San Fran to Hoist Lombardi. Here's Why:

By Carly Nevis

The Quarterbacks:

AP Photo/ Tony Avelar

Colin Kaepernick did play three less games then Joe Flacco in the 2012 season, so we must take that into account. Flacco does have 25 touchdowns to Kaepernick’s 15. He does have 3,817 passing yards to Kaepernick’s 1,814.

What Joe Flacco does not have, that will be the secret weapon in this game for the 49ers is a quarterback who can run all over a defense line. The Baltimore Ravens do not have a quarterback who had two passing and two rushing touchdowns in one game. They do not have a quarterback who has been at the top of the leader board in multiple games for rushing yards. But San Francisco has a versatile quarterback who rushed for 415 yards this season. They do have a quarterback that is economical with the ball and was only intercepted three times this season. They have a leader who has avoided being sacked all but sixteen times this season, to Joe Flacco’s thirty-five. Yes, you can accredit the sack statistic partially to the offensive line of each team, but Colin Kaepernick has been so crafty, so dynamic, and has utilized his ability to run the ball so well this season, and particularly in the playoffs.

So in the quarterback poll, San Francisco wins.

The Quarterbacks’ Go-To Guy:

What is a quarterback without a guy to catch the ball for him? In the playoffs thus far, especially in the last game, Vernon Davis and Colin Kaepernick have been a magnificent combo. The two connected five times in the San Francisco victory over Atlanta, and Davis sliced and diced his way to 106 yards with one touchdown.

The leader in the Ravens-Patriots game: Torrey Smith- 69 yards, 0 touchdowns. Now, if you look at the stats for these two players throughout the season, yes, Smith has out-run Davis by almost three hundred yards. Two weeks ago, however, when San Francisco came back from at what one point was a 17-point deficit, Vernon Davis appeared to be Kaepernick’s right hand man. Torrey Smith has been more consistent, though, and that is undeniable. But if Vernon Davis is able to connect with his quarterback the way he did in the NFC championship, then the 49ers will grab Super bowl 47.

If Colin Kaepernick is on his game on Sunday, mark my words. The San Francisco 49ers will hoist that Lombardi Trophy mighty high for all to see. In between the new commercials that many people are more interested in then the actual game, keep your eye out for the Kaepernick- Davis connection.

49ers Earn Spot in Super Bowl 47

By Carly Nevis

The first quarter was over, and the 49ers were already down by 10. The second quarter had just begun, and San Fran was in a 17-point hole. The first half was in the books and Kaepernick’s troops carried a 10-point deficit into the locker room.

And then, by luck, by chance or most probably by skill, San Francisco pulled off the comeback. The 49ers defense allowed no points in the second half, while scoring fourteen of their own to steal the game away from the Falcons.

AP Photos/ John Bazemore

Colin Kaepernick was not perfect by any means, but he came through when his team needed him the most. After completing just one pass in the first quarter, the quarterback connected with Crabtree, Moss and Davis for eight in the second. LaMichael James rushed 15 yards to get San Fran on the board for the first time.

Later in the quarter, Kaepernick found Vernon Davis for a touchdown. Although the 49ers were still down by ten going into the break, the thought of a blow out became out of the question. And if it was not out of the question in the first half, the 49ers made it clear that they were not going down without a fight in the second.

San Fran scored one touchdown in each of the final quarters, both by Frank Gore and stole a spot in the Super bowl from Atlanta.

"I take my hat off to Atlanta. They played hard. They've got a great team," The running back told ESPN after the game. "But we fought, man. We fought and we deserved it."

But the reason why San Francisco was able to take away this game from Atlanta was the second half defense. Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan, who led his team to score on their first three possessions, went silent in the second half. The 49er defense forced incomplete pass after incomplete pass. They sacked the QB. After being trampled on in the first half, the San Francisco defense did the trampling in the second.

Linebacker Patrick Willis fueled the defense with twelve tackles, but all of the defensive players chipped in across the board. Chris Culliver also intercepted Matt Ryan’s pass after the 49ers had just scored in the third. This play was like a symbolic passing of the torch, as the 49ers were just minutes away from taking the lead in the game. San Fran rode this lead all the way to victory.

Atlanta, whose big first half lead was also erased in their game against the Seahawks last week, had a chance to take the game back with 8 minutes to go in the fourth quarterback. But San Fran had come too far for them to let that happen. When the Falcons came as close as the San Francisco 10-yard line, the defense made play after play to keep them out of the end zone.

