49ers historically awful in loss
Falcons' Thomas Johnson sacks Shawn Hill for a loss in the fourth quarter on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2009 in San Francisco.
JOHN BURGESS / PDPublished: Sunday, October 11, 2009 at 1:49 p.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, October 11, 2009 at 1:49 p.m.
SAN FRANCISCO — It took a span of less than six minutes in the second quarter for the 49ers’ feel-good beginning of their season to be obliterated.
The 49ers were outclassed in all phases of the game, and they made several astounding mental mistakes during their humbling 45-10 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
“I never saw it coming,” 49ers linebacker Takeo Spikes said. “Whatever could’ve gone wrong, it did – times two.”
The 49ers’ loss was historically awful.
It was tied for the third-worst home defeat in franchise history. And it was the 49ers’ worst home loss in 42 years – a 45-3 loss to Detroit at Kezar Stadium in October 1967.
And this came at a time when coach Mike Singletary – and everybody else around the organization -- believed these kinds of losses were a thing of the past. The 49ers (3-2) now own a half-game lead in the NFC West over the Arizona Cardinals (2-2) entering their bye week.
The 49ers return to action on Oct. 25 against the Houston Texans. They expect injured running back Frank Gore, who missed two games with an ankle injury, to be back. The 49ers also expect to gain the services of rookie receiver Michael Crabtree, who signed a six-year contract on Wednesday.
Rookies and veterans alike were responsible for the 49ers’ dreadful performance. Rookie running back Glen Coffee and cornerback Dre’ Bly, an 11-year professional, were to blame for two of the more noticeable meltdowns.
Coffee said he thought Josh Morgan had scored a touchdown in the first quarter after breaking a tackle at the line of scrimmage and sprinting more than 60 yards. Coffee was late getting back into the huddle, and the 49ers had to burn a timeout.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” Coffee said. “I’m kind of mad about that.”
Three plays later, Coffee scored his first NFL touchdown.
But in the second quarter, the 49ers were out of timeouts and could not challenge a ruling of Delanie Walker’s fumble on a kickoff return. Walker appeared to be down by contact.
Three plays later, Michael Turner scored on a 3-yard touchdown. The Falcons scored three touchdowns in a span of 5 minutes, 45 seconds for a 35-10 lead.
“In a game like this, I think our coaches, all of us, have to do a better job of preparing the guys,” Singletary said. “Obviously, they were not prepared. Our players have to take their share of it, as well.
“We did not play very smart today.”
That continued in the second half when Bly appeared to make a potential big play when he cut in front of Falcons receiver Roddy White to intercept quarterback Matt Ryan’s pass at the 49ers’ 9.
Despite being approximately 75 yards from a touchdown – with the 49ers trailing by 25 points – Bly appeared to begin showboating by placing his hand behind his helmet, a la Deion Sanders.
He made it another 15 yards before White caught Bly from behind and stripped him of the ball. The Falcons recovered the fumble to retain possession, and later added a field goal.
Bly made no apologies for his ill-timed celebration.
“I’m going to be me – that’s who I’ve always been,” Bly said. “I like to have fun when I play the game. When I make plays, I’ve made a lot, I express myself. But I had that ball tucked, and he got the ball. That was a great play by Roddy.”
Said Singletary, “No, I didn’t see that (showboating). I just saw him basically not take care of the football – not showboat.”
White torched the 49ers for 210 yards and two touchdowns on eight receptions, as Ryan threw for 329 yards in the game. White caught a short pass, broke through Nate Clements’ tackle attempt and turned it into a 90-yard touchdown to begin the Falcons’ second-quarter scoring spree.
Niners quarterback Shaun Hill completed just 15 of 38 passes for 198 yards with an interception and no touchdowns. He was sacked three times and constantly under pressure.
“I thought he was running for his life the whole game,” Singletary said.
Hill was clearly angry several times in the second half.
He said his frustration was directed at nobody but himself.
“I was not agitated with my teammates,” Hill said. “I was agitated with myself at times and with the way things were going, perhaps.”
For more on the 49ers, go to Instant 49ers at http://blog.pressdemocrat.com/49ers. You can reach Staff Writer Matt Maiocco via email at matt.maiocco@pressdemocrat.com
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