Niners!
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Opening day shocker
Opportunistic Niners lose statistical battle, but make key plays
Monday, September 12, 2005
By MATT MAIOCCO
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
SAN FRANCISCO - Meaningful, entertaining football returned to Candlestick Point on Sunday afternoon for the first time in a very long while.
As the 49ers jogged off the field, they pumped their fists and soaked in the adulation of an appreciative throng that had congregated near the tunnel leading to the locker room. Unlike last season, these fans were cheering - not jeering - for the guys in red jerseys.
It's a new era in 49ers football. And, at least for one Sunday, it is an era filled with promise, not utter futility.
The 49ers pursued an aggressive game plan and made all the important plays to hold onto a 28-25 victory over the St. Louis Rams in front of a sellout crowd of 67,918 on Week 1 of the NFL regular season.
"This is who we are," said 49ers outside linebacker Andre Carter, calling last year's 2-14 season an anomaly. "We are winners."
Coach Mike Nolan, taking over for the downtrodden Dennis Erickson, told his team in their first minicamp practice in the spring that his goal was to take command of the NFC West.
And after one game, the 49ers find themselves in first place all alone, as each of the other teams in the division lost.
"They've been described as inexperienced, but I think they're a mature group," Nolan said, noting that the team needed maturity to deal with the death of Thomas Herrion.
The reserve offensive lineman succumbed to heart disease less than an hour after an Aug. 20 exhibition game in Denver.
"I believe we are coming together as a team, and this is the first step in that journey," Nolan said.
Perhaps more impressive than the victory over a team many believe will win the NFC West was the manner in which they did it:
The 49ers used a handful of trick plays designed to take advantage of the Rams' aggressiveness. Receiver Arnaz Battle completed two passes, including a 24-yard pass to Brandon Lloyd that set up the 49ers' first touchdown.
They recovered an onside kick midway through the second quarter, although it did not lead directly to a score. It was the first successful onside kick for the 49ers since a strike-replacement game in 1987.
The Rams ran 89 plays; the 49ers just 41. St. Louis held a time-of-possession advantage of nearly 19 minutes and outgained San Francisco 405 to 217. Moreover, the 49ers turned the ball over twice and forced one turnover.
"It goes to show that the best team doesn't always win," Rams receiver Torry Holt said. "Stat-wise, we showed we were a better team, but they beat us to the punch. They made more plays to win the ball game that we did."
Otis Amey - the undrafted rookie formerly known as Fred - scored on a 75-yard punt return to give the 49ers a 14-6 lead midway through the second quarter.
Defensive end Bryant Young celebrated his move from defensive tackle, where he played the first 11seasons of his NFL career, with three sacks. It equals the total of sacks he recorded all of last season.
Quarterback Tim Rattay, who won the starting job despite the 49ers' selection of Alex Smith with the first overall pick in the draft, completed 11 of 16 passes for 165 yards and two touchdown passes for a superlative passer rating of 141.9. Rattay lofted a 35-yard strike to Lloyd, who made an outstanding diving catch in the end zone, and hooked up with Battle on a 6-yard score late in the second quarter.
Battle's touchdown capped the 49ers' 21-point outburst over a span of 8:29 that gave the 49ers a 21-6 lead.
But here's the shocker: The 49ers opened with a victory while starting just two players who weren't with the organization a year ago.
In all, 32 of the 46 players in uniform Sunday were with the club in 2004.
"(Owner) John York pointed out that a lot of the same guys that are in there now were there a year ago," Nolan said. "The same guys that took a lot of criticism last year are in that room and are the same guys that pulled out this victory today.
"You can imagine how excited and enthusiastic they feel about a victory like that, which was so hard to come by a year ago."
Lloyd said the impact of the new coaching staff is huge.
The 49ers seemed to show more creativity in one game than they demonstrated through the reigns of Steve Mariucci and Erickson."Guys are more confident because we know the coaches aren't guessing," Lloyd said. "You know our coaches are going to put us in the best situations at all times. It's all not the players; 2-14, you can't blame that all on the players."
