Saints @ 49ers: Game Preview

by Dave Cariello on Jan 11, 2012 6:01 AM CST

SATURDAY, JANUARY 14, 2012

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS-NFC SOUTH (14-3) AT SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS-NFC WEST (13-3)

SERIES

	SAINTS		49ERS
LEADER (REG. SEASON)			45-24-2
STREAKS (REG. SEASON)	9 of past 11
COACHES VS. OPP. (REG. & POSTSEASON)	Payton: 4-0		Harbaugh: 0-0
COACHES PLAYOFF RECORD	Payton: 5-2		Harbaugh: 0-0
VS. COMMON OPP. (REG. SEASON)	NO: 3-2 (Det. 1-0; NYG 1-0; StL. 0-1; TB 1-1) SF: 5-0 (Det. 1-0; NYG 1-0; StL. 2-0; TB 1-0)
PLAYOFF RECORD	6-7	25-17
LAST WEEK	W 45-28 vs. Lions	Bye (Wk. 17: W 34-27 at Rams)
LAST GAME (REG. SEASON)	9/20/10: Saints 25 at 49ers 22. New Orleans K Garrett Hartley kicks 3 4th-quarter FGs, including game-winning 37-yarder as time expires.
LAST GAME AT SITE (REG. SEASON)	9/20/10
LAST PLAYOFF	---
BROADCAST	FOX (1:30 PM PT): Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston, Tony Siragusa (Field reporter). Westwood One Radio: Kevin Kugler, Mark Malone, Scott Kaplan (Field reporter). SIRIUS: 88 (WW1), 92 (NO), 86 (SF). XM: 88 (WW1), 225 (NO), 226 (SF).

REGULAR SEASON STAT LEADERS

PASSING	Brees: 468-657-5,476 (1L)-46 (1L)-14-110.6 (2L)	Ale. Smith: 274-446-3,150-17-5-90.7
RUSHING	Sproles: 87-603-6.9-2	Gore: 282-1,211 (3C)-4.3-8
RECEIVING	Graham (TE): 99 (3L)-1,310-13.2-11 (T3L)	Crabtree: 73-880-12.1-4
OFFENSE	467.1 (1L)	310.9
TAKE/GIVE	-3	+28 (1L)
DEFENSE	368.4	308.1 (1C)
SACKS	Harper: 7.5	Ald. Smith (R): 14
INTs	P. Robinson: 4	Goldson, Rogers: 6 (T2C)
PR	Sproles: 10.1	Ginn: 12.3 (3C)
KR	Sproles: 27.2 (3L)	Ginn: 27.6 (3L)
PUNTING	Morstead: 48.3 (2C)	Lee: 50.9 (1L)
KICKING	Kasay: 147 (2L) (63/63 PAT; 28/34 FG)	Akers: 166 (1L) (34/34 PAT; 44/52 FG)

NOTES

TEAMS MEET for 1st time in postseason. SF leads all-time series 45-24-2. NO has won past 6 meetings & Saints are averaging 31 points per game in those 6.

