49ers Week 10 grades: Offense

SAN FRANCISCO — The 49ers tied the Rams 24-24. Here are the grades for the 49ers offense.

Offensive line: B. They gave up five sacks, but not all were their fault. In fact, four of the sacks were due to Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick holding on to the ball for too long. On the fifth sack, Anthony Davis got beat by Chris Long, who sacked Kaepernick as he was dropping back. The offensive line did much better run blocking, as usual. They paved the way for 183 rushing yards on 34 carries.

Running backs: A-. Frank Gore carried the ball 21 times for 97 yards and a touchdown. His best run was his 20-yard touchdown run to put the 49ers up 21-17 in the fourth quarter. He did fail to convert a third and two, but he’s not the greatest short-yardage running back. That’s why the 49ers signed Brandon Jacobs. Maybe Jacobs will get those carries in the playoffs. Kendall Hunter also rushed pretty well, gaining 15 yards on 3 carries, but he did not get out of bounds after an eight-yard reception at the end of regulation, and the 49ers had to kick a field goal.

Wide receivers: C. Michael Crabtree caught five passes for 70 yards and a touchdown. Greg Roman did a good job lining Crabtree up against the Rams other cornerbacks, not their stud, Cortland Finnegan. Manningham was a non-factor, as was Randy Moss. Kyle Williams caught two measly passes, but he should have caught a deep TD pass – he was wide open on a seam route and Kaepernick never saw him.

Tight ends: C. Delanie Walker dropped the one pass that came his way. Vernon Davis caught four passes for 30 yards, including a 17-yard reception from Kaepernick on third and 18. Davis is a big-play receiver who hasn’t had the opportunities to make big plays this season. But Kaepernick can get him the ball down the field. It will be interesting to see if Davis’ targets go up if Kaepernick has to play for a few games.

Stay tuned for my quarterbacks grade.

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