Quarterback: B-
The numbers were fairly decent for JaMarcus Russell (7/11 for 76 yards and 1 TD), but most of his tosses were of the short variety and were safe. His 24-yard touchdown pass to Louis Murphy is what the team wants to see more of. On 3rd and 22, hit got enough time to scan the field and then Russell was able to realize the break in the coverage and hit the rookie to give them a 7-0 lead. Russell was decisive and accurate on a 20-yard completion to TE Tony Stewart, releasing the ball above his OL and a defender plowing into him. Bruce Gradkowski looks to be way ahead in the fight for third in the depth chart. He was 3/5 for 44 yards, one touchdown and one interception. As soon as he came into the game in the 3rd quarter, he showed off his mobility with a 9-yard scamper. A few plays later, he hooks up with the rookie tight end for a nice 36-yard pass before he connects with Brandon Myers again to cap the drive with a touchdown and a 14-3 lead. Jeff Garcia came on late in the 1st half, immediately completed a 9-yard pass to Johnnie Lee Higgins, then ran for 9 yards, but as time expired and the Raiders in 49ers territory, he overthrew his target, and the pass was deflected into the hands of a defender. Garcia looked healthy and ready to continue work this week after his stint. Charlie Frye had his moments, but his interception led to the 49ers game-winning score. After Gradkowski’s pick, Carlos Thomas returned Frye’s first pass to the Raider 25 yard line. Frye was feisty at the end of the contest, scrambling and making plays with his feet.
Running Back: C
Much of the talk here is what they couldn’t do due to the weak play of the offensive line. Darren McFadden opened the game with Oren O’Neal. The fullback looked slow and not able to neither seal any lanes nor get into the second level of the defense. McFadden had to dance around bodies just to get to the line of scrimmage. On a 2nd and goal in the 1st quarter, Justin Fargas got the call, but the offensive line was mauled on the play. The running backs were at their best during screens and dump offs and little else. The best ground game Oakland had was with their shifty quarterbacks when they broke out of the pocket.
Wide Receivers & Tight Ends: B+
Brandon Myers was athletic, sure-handed and looked every part of being a tight end at the NFL level. His 4 receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown were very impressive. Murphy continues to show that he can be a contributor to this attack. He found the soft spot in the 49ers cover-2 on the touchdown and tallied 34 yards on the night. Zach Miller had 3 catches and was Russell’s safety blanket once again. On a 3rd and 9 in the first quarter, it appeared that Darrius Heyward-Bey wiggled open on a out pattern, but Russell was not able to connect on his pass. Johnnie Lee Higgins was active and beat a CB so bad, he drew a pass interference penalty that netted the Raiders 22-yards.
Offensive Line: D-
This group was ineffective and looked sluggish all night. They were not able to open up any holes for the rushers, beaten at the point of attack on the majority of running plays the Raiders called. On a 2nd and 13 in the 2nd quarter in which Fargas got near the goal line on a screen pass, Center Samson Satele was flagged for a hold. James Marten could’ve had a costly penalty, as he was flagged before Frye’s touchdown run deep in SF territory. Cornell Green’s penalty in the 2nd quarter also put the Raiders in a tough down and distance.
Defensive Line: F
The 49ers rushed for 275 yards and controlled the time of possession 38:44 to 21:16. Frank Gore got his feet wet early, but his back-up Glen Coffee plowed through the Raiders, amassing over 100 yards rushing in the 1st half and 129 for the contest. Michael Robinson and Kory Sheets joined the party later; they totaled 148 yards. Gerard Warren and Tommy Kelly were a sieve. They got pushed around all night, and when Terdell Sands and William Joseph were in there, it did not get any better. The most noticeable trend from last night was how the edges of the defense were exposed. Trevor Scott, Greg Ellis and Jay Richardson all were manhandled on tosses, sweeps and any rush plays run at them. William Joseph did have some nice plays, batting a ball down on 4th down to end a 49er drive and shutting down an end around for -6 yards. Ellis got pressure early on passing downs, but his rush was neutralized once San Francisco began to pound at John Marshall’s defense.
Linebackers: D
If not for a Ricky Brown interception and return for 46 yards that set Oakland up for points in 49er territory, this unit would have been given an ‘F’ as well. Oakland blitzed a lot with this group, but only managed one sack the whole night. Kirk Morrison was whipped away on a few rushes, Thomas Howard was active, but needed to make trailing tackles on rushers that broke free into the second level of the defense, and Jon Alston, who started at OLB was ineffective. Slade Norris missed some tackles and Morlon Greenwood could not a case for himself making the roster with poorest showing by the defense.
Secondary: C
The starters were solid, but not tested much since the 49ers had so much success on the ground. Starter Chris Johnson had his moments in the 1st half; covering and tackling Vernon Davis for minimal gains. Hiram Eugene and Tyvon Branch appeared lost at times as well as Jerome Boyd. Ricky Manning Jr. played well, and recorded a big tackle on a 3rd and 7 run to get the Raiders off the field.
Special Teams: B
Nick Miller did not put any fear into the 49er coverage units. His fumble late ended any hope the Raiders had of winning the game. Justin Miller had a 26-yard kickoff return and punter Ricky Schmitt did an admirable job averaging 48.0 yards a punt.
Coaching: B-
Tom Cable should had left Russell in the game to end the half. That was a perfect opportunity to let the young passer orchestrate a 2-minute drill. He did a good job challenging Frye’s touchdown. He stuck to the game plan, playing all the quarterbacks on the roster and giving them all a shot to get their feet wet last night. His team built a nice lead and appeared in control to start the 3rd quarter, but there was no answer for the onslaught on the ground. Cable did a nice job taking a time-out in the 2nd quarter when the 49ers got to the goal line. That got the Raiders a breather and thwarted a 13 play drive that could’ve ended in a touchdown, but instead the 49ers got a FG.
NOTES:
- When the 49ers took a 21-14 lead, they had scored 18-unanswered points on the strength of a powerful running game and 3 turnovers. San Francisco has also dominated the time of possession, 35:14 to 15:52 to that point in the final quarter.
- Kirk Morrison was seen leaving the game with his arm in sling. He will be out at least 2-weeks, and with Ricky Brown making plays and looking more intense out there, it appears that the product out of Oakland will have to deal with a bumpy road in 2009.