SAINTS: Have won 9 in row, incl. last week's WC win. In WC, NO had NFL postseason record 626 yards & tied NFL playoff record with 34 1st downs. Tied club record with 13 reg. season wins, equaling mark set by 2009 team that won SB XLIV. Set NFL record with 7,474 total net yards & 5,347 net pass yards. Team has qualified for postseason in 4 of 6 seasons under head coach SEAN PAYTON. Payton has 5-2 (.714) playoff record. Saints aim for 6th postseason game in row with 30+ points. Club had 5 players selected to Pro Bowl: QB DREW BREES (6th), T JERMON BUSHROD (1st), G JAHRI EVANS (3rd), TE JIMMY GRAHAM (1st) & G CARL NICKS (2nd)...QB Breespassed for 466 yards in WC & is only player in NFL history with consecutive 400-yard playoff games. Joined HOFer DAN MARINO & PEYTON MANNING as only QBs with 2 400-yard playoff games. Has not thrown INT in 215 postseason passes in row, longest streak in NFL history. In postseason career, has completed 222 of 328 (67.7 pct.) for 2,518 yards with 18 TDs vs. 2 INTs for 106.2 rating. His 106.2 rating & 67.7 comp. pct. rank 2nd all-time (min. 150 att.). Has 0.6 INT pct. (2 INTs, 328 att.) in playoffs, best mark in NFL postseason history (min. 150 att.). In reg. season, had NFL single-season record 5,476 pass yards & 13 300-yard pass games, most all-time. Set single-season records for comp. (468) & comp. pct. (71.2)...RB-PR-KR DARREN SPROLES had NFL-record 2,696 all-purpose yards in reg. season. Had 328 combined net yards (106 KR, 105 rush, 72 PR, 45 rec.) in 2008 WC (1/3/09 with SD), 3rd highest single-game total in NFL postseason history. Rushed for 2 TDs in WC last week. RB PIERRE THOMAS has 4 TDs in past 3 in playoffs...In reg. season, TE Graham led NFL TEs with 99 receptions & was 2nd with 1,310 yards, 2nd most by TE all-time. Is 1st TE in NFL history with 95+ catches, 1,200+ yards & 10+ TDs in season. Graham (99) & Sproles (86) are 1st TE-RB duo in NFL history with 80+ catches each in reg. season. WR MARQUES COLSTON had 1,143 rec. yards in reg. season, his team-record 5th 1,000-yard season. Is Saints all-time postseason leader with 36 catches & 492 yards. WR DEVERY HENDERSON has TD in 4 of past 5 playoff games. WR ROBERT MEACHEM had 1st career 100-yard (111) postseason game & 1st playoff TD (56 yards) last week...Since entering NFL in 2006, S ROMAN HARPER has 17 sacks in reg. season, most by DB. Led team with 7.5 sacks in reg. season, 2nd most all-time by DB in season. CB JABARI GREER had 2 INTs in WC & has 3 INTs in past 2 playoff games. His 3 INTs are most by Saint in postseason history & CB TRACY PORTER (2) is tied for 2nd. Porter had 74-yard INT-TD in SB XLIV. LB JONATHAN VILMA is only Saint with INT, FF & FR in playoff game (2009 NFC Champ).

49ERS: Have won NFL-best 15 division titles since 1980. Head coach JIM HARBAUGH guided team to 13 wins, tied for 3rd most by rookie head coach in NFL history. Is 1 of 3 head coaches in team history to win division in 1st year as head coach (GEORGE SEIFERT, 1989 & STEVE MARIUCCI, 1997). Team led NFL with +28 turnover differential, best mark in franchise history. Had 10 giveaways - fewest in league - & tied for NFL best with 38 takeaways. 49ers tied for NFL lead with 8 players selected to Pro Bowl: K DAVID AKERS (6th), S DASHON GOLDSON (1st), RB FRANK GORE (3rd), P ANDY LEE (3rd), CB CARLOS ROGERS (1st), DT JUSTIN SMITH (3rd), T JOE STALEY(1st) & LB PATRICK WILLIS (5th)...QB ALEX SMITH has won 14 of past 17 starts. Had 1st career 3,000-yard season (3,144) & threw just 5 INTs, tied for 3rd fewest in season in NFL history (min. 400 att.). Had 17 TDs & his 3.4 TD-INT ratio was 3rd best in team history, trailing 2 seasons by HOFer STEVE YOUNG (1992 & 1994). In career, 49ers are 10-0 when Smith starts & has 100+ rating...RB Gore rushed for 1,211 yards, his team-record 5th 1,000-yard season. Is franchise's all-time leading rusher with 7,625 yards, passing HOFer JOE PERRY (7,344). Had 5 100-yard rushing games & his 29 career 100-yard games are most in club history...WR MICHAEL CRABTREE had career-high 72 catches & 874 yards. 49ers have won 7 of past 8 when Crabtree has TD catch. Since start of 2009, TE VERNON DAVIS has 26 TDs, most among NFC TEs & 2nd most among NFL TEs. Has 35 career TDs, most by 49ers TE. Davis has 7 career 100-yard games, most by TE in team history. WR-KR-PR TED GINN JR. ranked 3rd in NFL with 27.6 KR avg. & was 4th in NFL with 12.3 PR avg. Only player to rank in top 5 in both...Rush defense led NFL allowing 77.3 yards per game. Total defense was 1st in NFC (308.2). 49ers allowed 3 rush TDs, fewest in 16-game season (since 1978). Was 1st team in NFL history to not allow rush TD in each of 1st 14 games to start season. Club allowed 229 points (14.3 per game), fewest in NFC & 2nd fewest in NFL. LB ALDON SMITH led NFL rookies with 14 sacks, 2nd most ever by rookie. DT Smith had 7.5 sacks & is 1 of 3 players in team history with 6+ sacks in 4 consecutive seasons. LB NA VORRO BOWMAN led team in tackles. LB Willis has been selected to Pro Bowl in each of 1st 5 seasons...K Akers set NFL season records with 44 FGs & 166 kicking points. Ranks 3rd in NFL postseason history with 31 FGs & 134 points. Has scored in 19 consecutive playoff games, tied with HOFer GEORGE BLANDA for 2nd longest streak. P Lee had NFL record 44.0 net punting avg.

