Niners show good and bad in victory

By Marc Hudgens  |   Monday, August 20, 2007  |  Comments( 31 )

San Francisco 49ers
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Going into halftime of their win over the Oakland Raiders on Saturday, San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Nolan said the team had a great first quarter but didn't duplicate it in the second stanza, and it needed to work on third downs on both sides of the ball.

True, but there's more to it than that when considering that Oakland, which came to Bill Walsh Field on Saturday evening off a win against Arizona, totaled 21 points and was threatening to score again in the final seconds of the game.

Utilizing three quarterbacks, none of whom had the word "Russell" stitched across their back, the Raiders slung off 248 yards and trudged for a slow but progressive 133 yards. Add to it that the Raiders went 9 of 16 on third downs, and there's a defensive problem.

In fairness, the entire starting defensive line didn't play. Fourteen-year veteran defensive end Bryant Young was out with back issues; nose tackle Aubrayo Franklin missed the game because of a sprained knee; and defensive end Marques Douglas is tending to his wife, who's awaiting their second child.

Nevertheless, the 49ers could not contain the run at all against Oakland, and the pass rush appeared only to work with the use of a delayed blitz. The Raiders' offensive line had little problem giving its gunslingers time when San Francisco had four or even five down linemen, and they were the only ones rushing.

Offensively, quarterback Alex Smith shined once again, completing 8 of 12 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown in the first half. His mentor, backup Trent Dilfer, showed was solid, going 7 of 11 for 77 yards and one score.

At the risk of sounding overly technical, it appeared that the few times Smith had trouble were mostly because of a failure to drop back far enough. When Smith moved back 9 to 11 yards, he completed the pass nearly every time. If he fell back fewer than 8 yards, however, chances are it was an incompletion or a sack, because the Raiders' D-line was able to get in Smith's face.

One play that stuck out happened when 49ers tackle Kwame Harris allowed Oakland defensive end Derrick Burgess get too close to Smith and then bat down the QB's pass. Had Smith dropped back more, he would have been saved from quite a bit of pressure.

All that said, the lone touchdown Smith got was, ironically, on a 6-yard dropback. However, rookie O-tackle Joe Staley had Raiders defensive end Kevin Huntley tied up so much that Smith got loads of time to throw a 19-yard scoring strike to tight end Delanie Walker.

Ultimately, winning is what matters, and that's what San Francisco did. Still, the defense needs its starting line back to help Tully Banta-Cain and the linebackers in the pass rush. Offensively, the running game wasn't good; but then again, Frank Gore wasn't there. Lastly, Smith appears to be coming into his own, while the 49ers are deep and solid at receiver.

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About Marc Hudgens

Marc Hudgens has been with RealFootball365 since 2007, covering college football, specifically Clemson and Oregon. He also writes for SouthernPigskin.com covering the ACC. He enjoys the acidic wit of Hunter S. Thompson, is a freelance graphic designer and has written several screenplays. He...
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