San Francisco 49ers Week 6

By Kalen Patrick

The 49ers headed in to Detroit leading the NFC West with a very impressive 4-1 record. As I mentioned in my last post, I knew that the match up against the Lions was going to be no easy task, in fact I predicted a very close game that could go either way. Well luckily for the 49ers, it went there way in the end as the 49ers left Detroit with a 25-19 Victory over the previously undefeated Detroit Lions.

49ERS RB FRANK GORE RAN ALL OVER DETROIT

This was one of those well fought games that went back and forth, and only fans of each team could really appreciate. The 49ers started out slow in this game, trailing 10-0 in the 1st quarter, with Kyle Vanden Bosch's forced fumble and recovery playing a big part in that. However, the big difference maker on offense for the 49ers, Frank Gore, then took over (141 Yards on 15 Carries). A big run of 45+ yards set the 49ers up at the 1 and Gore himself punched it in. The game ended up going back and forth a lot all the way through, until Alex Smith's touchdown pass to Delanie Walker ultimately sealed the Victory for the 49ers.

The Victory was in big part to the excellent play of the 49ers defense, Frank Gore and the run game, good special teams, and Alex Smith making the play when the 49ers needed it most. One positive was how involved the 49ers got Michael Crabtree in the game. That will be vital going forward in the season especially since Joshua Morgan is on IR. 49ers will also get a nice boost after the bye week with the return of Braylon Edwards.

49ERS OLB/DE ALDON SMITH

The 49ers front 7 dominated the Lions, Willis and Bowman covered the entire middle of the field, while Justin Smith and rookie Aldon Smith both tormented Matthew Stafford all day long. Aldon Smith also forced the Safety in the 2nd quarter which turned out to be a huge momentum changer. He now has 5.5 sacks on the season and that is with little to no playing time in Weeks 1 and 2. Keep an eye on Aldon Smith as a potential Defensive Rookie of the Year.

So whats next for the 49ers? Well they now have a bye week, which will be big in allowing Jim Harbaugh and Greg Roman to implement more of the offense and allow for the return of Braylon Edwards. The 49ers will then open the 2nd half of their season at home against the Cleveland Browns, which is a favorable match up to get the 49ers going again.

The 49ers now sit at 5-1 with a nice matchup coming out of the bye week and also 5 games left against weak NFC West opponents.

49ers Stats Leaders
Alex Smith - 1090 YDS, 8 TD, 2 INT, 63.3% CMP, 95.2 QB Rating.
Frank Gore - 541 YDS, 4 TD, 5.0 YPC
Vernon Davis - 24 REC, 241 YDS, 3 TD, 11.3 AVG
Navarro Bowman - 56 TACKLE
Aldon Smith - 5.5 SACK