The NFL's top offense (New Orleans, 467.1 yards per game) will face the NFC's best defense (San Francisco, 308.2 yards per game) on Saturday at Candlestick Park.

New Orleans has won nine consecutive games, including last week's 45-28 Wild Card victory over Detroit. The Saints, who achieved numerous offensive milestones during the regular season, continued to rewrite the record books, gaining an NFL postseason record 626 yards and tying a league playoff record with 34 first downs. Quarterback DREW BREES passed for 466 yards and is the first player in NFL history with back-to-back 400-yard passing games in the playoffs. He also joined Pro Football Hall of Famer DAN MARINO and PEYTON MANNING as the only players in NFL history to pass for at least 400 yards in two postseason games in a career.

In his first season, head coach JIM HARBAUGH guided the 49ers to 13 wins, tied for the third-most victories by a rookie head coach in NFL history. San Francisco claimed its 15th division title since 1980, the most in the NFL during that span.

"We've had a great season up to this point," says 49ers quarterback ALEX SMITH. "We've put ourselves in a good situation but it doesn't guarantee you anything. So much of the playoffs is the hot team and the team that's peaking and continuing to get better at the end of the season. That's really our focus."

The 49ers, who tied for the NFL lead with eight players selected to the Pro Bowl, led the league with a +28 turnover differential and boasted the league's best run defense (77.3 yards per game). San Francisco allowed only three rushing touchdowns, the fewest in a 16-game season and the 49ers became the first team to not allow a rushing touchdown in each of its first 14 games to start a season.

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Comments

You mean we've won 9 of the last 11, and they've still almost doubled us in wins?

Series record of 24-45-2. We’ll probably never catch them in my lifetime.

(Were we really THAT bad in the past, or were they that good?)

by RobertM320 on Jan 11, 2012 7:16 AM CST reply actions

combination of both - early on the Saints were TERRIBLE and Niners were OK, and then in the 80's/early 90's 49ers were VERY GOOD and Saints were good

if you’re really interested, here’s a link to download the 2010 Saints Media Guide, and you can look at the team’s all-time won-loss record against every team in the league…

Having the ball is better than not having the ball. And if you punt,
not only does it mean you don't have the ball anymore—
it means you didn't score, which sucks.

by Hans Petersen on Jan 11, 2012 8:05 AM CST up reply actions

Thanks, Hans

But I lived and sat through all those years once already! LOL

Guess I shoulda used the sarcasm font.

by RobertM320 on Jan 11, 2012 8:12 AM CST up reply actions

and you know they gonna have joe montegna on the sideline..