Led by a defense that recorded seven sacks of Rams quarterback Marc Bulger, the 49ers held a comfortable lead through most of the game.
But St. Louis rallied late and had the ball at the 49ers' 33 with less than a minute to play.
That's when unheralded nickel back Mike Adams made amends for an earlier mistake by ripping a poorly thrown pass away from Isaac Bruce for an interception at the 24-yard line.
Adams had dropped an easy interception early in the fourth quarter that would likely have gone for a clinching touchdown.
"I was feeling bad, but I knew I couldn't feel too bad because there was so much time left in the game," Adams said. "I knew there was so much time left on the clock I'd get another opportunity."
And in the new era, the 49ers did not let this one get away.
http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050912/NEWS/509120354/1016/SPORTS0401
Opportunistic Niners lose statistical battle, but make key plays
Monday, September 12, 2005
By MATT MAIOCCO
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
SAN FRANCISCO - Meaningful, entertaining football returned to Candlestick Point on Sunday afternoon for the first time in a very long while.
As the 49ers jogged off the field, they pumped their fists and soaked in the adulation of an appreciative throng that had congregated near the tunnel leading to the locker room. Unlike last season, these fans were cheering - not jeering - for the guys in red jerseys.
It's a new era in 49ers football. And, at least for one Sunday, it is an era filled with promise, not utter futility.
The 49ers pursued an aggressive game plan and made all the important plays to hold onto a 28-25 victory over the St. Louis Rams in front of a sellout crowd of 67,918 on Week 1 of the NFL regular season.
"This is who we are," said 49ers outside linebacker Andre Carter, calling last year's 2-14 season an anomaly. "We are winners."
Coach Mike Nolan, taking over for the downtrodden Dennis Erickson, told his team in their first minicamp practice in the spring that his goal was to take command of the NFC West.
And after one game, the 49ers find themselves in first place all alone, as each of the other teams in the division lost.
"They've been described as inexperienced, but I think they're a mature group," Nolan said, noting that the team needed maturity to deal with the death of Thomas Herrion.
The reserve offensive lineman succumbed to heart disease less than an hour after an Aug. 20 exhibition game in Denver.
"I believe we are coming together as a team, and this is the first step in that journey," Nolan said.
Perhaps more impressive than the victory over a team many believe will win the NFC West was the manner in which they did it:
The 49ers used a handful of trick plays designed to take advantage of the Rams' aggressiveness. Receiver Arnaz Battle completed two passes, including a 24-yard pass to Brandon Lloyd that set up the 49ers' first touchdown.
They recovered an onside kick midway through the second quarter, although it did not lead directly to a score. It was the first successful onside kick for the 49ers since a strike-replacement game in 1987.
The Rams ran 89 plays; the 49ers just 41. St. Louis held a time-of-possession advantage of nearly 19 minutes and outgained San Francisco 405 to 217. Moreover, the 49ers turned the ball over twice and forced one turnover.
"It goes to show that the best team doesn't always win," Rams receiver Torry Holt said. "Stat-wise, we showed we were a better team, but they beat us to the punch. They made more plays to win the ball game that we did."
Otis Amey - the undrafted rookie formerly known as Fred - scored on a 75-yard punt return to give the 49ers a 14-6 lead midway through the second quarter.
Defensive end Bryant Young celebrated his move from defensive tackle, where he played the first 11seasons of his NFL career, with three sacks. It equals the total of sacks he recorded all of last season.
Quarterback Tim Rattay, who won the starting job despite the 49ers' selection of Alex Smith with the first overall pick in the draft, completed 11 of 16 passes for 165 yards and two touchdown passes for a superlative passer rating of 141.9. Rattay lofted a 35-yard strike to Lloyd, who made an outstanding diving catch in the end zone, and hooked up with Battle on a 6-yard score late in the second quarter.
Battle's touchdown capped the 49ers' 21-point outburst over a span of 8:29 that gave the 49ers a 21-6 lead.
