepernick still has anything left to prove it's his effectiveness as a 'touch' passer down deep in the red zone. If the final two minutes of Super Bowl XLVII was a test of that effectiveness, well... looks like we wait 'til next year, and, for now, congratulate the world champion Baltimore Ravens.
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