Check here throughout the evening for all your 49ers-Cardinals needs on this Monday night in the desert.
* * *
Inactives don’t have to be announced for a while, but the early word is that Jonas Jennings and Dominique Zeigler will be in uniform, but Ahmad Brooks will not. Jennings is not expected to start, as Adam Snyder will likely get the call at right tackle.
* * *
INACTIVES
49ers: Jamie Martin (third QB), CB Reggie Smith, S Dashon Goldson, LB Ahmad Brooks, C Cody Wallace, T Barry Sims, TE Sean Ryan and WR Arnaz Battle.
Cardinals: Brian St. Pierre (third QB), CB Eric Green, T Elliot Vallejo, T Brandon Keith, DT Alan Branch, WR Early Doucet, TE Jerame Tuman and TE Ben Patrick.
* * *
The lovely and talented Jordin Sparks, a resident of Glendale, Ariz., just belted out the national anthem.
* * *
There’s a rumor going around that Chilo Rachal is going to see some action in tonight’s game. It should be interesting to watch how No. 62 fares if he gets into the action.
* * *
Sorry to say that I will not be blogging with quite the fervor that I have in previous games. While this game is in progress, I’ll have to write my stuff for tomorrow’s paper.
* * *
Suggested drinking game for tonight: Take a sip of chocolate milk every time you hear the word “pants.”
* * *
For the coin toss, Michael Robinson calls heads. It is heads. The 49ers want the football.
* * *
FIRST QUARTER
–How ’bout that? Allen Rossum with a 104-yard return for a touchdown. It’s 49ERS 7, CARDINALS 0 with 14:48 remaining. Michael Robinson picked off two guys on the play. That’s a nice way for the 49ers to open.
–That’s “Execute” and “Create Good Field Position” — Nos. 2 and 4 on the “49ers Formula for Success.”
–The Cardinals take over at the 25. Looks like Clements is matching up against Fitzgerald, and Harris is on Boldin. But Michael Lewis was on Steve Breaston, who caught a 22-yard pass on first down.
–On the Cards’ first drive, they’re moving the ball. The 49ers are going to have to score some points tonight.
–The 49ers’ defense will make the Cards settle for a 28-yard FG attempt. It’s good. 49ERS 7, CARDINALS 3 with 9:46 remaining in the quarter.
–So much for Josh Morgan starting. It’s Bryant Johnson who lines up as split end when the 49ers take the field with the first unit. Gore gains 8. On second down, Morgan replaces Johnson.
–Michael Robinson makes a beautiful move on Adrian Wilson on a third-and-1 to gain 5 yards and a first down. He looked like a running back on that play.
–Shaun Hill comes up short on a third-and-6 completion to Johnson. Andy Lee is on to punt.
–After Lee’s punt Breaston returns it to the Arizona 30 with 5:02 left in the quarter.
–Three-and-out for the 49ers’ defense.
–Rossum is back to return the punt. Dirk Johnson with a horrible punt for 23 yards. The Niners will take over at their own 40.
–Singletary loses a challenge on a third-down pass to Jason Hill. Personally, I thought it was a catch, but ref Tony Corrente said Hill lost control of the ball out of bounds before he hit the ground. Hmmmm.
–Cardinals take over at the 20 after Lee’s punt lands in the end zone.
–Another three-and-out, and you can sense the growing frustration — anxiety — in the crowd here.
–Clements takes the handoff from Rossum on the punt return. They have ball at their own 45.
–Chilo Rachal is on the field for the first time. He takes over for Tony Wragge at right guard.
–Rachal pays immediate dividends with a great block on Karlos Dansby that allows Gore to gain 25 yards on the final play of the first quarter. The 49ers have the ball at the Arizona 35.
SECOND QUARTER
–What a beautiful throw from Shaun Hill and what a beautiful juggling catch from Josh Morgan to beat Hood for for a 31-yard scoring play. Now, it’s 49ERS 14, CARDINALS 3 with 14:13 remaining.
–Who said the 49ers might lack quickstrike capabilities with Hill at QB? )Oh, yeah, that was me.) Let’s see if they can keep up this kind of play.
–That didn’t take long. The Cardinals come right back down on score on Kurt Warner’s arm. Anquan Boldin with the 13-yard TD reception. It’s 49ERS 14, CARDINALS 10 with 11:48 remaining in the half. Boldin has a TD in six consecutive games.
–Wragge is back in the game, replacing Rachal. First two plays get not much.
–It’s third and 9 from the 21. Completion to Gore is short of the first down. Niners will punt it away.
–Cardinals with the ball near midfield. They’ll have a third-and-3 after the timeout. Breaston has six catches for 106 yards for Arizona.
–Nate Clements strips the ball from Hightower and the 49ers recover. However, it looks as if Hightower was down. Ken Whisenhunt challenges the call
–Yep, the play was overturned. Arizona holds onto the ball.
–Rackers with a 33-yard FG. That makes it 49ERS 14, CARDINALS 13 with 4:41 left in the half.
