49ers needed a shot of past glory against New England

By Jeff Dickinson  |   Monday, October 06, 2008  |  Comments( 3 )

San Francisco 49ers
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At halftime of Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots, former all-everything San Francisco quarterback Steve Young had his familiar No. 8 jersey retired. Along with all-time Niner greats Jerry Rice, Brent Jones, Harris Barton and Jesse Sapolu, Young brought a little past San Francisco glory to the home 49ers crowd.

Young even talked about how much he missed his playing days wearing the red and gold of the 49ers.

Too bad San Francisco couldn’t have convinced Young to slip into quarterback J.T. O’Sullivan’s No. 14 jersey for one last go-around.

Young, who helped lead San Francisco to some of its most productive years following in the footsteps of Joe Montana, could probably still have infused some energy into the listless 49er offense on Sunday. In a game that could have established the 49ers as legitimate NFC West Division contenders, they sputtered offensively and allowed the Patriots to escape the Bay Area with a 30-21 victory.

As it now stands, the 2-3 49ers trail the Arizona Cardinals by a game in the division and have lost two straight since jumping out to a 2-1 record to start the season. The Cardinals dismantled the previously unbeaten Buffalo Bills, 41-17, on Sunday as the 49ers' skid continued.

Offensive coordinator Mike Martz can put together a brilliant game plan for the 49ers, but he can’t go out and execute the plays. On Sunday, Martz probably felt more like executing some of the players.

How bad were things offensively for the 49ers against the Patriots?

· San Francisco only ran 48 offensive plays. New England had 80.
· The 49ers were only 1 for 9 on third-down conversions
· San Francisco had just 77 total yards rushing (a mere 54 for Frank Gore).
· The 49ers totaled three first downs on the ground during the game.
· O’Sullivan put up a meager 130 yards and three interceptions.

While turnovers are never a good thing for a team, O’Sullivan’s three picks aren’t what killed the 49ers against New England. In fact, only one of O’Sullivan’s errant passes cost San Francisco any points.

What doomed the 49ers on Sunday was their inability to mount any consistency on offense. San Francisco didn’t have a single offensive series last longer than five plays until the fourth quarter. Granted, the 49ers did score two touchdowns on quick drives; however, there was no consistency otherwise.

The result was the fact that the Patriots held the ball for almost 40 minutes of a one-hour affair. When your defense is on the field almost twice as long as your opponent's defense, bad things are bound to happen.

The 49ers tried to force inexperienced quarterback Matt Cassel to beat them with his arm. Unfortunately for San Francisco, Cassel -- who had the best game of his young career, amassing 259 yards on 22 of 32 passing -- was up to the task.

If the 49ers are going to move past these back-to-back losses and mount a serious NFC West run, it has to start with improved offensive performances in the next two games. San Francisco hosts the Philadelphia Eagles (2-3) this Sunday and then visits the defending champion New York Giants (4-0) on Oct. 19.

With more inconsistent offense in the next two games, the 49ers just might return to San Francisco with a 2-5 record and another season of disappointment on the horizon.
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About Jeff Dickinson

I have been writing and editing professionally for 18 years. I spent the first three years of my career as a sportswriter for a daily newspaper in Alabama and got to cover sports and get paid for it! It was great until I got married and then it wasn't too much fun being away from my wife every...
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