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| Other Week 1 Game Recaps | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUF at NE | CHI at GB | DAL at TB | DEN at CIN | DET at NO | JAX at IND | KC at BAL | MIA at ATL |
| MIN at CLE | NYJ at HOU | PHI at CAR | SD at OAK | SF at ARI | STL at SEA | TEN at PIT | WAS at NYG |
Week 1 Game Recap: San Francisco 49ers 20, Arizona Cardinals 16
San Francisco 49ers
| QB Shaun Hill, Pass: 18 - 31 - 209 - 1 TD / 0 INT |
Hill was under pressure for most of the day, and he made his share of throws that he would want back, but when he had to move the offense down the field in the fourth quarter, he did. It's very clear how Hill has gotten such a good W-L record with limited skills. Speaking of those limited skills, he hit Isaac Bruce in stride for a 50-yarder, dispelling notions that he has no deep arm. He did give up one fumble that would have been returned for a TD if it hadn't been blown dead, but considering the pressure he was under all day, he did great to limit his turnovers to only one on the day.
| RB Frank Gore, Rush: 22 - 30 - 1, Rec: 3 - 18 - 1 (5 targets) |
Gore's offensive line did him no favors on Sunday. He was met in the backfield at least six times. A "good" run was a two or three yarder. Gore did get a great block from David Baas on Darnell Dockett on his TD run, and he was left alone as a receiver out of the backfield on the game-winning TD reception. The troubling thing about SF's lack of success getting a push for the run game was that this was what they concentrated on for the whole preseason. Still, Gore is the feature back on a winning team, and better times are coming.
| RB Glen Coffee, Rush: 1 - -3 - 0 |
Coffee was nowhere to be found. This is Frank Gore's rushing offense.
| WR Isaac Bruce, Rush: 1 - -8 - 0, Rec: 4 - 74 - 0 (8 targets) |
Bruce was quiet until Shaun Hill found him for a 50 yard reception on a bomb. Hill went back to Bruce deep two other times, even when he was triple-covered. He also got open for huge third-down conversion later. He also had a red zone target that was broken up by a good defensive play. Bruce also had a comical moment when they actually called his number on an end around. This will definitely be one of his highest yardage games of the year.
| WR Josh Morgan, Rec: 3 - 38 - 0 (5 targets) |
Morgan looked ready to be this team's #1 WR even though his numbers didn't show it. He had a nice leaping catch at the sidelines, and he also showed great run after catch skills, breaking a tackle on another reception. Morgan would have had a TD on a nicely thrown ball by Hill in the red zone, but Bryant McFadden made a desperation breakup with his back to the ball in the air. Bigger numbers are likely to come for Morgan.
| WR Arnaz Battle, Rec: 2 - 22 - 0 (2 targets) |
Battle caught a 12 yard pass on third-and-13, and he also had a nice catch and run in the second half, but he is clearly just a third WR and fifth option in this passing offense.
| TE Vernon Davis, Rec: 5 - 40 - 0 (7 targets) |
When Shaun Hill had to move the offense for a game-winning TD, he looked to Davis no less than five times, four of which were converted into catches by Davis on the big fourth quarter drive. There is definitely trust developing between these two. Davis didn't do much during the rest of the game, except for get rocked by Adrian Wilson on a downfield target where Hill left him hanging out to dry, but there is something good going between the SF QB and their #1 TE.
| TE Delanie Walker, Rec: 1 - 17 - 0 (3 targets) |
Walker actually got some money targets, including two deep targets and one in the end zone, but his stats won't reflect that. It's going to be hard for Walker to get a foothold in the box score unles Vernon Davis gets hurt, but he is not a forgotten man in this passing offense.
Arizona Cardinals
| QB Kurt Warner, Pass: 26 - 44 - 288 - 1 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 2 - -4 - 0 |
Yup, Warner looked his age. He had trouble eluding pressure, and when he did, he took a hit and threw an INT. He failed to read Patrick Willis dropping into coverage on his other INT - and Willis made a WR-line leaping catch on the INT. He had trouble with downfield accuracy, only really getting locked in on Tim Hightower as a checkdown and short range target out of the backfield. He didn't get Anquan Boldin very involved, and generally lacked the sharpness that he had on the Super Bowl run last year. We can chalk some of this up to his hip, but the whole Cards offense looked limp in the preseason (Super Bowl loser hangover?). We wouldn't get too worried about Warner yet, because as he showed, he can still get numbers playing catch up to make him worth starting no matter how poor does out of the blocks.
| RB Tim Hightower, Rush: 8 - 15 - 0, Rec: 12 - 121 - 0 (14 targets) |
Hightower looked terrific as a receiver, catching more passes than anyone in any game on Sunday. He had moves to make tacklers miss in the open field. He ran hard and ran tough after the catch. His inside running wasn't bad, but Hightower's bad habit of trying to break runs outside popped back up more than once. Beanie Wells looks like the better option running between the tackles, and Beanie also was in on the goal to go snaps, even though Hightower was so effective at the goal line last year.
| RB Chris Wells, Rush: 7 - 29 - 0 |
The rookie looked fantastic for having missed most of training camp and the preseason. Wells had a very good initial burst, great footwork through the hole, a second gear, and he even carried a pile five yards at the end of his best run. Wells also got two goal to go snaps and one goal to go carry when the Cards were in the red zone (the one time they got down there). Try to trade for him while his stat line conceals his real value.
| WR Larry Fitzgerald, Rec: 6 - 71 - 1 (11 targets) |
Fitz was quiet in the first half, drawing an offensive pass interference call on his first target. He didn't get really involved until the second half, but he had a full week's worth of production in that half, including a short TD pass that he created by getting open after Kurt Warner broke the pocket. One has to think that once Kurt Warner and the offense knocks off the rust, the big numbers will come for Fitzgerald.
| WR Jerheme Urban, Rec: 5 - 74 - 0 (7 targets) |
Urban was the #3 receiver with Steve Breaston inactive, and he did catch the one successful deep ball and a few other targets over the middle, but he also dropped a key third-down in the waning minutes of the game. He was also the target on Warner's first interception. He's one of the more dangerous #4 WRs because of the offense he is surrounded by, but he's not threatening Breaston's job once he is healthy.
| WR Anquan Boldin, Rec: 2 - 19 - 0 (5 targets) |
Boldin was barely targeted in this game, but it didn't look like his hamstring was affecting him. His lack of looks is puzzling, but he was targeted on one of Warner's INTs. Don't bail on him just yet, but this is a situation that bears watching because Boldin also faded into the background in the playoffs last year.