San Francisco has won three of their last four games
SAN FRANCISCO
While the New York Jets look as though they’re coming apart at the seams, the San Francisco 49ers are getting it together for coach Mike Singletary.
Shaun Hill passed for 285 yards and two touchdowns against New York’s porous secondary, and the 49ers sent the AFC East-leading Jets to their second straight embarrassing loss, 24-14 Sunday.
Joe Nedney kicked a 32-yard tiebreaking field goal early in the fourth quarter and Bryant Johnson made a diving 3-yard TD catch with 6:05 left for the suddenly solid 49ers (5-8), who have won three of four.
San Francisco beat an AFC East team with a winning record for the second straight week, knocking the Jets (8-5) into a tie atop the division with the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots, who both won Sunday.
Frank Gore caught a short TD pass and rushed for 52 yards before injuring his left ankle early in the second half for the Niners, who improved to 3-3 under Singletary. The interim coach is making a compelling case for the permanent job, sparking a franchise still headed to its sixth straight non-winning season.
Meanwhile, anybody who judged the Jets solely on their trips to the Bay Area would have no idea how they’re still in first place.
Seven weeks after a humiliating overtime loss to the Oakland Raiders, New York struggled against Mike Martz’s offense and a San Francisco defense that has rarely stopped anybody this season, leaving coach Eric Mangini looking more than a bit furious at chilly Candlestick Park.
Brett Favre went 20-of-31 for 137 yards and ran for a score, but didn’t throw a TD pass. Thomas Jones rushed for 56 yards on just 10 carries, though he tied two franchise records with a 17-yard scoring run for his 12th rushing touchdown and 14th total TD this season.
Left tackle Joe Staley recovered a fumble in the end zone for the 49ers’ first touchdown, and Hill improved to 4-0 as a starter at home, going 28-of-39 while patiently picking at the weak seams in New York’s defense.
Favre showed no such patience, repeatedly overthrowing receivers and failing to get the Jets in a rhythm even with top San Francisco cornerback Nate Clements sidelined by a broken thumb.
The Jets’ 16-13 overtime loss to Raiders in mid-October was the lowest point of their season until last week’s 34-17 home loss to Denver, which snapped a five-game winning streak. But New York still has ample time for redemption with two home division games remaining, including a visit from the Dolphins in the finale.
San Francisco’s first scoring drive ended when receiver Jason Hill dropped a catch at the goal line in the first quarter. Jets linebacker Cody Spencer had the fumble in his hands but lost it, and Staley fell on it for the Niners’ first TD by a lineman since Kwame Harris recovered a fumble in October 2003.
Favre then led a long drive culminating in his 2-yard flop across the goal line for his first rushing TD since Oct. 29, 2006. San Francisco answered with a 14-play, 74-yard march that ended with Gore’s stroll across the goal line 46 seconds before halftime.
But Gore hurt his ankle when a pile of tacklers fell on him while he strained for the first-down marker on San Francisco’s second play of the second half. Gore left the field on a cart, though he returned to the sideline a few minutes later to cheer on his teammates.
Jones made his scoring run late in the third quarter, tying it and matching both Curtis Martin’s club record for rushing TDs and four players’ record for total touchdowns.
Hill’s apparent long scoring pass to Delanie Walker moments later was wiped out by a holding penalty on Staley, forcing San Francisco to settle for Nedney’s field goal – but Leon Washington’s ensuing kickoff return for a touchdown also was negated by a holding call on James Ihedigbo.
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Story by Greg Beacham, AP Sports Writer
