San Francisco 49ers Dominate Texans in 34-3 Rout
Oct 6, 2013; San Francisco, CA, USA; Houston Texans running back Ben Tate (44) is tackled by San Francisco 49ers inside linebacker Michael Wilhoite (57) in the first quarter at Candlestick Park. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
It looks like the San Francisco 49ers are back on track, and have now won two-straight to the St. Louis Rams and the Houston Texans. The 49ers defeated the Texans handily by the final of 34-3 in a game that was dominated by San Francisco’s defense.
One of San Francisco’s key defensive players, Patrick Willis, was held out for his second straight game. The keys to the defense were once again handed to fellow All-Pro linebacker NaVorro Bowman, who had a stellar game last week. He led the defense once again with 11 tackles and two assists, while Michael Wilhoite, Willis’ replacement, finished with 11 tackles of his own. Eric Reid also added 8 tackles in another great performance for the rookie.
The rest of the defense followed suit as they forced a total of four turnovers, including three interceptions. After the third interception, which was by defensive lineman Tony Jerod-Eddie on what looked like a zone blitz, Matt Schaub was benched in favor of backup T.J. Yates. Schaub finished the game with 19 completions on 35 attempts for 173 yards and three interceptions.
Again, turnovers were the name of the game, and Tramaine Brock created two of them, both interceptions. His first came on the third play of the game when he intercepted a pass intented for Andre Johnson on a hook route. He took the interception 18 yards to the endzone to give the 49ers a 7-0 lead. From there, San Francisco would not look back.
The fourth and final turnover forced was a fumble on a strip by Donte Hitner (I’m pretty sure the name change is official) which ultimately resulted in a Phil Dawson field goal.
On offense, it was once again the run game that put the points on the board. Frank Gore finished the game with 17 carries for 81 yards rushing and a touchdown while Anthony Dixon had two touchdowns of his own, both on goal-line plunges. Kendall Hunter also added 29 yards on five carries, and Colin Kaepernick had a 14 yard run as well.
Kaepernick was more or less underwhelming once again passing the football, and he ended the game going 6/15 with 113 yards passing and a touchdown. His lone touchdown came on a 64-yard play-action pass to Vernon Davis. That touchdown was pretty much the nail in the coffin as it put the 49ers up 31-3 early into the fourth quarter. Anquan Boldin finished the game with just two catches for 21 yards.
Late in the game Colt McCoy filled in for Kapernick once the game was out of hand. He did not end up throwing the ball though and just ended up being a delivery boy for the running backs during garbage time.
One key injury to the 49ers was defensive tackle Ray McDonald who was injured in the beginning of the second half with a bicep injury and did not return to the game. We will keep you updated on his injury during the week when new info comes out. A mixture of Demarcus Dobbs and Jerod-Eddie filled in during his absence.
Next week the 49ers play at Candlestick against the visiting Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals were able to defeat the Carolina Panthers earlier today by the score of 22-6.