The San Francisco 49ers defeated the Detroit Lions, 27-19, on Sunday in a game that wasn't nearly as close as the final score suggests. The Lions were held to just 296 yards of total offense and did not score a touchdown until the final two minutes of the game, while a balanced offensive attack by San Francisco secured the win.
It wasn't the prettiest of wins, however, with the 49ers committing several uncharacteristic mistakes created more problems than San Francisco should have had to deal with.
David Fucillo of Niners Nation was pleased with the "workmanlike" win, stating that those aforementioned mistakes created a interesting ending to a game the 49ers mostly controlled.
Although the receivers, running backs and tight ends were struggling at times, there were big plays from all three types of receivers. I think the star of the game alongside Alex Smith has to be Michael Crabtree. As Alex said after the game, Crabs didn't get the touchdowns, but he was the work-horse on offense. Crabtree finished the game with six receptions for 67 yards. What is spectacular about that performance is that five of the six catches resulted in first downs, and the last three were all on third down. Vernon Davis had the high profile plays, but Crabtree was absolutely crucial to the team's success.
In reality this game should not have been this close. While Calvin Johnson made some plays, the 49ers controlled this game. Some hiccups in execution were the difference between a game that came down to an onside kick, and a game that could have been a three score difference. I know we'll see improvement, so I can live with those problems tonight. For now, the 49ers are 2-0 and the NFC West just went 4-0 with some incredibly impressive victories!
The 49ers head to Minnesota next Sunday to take on the Vikings, with kickoff set for 1 p.m. ET on Fox.
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