to summon some of the old mythical niners’ greatness.. to try to inspire this team..
there really are a lot of factors against us, here..
the only think we have is the knowledge that we have risen in games like this before and put forth some great performances..
the road-woes, though, is talked about everywhere and until we beat a team like this on a stage like this, they’ll continue..
i think we bring our best game ever…. cause we know how to play that game.. there is the great differnce between these two teams.. they can only dream of being great.. we have actually played very close to great in several occasions, just as recent as these past few weeks..
the stakes are thru the roof..
saints prevail.. cause we know the way..

by the 9th plague on Jan 11, 2012 12:50 PM CST up reply actions

Ummm

Did you mistype Joe Montana

or
Joe Mantegna

I like Hamburgers!
Uh oh...better put an Asterisk on it.

by Grumps on Jan 11, 2012 12:54 PM CST up reply actions

a joke from the cult classic: "the wateboy.." they don't have reruns in winni..?

by the 9th plague on Jan 11, 2012 1:00 PM CST up reply actions

water

by the 9th plague on Jan 11, 2012 1:00 PM CST up reply actions

What's a rerun?

Man this is Canada, we still get around by dogsled and live in igloos. The only reason I am on the internet is my sled dogs ate an American student coming up here for stronger beer and the lowered drinking age.

I like Hamburgers!
Uh oh...better put an Asterisk on it.

by Grumps on Jan 11, 2012 1:07 PM CST up reply actions

gotcha

I don’t want to relive those, either…ha!

Hoping this weekend isn’t some kind of deja vu all over again.

Having the ball is better than not having the ball. And if you punt,
not only does it mean you don't have the ball anymore—
it means you didn't score, which sucks.

by Hans Petersen on Jan 11, 2012 7:10 PM CST up reply actions

great stuff, Dave- always appreciated

does anyone know when SF won its last playoff game, or even its last playoff appearence? I think it’s 1998, but not sure. Seems like they were perennial back in 1980s into 90s, but then it’s been a huge drought for a while.

I know this is Smith’s first playoff game, I’m thinking it’s also 1st one for guys like Gore, Crabtree, Davis, Ginn, Willis, etc- almost the whole team except Jon Goodwin! Not much playoff experience there, hopefully we can capitalize on that.

"We've established the run; we've established the pass. Now all we have to establish is another championship!"
"Some say the glass is half empty;
Some say the glass is half full.
I say- 'are you going to finish that beer'?"

by Philinwood on Jan 11, 2012 7:30 AM CST reply actions

2002 was our last appearance and win

We beat the Giants in an epic comeback. As you noted though our franchise’s best years to date happened in the 80’s and 90’s. A lot of that was due to the people we had in the franchise. Bill Walsh as a coach, Montana, Rice, Young, Lott, etc. as players and DeBartolo as an owner. A lot of people point to DeBartolo giving control of the team to his sister in 2000 as the main reason for the collapse of the franchise.

As far as experience in the playoffs goes, as you said, we’re quite thin there. I’m not too worried about that though. Harbaugh was a player and dealt with the playoffs so i think he’ll be able to keep the team focused and ready to play. The talk from the team through the bye week has been nothing but guys saying they’re focusing on football and playing good teams.

"We ask no quarter, we give no quarter" - Jim Harbaugh

by Method24 on Jan 11, 2012 7:49 AM CST up reply actions

I just think that if and when things get tight- and I would expect that the only way you could win this game

is if it were to go down to the wire, your inexperience should show through there. But, we will see.

by Philinwood on Jan 11, 2012 8:53 AM CST up reply actions

That I don't know

The homer fan side of me doesn’t think it will. The Niners have had several come from behind victories on the road this season and have had a lot of the their games come down to the wire. Of course non of those games were as big as this one but I think the confidence that they can win close ones should help.

Also, it may sound dumb, but the Niners have been playing with a lose or go home mentality for at least the past three weeks. They understood how vital the #2 seed was to them. Not only because the bye would help them recover but it also meant not facing the Saints at home which has been a death sentence for every other team this year.

