Sloppiness in Seattle costs 49ers
Seahawks' Ray Willis (74) tries to provide protection for Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck (8) who is sacked and fumbles the ball under pressure from 49ers' Parys Haralson (98) in the first quarter, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009, in Seattle.
TED S. WARREN / APPublished: Sunday, December 6, 2009 at 3:42 p.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, December 6, 2009 at 3:42 p.m.
SEATTLE — With the 49ers’ season likely on the line, coach Mike Singletary did not let the dramatic moment slip away without acknowledging it.
The 49ers trailed with 5:22 remaining, and he sensed this could be a defining moment for quarterback Alex Smith.
“Before he left the sideline, I said, ‘Here it is. It’s your time,’” Singletary said.
Smith mostly did his part, as he threw for a career-best 310 yards and two touchdowns. But this was certainly not the 49ers’ time to be recognized as serious contenders in the NFC playoff picture.
The 49ers experienced widespread faulty play Sunday, and saw their playoff hopes dashed when the Seattle Seahawks pulled out a 20-17 victory on Olindo Mare’s 30-yard field goal as time expired.
“We just found a way to screw it up,” Singletary said. “It’s as simple as that. Every situation, we just found a way to screw it up. Championship teams can’t do that. Teams that talk about going to the playoffs cannot do that. We did.”
When the day began, the 49ers had visions of playing for the NFC West lead next week. But they now find themselves no better off in the standings than the Seahawks. Both teams are 5-7, tied for second in the division with four games remaining. Arizona, after its Sunday-night win, has a three-game lead.
“It’s disheartening. It’s sick,” linebacker Patrick Willis said. “We had every expectation of coming up here and doing what we needed to do to win the game. We knew coming in if we played tough football for 60 minutes, we’d win the game. And we didn’t.”
Trailing 17-14 late in the game, Smith led the 49ers down the field with completions to Michael Crabtree (6 yards), Brandon Jones (18 yards) and Frank Gore (6 yards). The 49ers moved even closer with a 28-yard penalty for pass interference.
“He went out there and he was doing what we asked him to do in a crucial situation,” Singletary said of Smith. “He managed the ball. He got it around to different guys.”
Smith twice made throws good enough for touchdowns, too.
But Vernon Davis, who earlier in the season set the 49ers record for tight ends with his 10th touchdown catch of the season, dropped a perfectly thrown pass in the end zone.
“(I) couldn’t see it,” said Davis, who had six catches for 111 yards. “I saw it at the last minute. (I) didn’t know where he was throwing it to. I wish I could’ve looked a little earlier and saw the ball and I could’ve made the play. But things happen.”
Smith said the ball was thrown on time. But he acknowledged it would’ve been “a great play” if Davis had caught the pass after he made the proper route adjustment to find the opening in the Seattle secondary.
On the next play, Smith got rid of the ball sooner than designed to avoid the blitz on a pass intended for Crabtree. Again, the ball was thrown on target, but when Crabtree turned to look for the pass near the goal line, it was too late for him to make the grab.
“He didn’t have time to throw the route I was running,” Crabtree said. “He got a little rush. He had to get rid of the ball. The play is designed for the back of the end zone.”
The 49ers settled for Joe Nedney’s game-tying 34-yard field goal with 2:57 remaining. They got the ball back one more time, but managed a three-and-out that took just 30 seconds. The 49ers made the mistake of giving the ball back to Seattle with time to move into field position for the winning score.
Seldom-used 49ers cornerback Keith Smith, who entered the game as the 49ers’ seventh active defensive back, was in coverage along the right sideline when Deon Butler caught a 32-yard pass from Matt Hasselbeck with 12 seconds remaining to set up Mare’s game-winning field goal.
When asked about Keith Smith being in the game at that juncture, Singletary asked, “The guy that got pushed off on by No. 11 (Butler)? The guy that got pushed?”
Singletary said he had a good view of the play. There was no penalty flag thrown on the play. In fact, there were several questionable calls that went against the 49ers.
“Yes, there was,” Singletary said. “I could go there, but I’m not because the referees did not fumble. The referees didn’t miss tackles. So I’m not going to go there. That really wasn’t the game, because I thought we could’ve overcome some of the calls.”
The 49ers certainly had their chances to climb back to the .500 mark, but they frittered them away with an all-around sloppy performance:
They came out disorganized, calling a timeout before their first defensive play because of mass confusion over which personnel group should be on the field. The 49ers spent all three first-half timeouts within the first nine minutes of the game.
Early in the first quarter, the 49ers drove to the Seattle 1 and came away with no points when Singletary opted against kicking the field goal. Smith’s fourth-down pass was incomplete after it appeared Seattle linebacker Darryl Tapp had interfered with Delanie Walker.
In 35-degree weather, the 49ers tried a reverse on a punt. But Arnaz Battle and Jones fumbled the exchange, and the Seahawks recovered at the 13-yard line. Three plays later, Seattle scored to tie the game at 7-7.
Gore, who gained just 25 yards on nine carries, also fumbled after the 49ers had driven to the Seahawks’ 22-yard line early in the fourth quarter.
The 49ers were horrendous on third downs, converting just 1 of 13 opportunities.
“I thought we had a lot of opportunities to win the game,” Alex Smith said. “We’ve got to make those plays, and it changes the game. I know we’re capable of making them. Good teams have offenses that do that. I think we’re capable of it. The expectation level is higher.”
For more on the 49ers, go to Instant 49ers at blog.pressdemocrat.com/49ers. You can reach Staff Writer Matt Maiocco at matt.maiocco@
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