49ers offense comes to life late in each half in 28-24 win over Raiders

OAKLAND, Calif. — The 49ers may have found a solution to their punt return issues. Rookie cornerback Phillip Adams' 83-yard punt return for a touchdown in the second quarter not only gave the 49ers an early 10-7 lead, but could have helped rookie secure a roster spot. 

After struggling with punt returns in the first two preseason games, the 49ers turned to the cornerback out of South Carolina State. Adams said he was not new to returning punts; that he did some during his junior and senior year in college. 

"This is another dimension of my game," Adams said of his return skills after the game. "My main goal is to help this team out and I'm very determined to help the team out because we're going in the right direction. If I can do that, I'm very happy."

Adams said that he had always wanted to return punts and was glad that he had the opportunity to do it on Saturday.

Adams' touchdown came after three drives that only produced 3 points. Running back Frank Gore made his preseason debut on Saturday and on his first carry, broke open for a 49-yard run to the Raiders' 31-yard line. However, Gore would fumble a toss two plays later and the drive would stall. Kicker Joe Nedney would miss the a 37-yard field goal attempt wide right.

Gore said that he looked ahead before he caught the ball, which caused the fumble. 

"I didn’t look the ball all the way in, I was looking up the field because I saw a touchdown and the ball slipped," Gore said after the game. "It’s something that won’t happen in the regular season."

The Pro Bowl running back was excited to finally get into a game after sitting out the first two preseason games. 

"I was hyped up from the start, to finally go up against another team," said Gore. "Being in camp for a whole month without playing the other guys, I was a little kid out there. My number was called, I went out there and took advantage of it."

Gore played for only one series in the game, but his presence meant a lot of quarterback Alex Smith. 

"It was definitely different, you can feel the difference," said Smith on having Gore in the backfield for the first time in the preseason. "He sets up his blocks so well, he complements the offensive line so well. You can definitely feel the difference in there with him."

Smith played well the entire first half and finished the game 9-15 for 113 yards and a touchdown for a 105.7 rating. After only throwing for 12 yards in the first quarter, Smith connected with wide receiver Josh Morgan for a 16-yard touchdown late in the second quarter to give the 49ers a 17-7 lead. In that drive, running back Brian Westbrook had two carries for 17 yards in his first preseason action with the 49ers.

 The 49ers defense struggled early as the Raiders attacked backup cornerback Tarell Brown. With starting cornerback Shawntae Spencer out with a hanstring injury, Brown was the target for the Raiders' first drive. The Raiders connected on back to back passes on Brown for a total of 56 yards en route to a touchdown later on the drive. 

After the drive, the 49ers defense stiffened and took out quarterback Jason Campbell early. Linebacker Travis LaBoy sacked Campbell on the blindside that knocked Campbell out the game. Campbell was down for a few minutes before leaving the field on a cart. He was reported to have a stinger. 

In the fourth quarter, with the Raiders up 24-20, backup quarterback David Carr led a 16-play, 80-yard drive that up 8:31 off the clock. Wide receiver Dominique Zeigler and running back Anthony Dixon were key in the final drive, capped off by a 1-yard touchdown run by Dixon. 

Carr went 7-17 for 46 yards in the entire second half, but he said that he felt good and that it was nice to lead a fourth quarter comeback.

The 49ers next and final preseason game will be Thursday night in San Francisco against San Diego.

Other notes from the game:

- TE Vernon Davis (knee) did not play. WR Michael Crabtree was expected to play but his neck started to stiffen and Singletary decided to keep him out. LT Joe Staley suffered a knee sprain and RB Brian Westbrook has a hamstring cramp -- both day to day.

- WRs Bobby Guillory and Kevin Jurovich both received opportunities to return punts and kicks, but it was clear that Phillip Adams was the best out of the three.

- Starting NT Rickey Jean Francois played into the third quarter and was relieved by Will Tukuafu. Jean Francois has improved in his play serving as the starting nose tackle in Aubrayo Franklin's absence. 

- K Joe Nedney handled kickoffs and field goals for the majority of the game and looks like he is healthy.

- The 49ers had 10 penalties for 82 yards during the game and some of them were false starts in key situation during drives. 

- QB Jarrett Brown saw his first action in the preseason with a tackle on special teams coverage. Singletary said that he wanted to see what Brown could bring to the team other than quarterback.