All Together Now

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All Together Now NFL Week 19 – Division Playoffs San Francisco 49ers 23, Carolina Panthers 10

In a repeat of last week, Phil “The Foot” Dawson kicked two first quarter field goals to give the Niners an early lead. But Heisman Trophy winner and Panther quarterback Cam Newton came right back with a touchdown strike to Steve Smith to take the lead 7-6. With a field goal by Carolina’s Graham Gano to make to 10-6, it looked – if only for a while – to be a tough game ahead for the 49ers. How could we have known that the Panthers would never score again?

The game turned when 49ers Colin Kaepernick connected with Vernon Davis for a touchdown on a contested play. Officials had initially ruled Davis out-of-bounds. The video replay clearly over-ruled the refs giving the Niners a three point lead.

In the second half…and thanks very much to the defensive unit’s ability to shut down Carolina’s offense…the 49ers maintained control of the ball, added points to the board and chewed up the clock. Kaepernick sprinted 4 yards for a touchdown to make it 20-10 and Dawson added 3 to close.

Looking closer, this victory was about the efforts of the team. Kaepernick went 15 of 28 for 196 yards in the air and 8 for 15 yards on the ground. Dependable Frank Gore rushed 17 times for 84 yards. Anquan Bolin had 8 receptions for 136 yards. Michael Crabtree had three for 26 yards. Kendall Hunter ran 9 times for 27 yards. If one asset was double teamed, that left another open. It is the richness and depth of this team that allows them to move onward and upward week after week.

Compare this to the Carolina Panthers’ effort. Quarterback Cam Newton completed 16 of 25 for 267 yards and ran ten times for 54 yards (a good day for any quarterback)…but he threw two interceptions and took costly sacks. His receivers Ginn (104 yards), Smith (74 yards), Olsen (55 yards) and Lafell (34 yards) all had four catches so the passing game was finding targets. But when it came time to transit the football across the goal line – only one touchdown. They came up against San Francisco’s top-notch, playoff-ready defense and found themselves out-matched.

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