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Four turnovers. That's all you really need to know about the first half of this game.
Fumbles by Pierre Thomas and Courtney Roby along with two Drew Brees interceptions allowed the San Francisco 49ers to get out to a scary 17-0 lead.
But the momentum changed in the second quarter as the Saints defense started tightening up and the offense got comfortable. Brees threw two touchdown strikes to Jimmy Graham and Marques Colston and narrow the gap to a manageable 17-14 score before the half.
It could be worse. The Saints are only down by 3 points despite a turnover differential of -3. If they can win the second half, they can win the game.
Pierre Thomas took a helmet-to-helmet hit early and suffered a game-ending concussion.
Click the picture to see more from today's game. Make the jump for full first half stats. This is the open thread for the second half.
Team Stats
| NO | SF | ||
| First Downs | 13 | 8 | |
| Total Yards | 203 | 156 | |
| Passing Yards | 182 | 108 | |
| Rushing Yards | 21 | 48 | |
| Penalties (Yds) | 0(0) | 2(28) | |
| Turnovers | 4 | 1 | |
| Punts (AVG) | 2(41) | 4(37) | |
| Time of Pos. | 17:47 | 12:09 |
Top Performers
| NEW ORLEANS SAINTS | ||||
| Passing | CP/AT | YDS | TD | INT |
| D. Brees | 23/33 | 193 | 2 | 2 |
| Rushing | CAR | YDS | TD | LG |
| C. Ivory | 4 | 8 | 0 | 4 |
| P. Thomas | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Receiving | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
| D. Sproles | 8 | 38 | 0 | 12 |
| M. Colston | 5 | 73 | 1 | 25T |
| J. Graham | 3 | 25 | 1 | 14T |
| SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS | ||||
| Passing | CP/AT | YDS | TD | INT |
| A. Smith | 12/21 | 130 | 2 | 0 |
| Rushing | CAR | YDS | TD | LG |
| F. Gore | 6 | 32 | 0 | 15 |
| K. Hunter | 2 | 16 | 0 | 11 |
| Receiving | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
| V. Davis | 4 | 82 | 1 | 49T |
| M. Crabtree | 2 | 13 | 1 | 9 |
| F. Gore | 2 | 8 | 0 | 9 |