Everybody has been waiting all season for the Jets to show us what exactly the ‘Tebow Package’ consists of. In this game they actually got a little creative with their enigmatic backup quarterback, but were completely upstaged by the 49ers and their use of Colin Kaepernick, himself a dual-threat quarterback.
Kaepernick ended up running the option for the 49ers on a few occasions in the game, as if Jim Harbaugh just wanted to make a point of how inept the handling of Tim Tebow was on the other sideline.
In the end it was fitting that while the Jets floundered to a scoreless game, Kaepernick made the big run that sealed the win and gave himself up before the goal line so that he could kneel out the game in victory formation.
San Francisco – Three Performances of Note
Crushing Blocking
The 49ers were able to win this game thanks largely to dominating the point of attack in the trenches. They were no doubt assisted by the occasional use of the option threat, but Joe Staley, Mike Iupati, Alex Boone and Vernon Davis in particular all made some huge blocks and controlled their linemen at the point of attack. Boone (+3.6) looks to be developing into one of the finest guards around, which makes a change from the revolving door of ugly play the 49ers have had at his position in recent years.
At left guard, Iupati (+4.1) was moving people off the line like a bulldozer and on a few occasions he and Joe Staley were able to combine on truly ridiculous looking double-team blocks. Early in the fourth quarter the pair drove Kendrick Ellis a clear 8 yards off the line before grinding him into the turf, opening a chasm wide enough for a first-down run with just that single block. On the next snap Ellis lined up on the other side of the line of scrimmage, and I can’t blame him.
Dominant Defense
As you might expect in a game that pitched a shutout, the defense for San Francisco played pretty well. Eight of the starting eleven graded firmly in the green, with some real standouts among them. NaVorro Bowman (+4.5) was a force against the run, rocking back even pulling linemen upon impact and wrecking plays at the line of scrimmage before they could get anywhere. He was also very solid in coverage, latching onto receivers as soon as they entered his zone and making passes extremely tough to complete.
Dashon Goldson (+4.3) often looks more impressive than he plays, because of a few splash plays and some impressive athleticism, but this game showed his ability. He closed on plays quickly, delivered some devastating hits, including the one that forced a fumble from a tight end whose knee was being bent in nasty angles by the hit. The safety also broke up two passes on the day, and one of them was a touchdown-saver on a deep pass to Santonio Holmes. Yep, he earned his paragraph here for sure.
Boom goes the ball
This might be the first time I’ve ever dedicated an entire part of a re-focused article to a special teams player, but Andy Lee (+3.3) punting the ball is something to behold. I actually like it when the 49ers have a three-and-out drive because it usually means that Lee can unleash the full strength of his leg and belt a ball 60-yards down field. He doesn’t just have a donkey’s leg where most normal people don’t, he also has developed a fantastic ability to drop punts deep inside the 20, with the Jets setting up shop well inside their own 5-yard line on a couple of occasions.
Lee averaged 46 yards per punt in this game and his lone touchback was more the fault of the coverage than his kick. This might be the first and last time your re-focused features a punter’s performance, but it was a great one, and worth commending here.
New York Jets – Three Performances of Note
Who Broke Nick Mangold?
There was a time when the Jets had the best offensive line in football. It’s no coincidence that it was that period where Sanchez looked like he just might have the ability to become a viable quarterback. Since then his decline into Tebow-marred misery has come in parallel with his offensive line’s nosedive in performance. Nowhere was that better illustrated than the performance of Nick Mangold (-6.1) in this game. Once the league’s best center by a country mile, Mangold has lost his air of invincibility and was completely dominated by the 49ers' front in this game. He allowed a sack and two hurries, but was moved to the side constantly by San Francisco defenders as the Jets couldn’t get a running game going. To be fair to Mangold he wasn’t alone, and the Jets as a unit blocked poorly, but he was the worst performer and the biggest fall from grace.
Farewell to the Sanchize?
If his backup was anybody else I think Mark Sanchez (-4.9) would have spent the fourth quarter of this game on the sideline. He had played poorly from the outset and by the time the last period rolled around he was hip deep in quicksand and sinking fast. No good was ever going to come from leaving him out there to drown, but the Jets couldn’t afford to throw in Tebow and send a signal flare to every media outlet in the known world that the Tebow QB controversy is firmly underway.
Under pressure Sanchez was one of seven for 8 yards, and when blitzed he was just one of six for 5 yards and an interception. Against the blitz his QB rating was exactly zero. Tebow may not be the answer at quarterback as Rex Ryan insists that Sanchez remains, but it would be hard to believe he doesn’t give a better chance to win than a performance like this.
Replacing Revis
Replacing Revis is no easy task, and as much as Antonio Cromartie can talk a big game, he’s probably not up to that task long-term. He did, however, do a very good job of backing up his big talk with a +2.5 grade for this game, with +3.0 for his work in coverage. He was thrown at just four times, and had a perfect record, allowing no receptions and breaking up a pair of passes, with style points for breaking one up with his head.
Kyle Wilson (-2.5) was less successful in his new role. The 49ers went after him, throwing his way seven times in the game, and if Alex Smith had been just a little bit more accurate, Wilson would have had over 100 more receiving yards to answer for. As it happened, every time he was beaten deep the ball seemed to sail just beyond the outstretched arms of the receiver whose wake he was running in, prompting the standard ‘NO WAY’ celebrations as if he had just locked things down. Wilson ultimately gave up three receptions for just 24 yards, but this game is a tale far more of the ones that got away than the plays he did give up.
Game Notes
— Jets LB David Harris missed five tackles in this game, exactly half the tally of the Jets D.
— The entire 49ers defense missed just four tackles in the game.
— Alex Smith faced just five snaps under pressure all game, which is just as well because he completed only one pass on them, for 8 yards.
Game Ball
The 49ers defense did the heavy lifting in this game, and the best player on that unit today was NaVorro Bowman with a dominant display.
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