Victory in Atlanta was sweet, but victory in New Orleans would definitely be sweeter.

Dirty Birds Cleaned Up

The Falcons give up a big lead and fall to the ‘Niners

By Doug Knopf

The curse of the number 1 seed still stands as the Falcons gave way to a San Francisco comeback. Since 2003, only three number 1 seeds have made it to the Super Bowl. These number 1 seeds just cannot finish games, and this is exactly what happened to the Falcons on Sunday night.

AP Photo/ Dave Martin

Early on, it was all Atlanta. It seemed like they just had to throw the ball to someone named Jones or Gonzalez and the team would earn a first down or even more. Julio Jones had two monster plays in the beginning of the game, establishing himself on the field. A 46-yard touchdown pass and a 20-yard touchdown pass to Jones accompanied by a field goal gave Atlanta a 17-0 lead near the start of the second quarter. Two great drives by the 49ers brought them right back into the game before Atlanta closed out at half with a nifty touchdown. It was downhill from there for the Falcons.

Each team was struggling to make game changing offensives plays. Matt Ryan, the Falcons quarterback, threw an interception and fumbled the ball in the third quarter, but the ‘Niners could not capitalize, with a missed field goal and a fumble of their own. In the fourth, after a quick three and out by Atlanta, San Francisco was able to score and take the lead with a six-play 58-yard drive. After the score, the Falcons got the ball with about eight minutes left and the ability to control the game.

Matt Ryan masterfully crafted a drive all the way down into ‘Niners territory, dishing and dunking the ball. Already having converted two third-downs on the drive, the Falcons were faced with a third and four on the San Francisco 10-yard line. With the clock winding down below the two-minute mark, they had two chances to get into the end zone. Even just a first down would have been enough.

Matty Ice did not live up to his name. He forced two passes into tough coverage, ultimately leading to the demise of his team.

           

“We didn’t make the plays when we had the opportunity,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “They made more plays than we did.”

It was such a heartbreaking loss for Falcons fans, who saw their team collapse in front of their eyes. All anybody can do now is look forward to the draft and towards next season (possibly without Tony Gonzalez).

Seahawks Flight Halted, while 49ers Soar to NFC Championship

By Carly Nevis

AP Photo/ David Goldman

The NFL playoffs have swept across the nation in exciting fashion, two steps away from the big night on February 3rd. Two NFC West teams went into this weekend with high aspirations, but only one team had its fulfilled.  

Both games were intriguing, getting football fans off their seats at almost every play. Seattle was just yards away from pulling off the comeback, but the Falcons would not let that happen. San Fran also came back in its game, led by their comeback kid, Colin Kaepernick.

SEATTLE

In Atlanta, Seattle dug itself into a 20-0 hole at half time. It seemed that the magic carpet that Russell Wilson and the Seahawks had been riding on, with a 5-game winning streak heading into the playoffs, had quickly fell from under them. But, that was not the case. The rookie, arguably the rookie of the year, concocted a 28 point second half, 21 coming in the 4^th quarter. If the game had been 30-seconds shorter, the Seahawks may have come back and been victorious. But, the 20-point half time deficit for Seattle came back to haunt them, as it only took Atlanta a 49-yard field goal to seal and steal back the game for good.

A field goal for the victory, seems typical, right? Yet the fashion that this specific field goal occurred was atypical, or maybe not so much in the NFL. More like just really bad luck for the Seahawks. Falcons Matt Bryant kicked a field goal that went wide right just as Coach Pete Carroll called time out. This timeout led to another chance for Matt Bryant, which he took advantage of. Bryant launched the ball straight through the field goal post, and the ball took the Seahawks hopes of going to the title game with it.

"I would have really liked it if he missed the kick," Carroll told ESPN.

I’m sure the rest of Seattle would have liked that too, Coach.

SAN FRANCISCO

If you shut off the TV after the first few minutes of this game, you may have predicted that the outcome would be different. First play of the game. Kaepernick… interception. And all is lost for the 49ers, right? Wrong.

Colin Kaepernick did not let the mistake faze him. He was spectacular, to say the least. When is the last time you have heard of the quarterback leading a team in rushing yards? Not often. And when is the last time that a quarterback had 2 passing touchdowns and 2 rushing touchdowns, never. This performance by the dynamic quarterback will go down in football history, hopefully one of many historic moments in the quarterback’s young career.

