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Warner & Cards Fly over 49ers!
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By: Kevin Pakos for S&E News
Kurt Warner completed 23 of 37 passes for 301 yards and three scores and they jumped to a 21-7 lead, scoring three touchdowns in the first quarter for the first time in 31 years. This was also their first season-opening victory since 1999 and only the third since 1988. During training camp Kurt had said that the team would have more options when they got into scoring position. That they would be able to dictate to the defense instead of trying to force the ball to one guy. He was proven right when the Cards took two first quarter Niner turnovers and turned them into touchdowns instead of field goals.
Larry Fitzgerald was a big part of the win. In the fourth quarter and San Francisco rallying he caught a pass and turned it into a big 28 yard gain for a first down on a third and ten play. This catch and run allowed Arizona to eat up 68 yards and seven minutes before Neil Rackers put the game out of reach with just under two minutes left. Fitzgerald finished with nine catches for 133 yards.
Early in the game it looked as if the Cards would run away with the game. But the 49er’s kept themselves in it with tough defense and a great performance from their quarterback Alex Smith and rookie runner Frank Gore. He scored on two runs and had 87 yards on six carries while Smith passed for 288 yards on 40 attempts and one TD pass to another rookie, TE Vernon Davis.
But the play of the game for the Niners was the sack by Walt Harris of Kurt Warner in the third quarter that set up the Gore two yard TD run to cut AZ’s lead to 24-21. Instead of struggling Warner came right back and led the team on an 86 yard drive that featured a pair of double digit passes to Anquan Boldin before TE Adam Bergen caught his seven yard TD pass. The last nine points of the game was scored by kickers, one for Rackers and two for Niner Joe Nedney to give us the final score of 34-27.
The only disappointment for fans was that while the Arizona offensive line gave Warner all the time he needed, it could not open any holes for Edgerrin James. He ran for 73 yards on 26 carries for one touchdown, but his longest gain was for 10 yards. He spent most of the day picking himself up from under the pile instead sliding through the line for his expected big gains. But his presence was one of the reasons the defense could not simply attack the passing game.
The scoring for the game went like this: San Francisco on the 31 reception by Vernon Davis of Alex Smith’s pass. Then Arizona got the next three, all in the first quarter. They were; Troy Walters two yard catch, Edgerrin James one yard run and Anquan Boldin six yard catch. The second quarter was the Niners Frank Gore on a four yard run followed by the Cards Neil Rackers 36 yard field goal. Halftime score AZ 24 SF 14
The third quarter scoring was started by Frisco when Frank Gore ran it in from two yards out. Soon after the Cards Adam Bergen caught the seven yard touchdown to end the quarter’s scores. In the fourth Niners Joe Nedney hit a field goal from 22 yards, then AZ’s Neil Rackers drilled his 30 yarder followed by Nedney’s 44 field goal to end the game at 34 Cardinals and 27 49er’s.
It is clear that the receivers that Arizona has are among the best and Kurt Warner can make things happen. Once the running gels, remember, James did not play, much, in the pre-season. But once he gets some work with his linemen, it should become a dangerous mix of run and pass. Let’s hope that they are able to get this work done on the fly during regular season games.