But here's the shocker: The 49ers opened with a victory while starting just two players who weren't with the organization a year ago.
In all, 32 of the 46 players in uniform Sunday were with the club in 2004.
"(Owner) John York pointed out that a lot of the same guys that are in there now were there a year ago," Nolan said. "The same guys that took a lot of criticism last year are in that room and are the same guys that pulled out this victory today.
"You can imagine how excited and enthusiastic they feel about a victory like that, which was so hard to come by a year ago."
Lloyd said the impact of the new coaching staff is huge.
The 49ers seemed to show more creativity in one game than they demonstrated through the reigns of Steve Mariucci and Erickson."Guys are more confident because we know the coaches aren't guessing," Lloyd said. "You know our coaches are going to put us in the best situations at all times. It's all not the players; 2-14, you can't blame that all on the players."
Led by a defense that recorded seven sacks of Rams quarterback Marc Bulger, the 49ers held a comfortable lead through most of the game.
But St. Louis rallied late and had the ball at the 49ers' 33 with less than a minute to play.
That's when unheralded nickel back Mike Adams made amends for an earlier mistake by ripping a poorly thrown pass away from Isaac Bruce for an interception at the 24-yard line.
Adams had dropped an easy interception early in the fourth quarter that would likely have gone for a clinching touchdown.
"I was feeling bad, but I knew I couldn't feel too bad because there was so much time left in the game," Adams said. "I knew there was so much time left on the clock I'd get another opportunity."
And in the new era, the 49ers did not let this one get away.
http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050912/NEWS/509120354/1016/SPORTS0401
I still can't believe the niners won...especially against a team which a lot of experts say is gonna win 10 games and the division.
Should we call Tim Rattay the next Drew Brees? lol, mostly kidding, but Rattay didn't do too bad.
*edit*: erg, i hate when i mispell stuipd things like Brees (into brews)...i think i did it because it was dreW breWs so...yeah, sorry!gosh...
Should we call Tim Rattay the next Drew Brees? lol, mostly kidding, but Rattay didn't do too bad.
*edit*: erg, i hate when i mispell stuipd things like Brees (into brews)...i think i did it because it was dreW breWs so...yeah, sorry!gosh...
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man, that niners game was awesome. I didn't really care that the seahawks lost because i won my fantasy game. And i am just gonna root for who ever plays against the rams the rest of the year. I hate them so much for screwing over my team so many times! that niners game was scary towards the end, but i knew the niners would find a way to embarass the rams. congrats niner fans.
F
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/writers/dr_z/09/14/ranks.week1/index.html
we moved from 31 to 15 with 1 game? good stuff
we moved from 31 to 15 with 1 game? good stuff
O
Hey filmoe, I checked out that power ranking and it seemed pretty reasonable. So I went and checked out the powere rankings from cbs.sportsline.com and they were ridiculous. Niners at 26 and teams that got DESTROYED like the cardinals and jets are ahead. The cardinals are at 18. Wtf? They were at 11. Wtf?...
Anyways, go check it out and you'l be amazed.
Anyways, go check it out and you'l be amazed.
Dr. Z's power rankings have a stricter hierarchy, where he will not rank an 0-1 team ahead of a 1-0 team, hence the Niners at #15. The others are more based on how good that particular guy thinks the team is regardless of record, and apparently they think the Cardinals are still better than the 49ers.
I wouldn't get too riled up about power rankings in week 1 anyway. 4 weeks from now all of them change dramatically as the good and bad teams really start to differentiate themselves.
I wouldn't get too riled up about power rankings in week 1 anyway. 4 weeks from now all of them change dramatically as the good and bad teams really start to differentiate themselves.
What's all this ruckus between Charger fans and Niner fans? All it's doing is succeeding in bringing back sweet, sweet memories of Superbowl XXIX...
image link: http://images.nfl.com/xxxvi/history/images/mvps/29-young.jpg
image link: http://images.nfl.com/xxxvi/history/images/mvps/29-young.jpg
