SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco 49ers played their last preseason game of 2010 with key offensive starters out of the game. Quarterback Alex Smith, tight end Vernon Davis and wide receiver Michael Crabtree all sat out the contest. Backup running back Brian Westbrook also had the night off.
The offense didn't skip a beat early in the game as they scored on their first possession. With quarterback David Carr under center and rookie running back in for Gore, the 49ers capped an 80-yard drive with a 43-yard touchdown run by Dixon. Dixon eluded three tacklers on cuts en route to the end zone.
"I was supposed to read the tight end and he was wide, but I just cut back and kept on cutting because the flow, it was overflowing and I found a crease," Dixon said of his touchdown score. "My receivers were blocking good for me downfield and I just found a crease in the end zone.”
Despite the early score, the defense was the story of the game. The entire first-team defense started the game, including nose tackle Aubrayo Franklin. Franklin returned to the lineup after holding out the entire offseason.
"I feel real good; I feel like we just picked up where we left off last year," Franklin said. "You know, this is our fourth year playing as a unit, so we pretty much know the defense and know how each other are supposed to fit."
Another starter that made an early impact was linebacker Manny Lawson. The 49ers blitzed the Chargers backup offense all night, forcing pressure on quarterback Billy Volek. On a blitz, Lawson tipped the pass right to himself and returned it 25 yards to the Chargers 38 yard line. The 49ers would get a field goal out of the turnover.
The 49ers backup situation didn't play well throughout the game. Quarterback Nate Davis threw two interceptions while only completing...
Center Cody Wallace had two personal fouls.
"I got to give a shout out to my DBs and other linebackers for covering and allowing me time to get back there," Lawson said. "I was just fortunate enough to, I got my hand in the way and tipped the ball and it floated in the air. All it was after that was just catching it.”
The 49ers gave up 14 unanswered points in the third quarter before scoring a touchdown on a 2-yard touchdown catch by fullback Jehuu Caulcrick. Cornerback Tramaine Brock intercepted a pass from Chargers quarterback Jonathan Crompton late in the fourth quarter to seal the win for the 49ers.
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Head coach Mike Singletary spoke after the game and expressed his pleasure with the performance of the offense and his optimism for the upcoming season.
"I like what I've seen in our offense," Singletary said after Thursday's game. "I like what I've seen in our offensive line. I like what I've seen in Alex Smith."
When asked about backup quarterback Nate Davis, Singletary said that Davis would be a topic of conversation during meetings on Friday when the coaches start preparing for roster cuts. Davis finished the game 11-22 for 103 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. All NFL rosters must be reduced to 53 players on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. PT.
Singletary also said that he liked how the defense played but the inconsistent play of the Chargers offense helped out a little. The head coach had high praises for the interceptions made by cornerback Tramaine Brock and safety Taylor Mays.
Rookie Anthony Dixon will have a role with the 49ers, said Singletary. The head coach didn't get into any specifics, but said that Dixon's quick feet was a great asset for a running back his size.
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Other notes from the game:
- RBs Frank Gore, Brian Westbrook, LT Joe Staley, TE Vernon Davis and QB Alex Smith sat out the game. Adam Snyder subbed in for Staley. Singletary said that he just wanted to see how Snyder would handle the role.
- On defense, LBs Parys Haralson and Manny Lawson saw action with the second team defense. Singletary said that he also wanted to give them extra playing time to see what they could do. Once he saw enough, Singletary took them off the field.
- CB Phillip Adams handled all the punt return duties and WR Kevin Jurovich handled all the kick return duties. Adams handled his assignments well, but did have a fumble on a return. The 49ers recovered the fumble.
- WR Dominique Zeigler had an impressive day at receiver. Despite catching only one ball for 26 yards, Zeigler had two spectacular catches along the sideline, one in the end zone. Both were ruled incomplete as Zeigler failed to maintain both feed in bounds.
- WR Jason Hill was poked in the face during a play and had to leave the game. RB Anthony Dixon suffered minor rib injuries and LB Matt Wilhelm had a right knee sprain.
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Michael Crabtree-Vernon Davis issue. WR Michael Crabtree was in and out of the locker room quickly after the game and did not speak with the media. TE Vernon Davis did speak with the media and Tim Kawakami has the transcription:
-Q: What we saw yesterday with you and Crabtree, was that just a matter of you being a team captain and addressing something?
-DAVIS: Actually it was a matter of being a team captain. All I was doing was taking care of my responsibilities of doing my job.
-Q: Singletary said you were doing the right thing the wrong way. Any regrets about how you handled it?
-DAVIS: No… I wasn’t really thinking about it at the time. I was just expressing the way I felt at the moment. I just pretty much said whatever was on my mind at the time.
-Q: What was the message?
-DAVIS: Just pretty much getting him in check, keeping his head level and just getting on him about some things he did in the past.
It just came about that way.
-Q: Is it OK now?
-DAVIS: I feel like everybody’s on the same page. We still have some growing to do. We’ve got Week 1 coming up and that’s all we should concentrate on at the moment. We don’t need any distractions or anything like that.
I think everybody’s doing a great job.
-Q: Are you concerned this could be a distraction?
-DAVIS: No, I’m not worried about distractions. I don’t think there will be any distractions, especially with coach Singletary being the head man.
-Q: Do you think Crabtree got the message?
-DAVIS: I hope he got the message. I think he did. I strongly believe that… if anything that I see that I feel is wrong and needs to be addressed, I’m going to say something.
-Q: What’s your biggest frustration with Crabtree?
-DAVIS: My biggest frustration? I don’t really have any frustrations with Michael at the moment. I’m the type of guy…
-Q: What caused it then?
-DAVIS: He just… There were some things he was doing at the time that I didn’t like. That’s all. And I just got on it.
-Q: Was he not taking it seriously?
-DAVIS: I can’t really get into all that. I mean, it was just something he did. I don’t really want to discuss it, but just something he did that really bothered me.
-Q: Was it something he had been doing for a while and it reached a limit with you?
-DAVIS: Just like anything else, something you do at the time… if it’s getting on your nerves, then sooner or later you’re going to address it. That’s kind of like what it was.
-Q: Is this maybe a positive in a way that the team is policing itself?
-DAVIS: Yes, I agree with that because coach always talks about ownership. And if you look at it, the situation, it was basically taking ownership.
-Q: Is there a disappointment that Crabtree hasn’t practiced much and hasn’t played in any preseason games?
-DAVIS: Well, I’m not really concerned about his preseason games. That really wasn’t the issue. It was something else.
-Q: Did it involve practice at all?
-DAVIS: It wasn’t about practice.
-Q: Was it a football issue or a non-football issue?
-DAVIS: As a whole it was related to football. It was related to football, but I really don’t want to get into all that.
-Q: Are you OK with him?
-DAVIS: Yeah, we’re great. I love him like a brother. I’ll take him up to Smoothie King tomorrow.
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