San Francisco 49ers Fall To New Orleans Saints On Final Play

Nov 17, 2013; New Orleans, LA, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Anquan Boldin (81) catches a touchdown over New Orleans Saints cornerback Corey White (24) during the second quarter of a game at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

The exciting match-up between the San Francisco 49ers and New Orleans Saints came down to the final play. What happened during the game?

First Half:

The first half was packed full of many wacky plays. Whether it was Jonathon Baldwin not keeping possession in the endzone, Lance Moore muffing a punt, or Corey White fumbling the ball into the endzone after an interception, the first half was excting.

Overall, the 49ers’ defense played well in the first half. They kept the Saints offense to only 14 points, and seven of those were from a 82 yard kick return by Travaris Cadet. The defense kept Jimmy Graham in check for most of the first half. Unfortunately Tarrell Brown left the game with a rib injury, but other than that the defense had a good first half.

The offense on the other hand, was lackluster. They scored their only touchdown from a muffed punt and had one decent drive that resulted in a field goal. They were bailed out by Corey White when he fumbled the ball into the end zone which resulted in a touchback for the 49ers. Although still a very sloppy half, the offense does look a little better than last Sunday.

Second half:

The second half of this game was an exciting one. Ahmad Brooks intercepted Drew Brees on the opening drive which led to a Vernon Davis touchdown. The 49ers got out to a six point lead, but couldn’t hold it until the end of the game.

Again the defense played well. Allowing only 13 points in the second half against the high powered Saints is an accomplishment. The defense did all they could, but with no help from the offense in the 4th quarter, they just couldn’t do it all themselves.

The offense in the third quarter was not bad. It was actually very efficient. They converted third downs and moved the ball and scored a few times. The offense in the fourth quarter was atrocious. They could not move the ball, and when they needed to just get into field goal range, they essentially went backwards.

Overall:

Overall, the defense played very well as usual. The offense let the defense down as usual. They held Jimmy Graham to only six catches for 41 yards on 11 attempts. Something needs to be done on offense. The defense is playing their hearts out, but the offense is just leaving them out to dry. The offense can only seem to score off of turnovers. They aren’t going to get turnovers forever. They need to find something that works. The 49ers can’t blame the loss on the refs no matter how much they might want to. They have to look at themselves.

The 49ers travel to face the Washington Redskins on Monday Night Football. Hopefully they can figure out something on offense and get back to winning.