"We ask no quarter, we give no quarter" - Jim Harbaugh

by Method24 on Jan 11, 2012 9:00 AM CST up reply actions

sorry, that's a universe from (I think you meant) win or go home

you were facing some really bad teams and you had already clinched a playoff berth. The pressure was very minimal. If you think that’s like playoff pressure, you are mistaken. Under no circumstance would your team stop playing and pack their bags 2-3-4 weeks ago. The regular season wasn’t even over. This is the real deal. This is very different than playing Seattle or the Rams, or Pitt with a gimpy QB to decide if you will either be the 2nd seed or 3rd seed. The 49ers really have’t been tested in about 7 weeks, and they lost to the Ravens that game. Let’s face it, the 49ers are a good team, but regardless of Saturday’s outcome I don’t think anybody thinks the 49ers will win the Super Bowl this year. That’s a bit out there, don’t you think? Beating the Saints, then Green Bay in Green Bay, and then beating, say the Partriots not in SF but in a dome? All with defense and no playoff experience? Akers can only do so much. Odds are very slim.

by Philinwood on Jan 11, 2012 9:19 AM CST up reply actions

Weather from here in the bay

It is going to be clear and warm.

"when an opponent is down, kick'em when they're down!" Bobby Hebert

by saintslam on Jan 11, 2012 7:35 AM CST reply actions

my sister is flying up for the game

her bf bought her a ticket for her birthday (lucky… i’m stuck here in buffalo)

weather is predicted to be in the low 60’s… that’s just a strong A/C turned on

chance of rain 10%

by nanvinnie on Jan 11, 2012 8:22 AM CST up reply actions

I heard

Its gonna be breesy

by touchdown my pants on Jan 11, 2012 12:40 PM CST via mobile up reply actions

like that

"when an opponent is down, kick'em when they're down!" Bobby Hebert

by saintslam on Jan 11, 2012 5:51 PM CST up reply actions

For 9ers fans and/or curious Saints fans

This is a great article on David Akers. Also, the Eagles comes off as jerks which is simultaneously unsurprising and satisfying.

by sammasaaron on Jan 11, 2012 9:49 AM CST reply actions 1 recs

Thanks for that link- great article

I have followed Akers career (I live in So. Jersey- Eagles territory) and he did get a raw deal in Phila. So did Dawkins and several others. Akers is a class act and I never knew about the swindle, but I knew about his daughter’s tumor. I also didn’t know about the Harbaugh connection and how Akers found out about the draft pick. That’s lame. Andy Reid kind threw him under the bus- and that’s very uncharacteristic of him. He never has anything even remotley negative to say about a team member.

One of the best things about Akers in his career has been that he is a great locker room presence. Whereas most kickers are ignored or avoided, Akers was always one of the guys from what I could tell. He is a black belt in martial arts I think and he is one of the few kickers that would have a real good chance of making an open field tackle on a returner

I am glad he has kept his career going at the highest level- I just hope he has a bad day Saturday now that things are rolling along well for him!.

by Philinwood on Jan 11, 2012 11:22 AM CST up reply actions

Gotta like Morestead as an open field tackler.

Can’t begin to guess how many TD-saving tackles he made prior to his injury in 2010.

by Ship on Jan 11, 2012 11:31 AM CST up reply actions

Hopefully our improvements on ST will remove much further need for him to make those tackles in the future.

by FriarBob on Jan 11, 2012 12:54 PM CST up reply actions

Great article. Thanks.

I remember the Eagle fans booing him when he missed against Green Bay and didn’t think a lot of it, they boo everything, as we all know, even Santa. Never knew the personal hell this guy was going through at the moment. Good for him and good for the 49ers, just in this case. I’m a sap.

"I am a Saints player. Look, sir" Patrick Robinson

by CrazyforColston on Jan 11, 2012 12:48 PM CST up reply actions