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| Other Week 11 Game Recaps | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARI at CIN | CAR at GB | CHI at SEA | CLE at BAL | KC at IND | MIA at PHI | NE at BUF | NO at HOU |
| NYG at DET | OAK at MIN | PIT at NYJ | SD at JAX | STL at SF | TB at ATL | TEN at DEN | WAS at DAL |
Week 11 Game Recap: St. Louis Rams 13, San Francisco 49ers 9
What you need to know
| St. Louis Rams |
The Rams opened the game with a strong first drive where Marc Bulger hit Torry Holt for a three yard touchdown, and despite doing little for much of the rest of the game, held on to beat the 49ers and get their second win of the season. Bulger finished 21 of 32 for 155 yards and one touchdown with no interceptions. Torry Holt led all receivers with seven catches for 55 yards and a touchdown while Isaac Bruce caught five balls for 54 yards. Wide receivers Drew Bennett and Dane Looker each had one reception as well for nine and seven yards respectively. Randy McMichael pulled in one ball for four yards from the tight end position. Out of the backfield, Steven Jackson caught four balls for twenty yards and Brian Leonard added six yards on two receptions.
The presence of Steven Jackson helped to open up the offense as Jackson gained 92 yards on 23 carries. Antonio Pittman spelled Jackson after long runs, but lost two yards on three carries, while Brian Leonard came in for one carry which he took for four yards. Dante Hall gained nine yards on a reverse while Marc Bulger officially lost one yard on one attempt.
| San Francisco 49ers |
With the inability to run the ball the entire game, and difficulty passing the ball until late in the fourth quarter, the 49ers dropped their eighth straight game. In going 20 of 42 for 231 yards, Trent Dilfer also threw two interceptions with no touchdowns. Arnaz Battle led 49ers receivers with six catches for 86 yards, while Darrell Jackson caught two balls for 36 yards and Brian Gilmore finished with two receptions for 26 yards. While the 49ers tried to get tight end Vernon Davis more involved, he finished with 50 yards on four catches.
Frank Gore contributed five catches for 31 yards out of the backfield while Moran Norris added a two yard reception. The 49ers long run on the day went for seven yards, and they averaged just two yards per carry on the day as Gore finished with fifteen carries for 32 yards while Norris gained no yardage on his only carry.
What you ought to know
| QB Marc Bulger, Pass: 21 - 32 - 155 - 1 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 1 - -1 - 0 |
Bulger finished with a passer rating of 77.0 in leading the Rams to a second straight victory by completing 66% of his passes for an average of 4.8 yards per passing attempt. Bulger was under a heavy pass rush for most of the game, more so because of his offensive line than the 49ers defensive attack, and was sacked six times losing a total of fifty yards.
| RB Steven Jackson, Rush: 23 - 92 - 0, Rec: 4 - 20 - 0 (6 targets) |
Jackson's 37 yard run on the opening drive helped to set up the game's only touchdown, though he averaged only 2.5 yards on his other 22 carries. The Rams touchdown on the opening drive came on a passing play on first and goal from the three yard line, an area of the field where one would expect Jackson to be given the ball.
| WR Torry Holt, Rec: 7 - 55 - 1 (10 targets) |
Holt's three yard touchdown on the opening drive was the only touchdown in this game. Holt had a 21 yard reception called back on a holding penalty in the second quarter.
| WR Isaac Bruce, Rec: 5 - 54 - 0 (10 targets) |
Bruce's biggest plays against the 49ers came in extending multiple drives on long third downs of seven and fourteen yards to go. Bruce also helped to set up the opening touchdown with a fifteen yard catch to the three yard line.
| TE Randy McMichael, Rec: 1 - 4 - 0 (3 targets) |
McMichael caught just one of three passes thrown to him, but showed his good hands coming up with the onside kick late in the game to help the Rams to their second victory of the season.
| PK Jeff Wilkins 2 - 2 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 7 points |
Wilkins connected successfully on field goals from 35 and 49 yards with the lone extra point of the game.
| STL Rush Defense |
The Rams rush defense shut down Frank Gore and the 49ers, limiting them to just two yards per carry.
| STL Pass Defense |
The pass defense came up with two interceptions and three sacks, and limited Trent Dilfer and the 49ers passing attack until late in the game.
| QB Trent Dilfer, Pass: 20 - 42 - 231 - 0 TD / 2 INT |
In completing just 47.6 percent of his passes and averaging just 5.5 yards per passing attempt, Dilfer finished with a 44.8 passer rating. Nearly 60% of Dilfer's passing yards came in the fourth quarter of the game as Dilfer tried unsuccessfully to bring the 49ers back.
| RB Frank Gore, Rush: 15 - 32 - 0, Rec: 5 - 31 - 0 (7 targets) |
Gore struggled in running the ball as the 49ers opened very few holes for him, and he had a long run on the day of seven yards. As the 49ers trailed this entire game, Gore was active in the passing attack, and rarely left the field for Michael Robinson or Maurice Hicks. Dilfer seemed to throw the ball to Gore in bunches, with multiple targets on the same drive.
| WR Arnaz Battle, Rec: 6 - 86 - 0 (9 targets) |
Battle was the most targeted wide receiver for the 49ers, and was looked at on first, second and third down, primarily over the middle and on shorter routes.
| WR Darrell Jackson, Rec: 2 - 36 - 0 (8 targets) |
Jackson came up with just two catches on his eight targets, including a very catchable ball in the fourth quarter that would have tied the game at 13-13. Jackson was targeted three times in the end zone on the final two drives, including the final play of the game in which Dilfer was intercepted.
| TE Vernon Davis, Rec: 4 - 50 - 0 (9 targets) |
The 49ers tried to get Davis more involved in this game, and looked his way on deep routes over the middle frequently in this game. Late in the game, Davis almost reeled in a long pass but had the ball knocked out on a hard hit that would have tied the game at 13-13.
| PK Joe Nedney 3 - 3 FG, 0 - 0 XP, 9 points |
Nedney connected from 28, 38 and 46 yards for three field goals on the afternoon. His 46 yarder came in the final two minutes of the game on a fourth and ten play with the team trailing 13-6.
| SF Rush Defense |
The Rams went over 100 yards combined on the day, though the 49ers did a good job of shutting down the run after the opening drive.
| SF Pass Defense |
The pass defense was able to provide a consistent rush and came up with six sacks and just 155 yards through the air, however could not slow the Rams down enough to end the losing streak of eight games.