"It feels good. We're one step closer to where we want to be," Kaepernick told ESPN happily after the victory. "I feel like I had a lot to prove. A lot of people doubted my ability to lead this team."

If the 49ers do pull off the victory against the Falcons, Kaepernick will be one step closer to proving himself.

The NFC championship is sure to be a good one. The Seahawks will just have to watch with jealousy as the 49ers storm into Atlanta. Be patient though. Seattle is sure to be hungry next season.

To Atlanta, we go!

For Brady, Just a Little Too Late. For San Fran, the Playoffs Await

By Carly Nevis

The 49ers pulled off a few weekend’s ago that no other team has done in seven weeks, that is beat the Patriots. They also became just the second team to beat New England at home this season. The first team was also in the NFC West, the Cardinals… many months ago when Arizona actually had high hopes… but anyway.

AP Photo/ Elise Amendola

It was ugly, it was suspenseful, and it came down to the finish, but San Francisco pulled it off. With the victory, San Fran clinched a playoff berth and sits as the second seed in the NFC as of now.

Just what happened in this game to make Sunday night football fans “ooh” and “ahh” at the screen? Well for the first 3 quarters, the man, the myth and legend, Tom Brady was not himself. He threw two interceptions, one of them that eventually led to a touchdown in the third quarter.

The 49er’s defense allowed just one field goal in the first half, and just 10 New England points going into the fourth quarter. It would be safe for San Fran fans to do their victory dance with a 31-10 lead going in the fourth quarter, right? WRONG. Tom Brady crafted a 21-point comeback, one touchdown after another after yet another to tie the game at 31 in the middle of the fourth quarter.

But the 49ers would not let this one slip away. LaMichael James returned the next New England punt for 62 yards. Quarterback Colin Kaepernick threw a beautiful pass to Michael Crabtree for the touchdown which made it 38-31. But the game was sealed for the 49ers when Ricky Jean Francois sacked Brady to put an end to the New England drive. The 49ers eventually added a field goal to their lead to put this one in the books.

"We can win a shootout," Michael Crabtree told ESPN after the game. "Whatever it takes, that's our motto. ... We feel like we can do anything, sky's the limit."

You may wonder just how much you can take from a game that started off as a blow out, and ended in a nail biter. Well, for one, the 49ers are now in the playoffs. And even though the defense was weaker in the fourth quarter, a win is a win. The 49ers showed that they are good enough to beat even the best, which is a very good sign with just two weeks left in the season.

Is Alex Smith Returning To His Old Ways?

AP Photo/ Marcio Jose Sanchez

By Matt Miselis

The San Francisco 49ers are emerging once again as Super Bowl contenders after coming up short in the NFC Title game against the New York Giants last year. In the off-season, the 49ers came to the realization that the team must be orchestrated around quarterback Alex Smith.

Last season, after years of disappointment, Smith finally displayed the skills needed to be an efficient quarterback under coach John Harbaugh. With the additions of Randy Moss, Mario Manningham, and AJ Jenkins, the 49ers ensured that Smith would have the weapons needed to finally emerge as a quarterback who could carry the team in the postseason.

Through seven games this season, though, people are questioning Smith’s ability and wondering if he is regressing as a quarterback. Although Smith is on track for a career high in yards and touchdowns, he is also making more mental mistakes, similar to what we saw during his rookie season.

He has already committed eight turnovers thus far, which is two less than he had in 2011. The biggest reason for his lack of improvement this season is because, quite frankly, he is not capable of becoming an elite quarterback.

Although he was drafted first overall by the 49ers in 2005, Smith doesn’t possess any outstanding physical qualities that resemble Aaron Rodgers, who was taken after Smith in the 2005 draft.

Defensive coordinators are realizing that the 49ers game plan has changed. While the running game may continue to be a priority for John Harbaugh’s team, it’s evident that Harbaugh is content with putting the game on his quarterback’s shoulders.

The idea doesn’t seem so farfetched. After all, with the abundance of offensive talent at Smith’s disposal, the 49ers should receive more of a boost from their offense instead of always relying on their elite defense.

Ultimately, this new strategy by the 49ers has led to below average performances by Smith when facing quality defense against the Giants, Vikings, and Seahawks.

There is no doubt that the 49ers could very well finish as the best team in the NFC in the regular season and gain home field advantage throughout the playoffs. However, their ultimate goal of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy seems less likely if Alex Smith can’t carry this team to the promised land.