–You absolutely have to love Shaun Hill. On a third-and-11, he took off on a QB draw. His helmet got knocked off when he lowered his head to take on Dansby, but he continued to fight through Gerald Hayes for 12 yards and a first down.
That is a play for which Shaun Hill will always be remembered. That clip will live on for a long, long, long time.
–It’s third and 10 from the Cardinals’ 18. Big play here.
–That’s one heckuva Hill-to-Davis touchdown. Davis made a nice play to take it away from Adrian Wilson.
–Uh-oh, Davis is called for unsportsmanlike conduct for taking off his helmet. All eyes are on Singletary on the sideline. He and Singletary embrace on the sideline. It’s 49ERS 21, CARDINALS 13 with :29 left in the half.
–The 49ers kick off from the 15. The Cardinals botch it, and it goes out of bounds. Arizona takes over at the 8-yard line, and Vernon Davis is completely off the hook now.
–That’s the end of the half. And what a half it was for the 49ers. The Cardinals and serenaded by boos as they leave the field.
–I’m reminded of Mike Singletary’s No. 5 on the 49ers’ formula for success: Finish.
Can they finish?
Please keep the dialogue going. I’m going to have to break away from the blogging to write some articles about what’s going on out there.
THIRD QUARTER
–Fitzgerald caught two passes for 9 yards in the first half, but he had four catches on the first drive of the second half. His 5-yard TD grab on a fourth-down play pulls the Cardinals to within one point. It’s 49ERS 21, CARDINALS 20 with 11:37 remaining in the quarter.
–Game on.
–Niners are driving. They’re at the 33. Delanie Walker just went off the field with a right arm injury.
–Deep ball to Davis. It was only slightly overthrown, but Davis didn’t even try for it. He should’ve left his feet to go get it. It could’ve easily been a TD. That was inexcusable. He might have misjudged it. I have no idea.
–It’s third and 1 from the 24. Gore is stopped short.
–Nedney on for a 41-yard FG attempt. It’s good. It’s 49ERS 24, CARDINALS 20 with 7:02 left in the quarter.
–By the way, it should be noted that Martz is calling a great game. He might have disagreed with Singletary’s decision to kick the field goal, but it looked as if they quickly discussed their differences and are moving on. Martz gave Singletary a pat on the back.
–Cardinals take over at the 18 after the kickoff.
–Shaun Hill with a J.T. moment, throwing an interception that’s returned for an apparent TD by Antrel Rolle. However, it’s coming back. Adrian Wilson was lined up offside on the play. The 49ers remain in possession. Take the points off the board.
–Wilson makes amends by getting penetration up the middle to cause a fumble of Shaun Hill, who bumps into guard David Baas. The Cardinals recover and take over at the 49ers’ 10. And that’s where we’ll resume this game in the fourth quarter.
FOURTH QUARTER
–The 49ers’ defense did an outstanding job to hold the Cardinals to a field goal. It’s 49ERS 24, CARDINALS 23 with 14:33 remaining.
–This is when Hill and Gore have to team up to put together a long, time-consuming drive to keep the Cardinals’ offense off the field.
–Gore drops a third-down pass.
–Andy Lee booms a 52-yard punt. Breaston calls for a fair catch. The Cardinals take over at their own 9, down by one point
–From my angle in the corner of the end zone, I’m getting a great look at some of Warner’s throws. He is incredible. He just hit Boldin for a pass to midfield. That guy is darn good.
–Great play by Clements to break up third-down pass to Fitzgerald. Nice pressure by Smith on the play. Niners will take over at the 14 with 7:30 remaining in the game.
–Hill gets picked off by Dansby and returned to the 49ers’ 5. The pressure is back on the 49ers’ defense.
–Two plays later, Boldin catches a WR screen and gets into the end zone from 4-yard out. That makes it CARDINALS 29, 49ERS 24 with 4:16 remaining. And the Cardinals will go for two points. But the 49ers first call a timeout to get regrouped on defense.
–After false start penalty, the Cardinals will try from the 7-yard line . . . Mark Roman breaks up the pass for Fitzgerald in the end zone.
–And now the 49ers, down by five points, have to get it in the end zone to win this game. They’ll have a little over four minutes to do it.
–Rossum with 35-yard return to the 38. There;s 4:08 left.
–Off Morgan’s hands down the middle.
–On second down, pass interference on Rodgers-Cromartie vs. Johnson. Now, they’re saying the pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage. That brings up third and 10. But before the snap, Singletary throws the flag, saying that the pass was not tipped.
–Corrente said they were going to pick up the flag for pass interference, so the 49ers are not allowed to challenge that play.
–It’s back to third and 10 . . . Morgan is a yard short on the pass. But Dansby is callled for unnecessary roughness. That’s 15 yards and a first down. Wow.
–Pass to Bruce for 2 yards to the Cardinals’ 36.
–Hill is using the hard count very effectively to get the Cardinals to jump. That was against Travis LaBoy. It’s second and 3.
–Umpire Steve Wilson got in the way of a pass to Gore. It’s incomplete. Now it’s third-and-3. This is four-down territory.
–What a catch by Jason Hill on the sideline for a first down with a finger-tip catch.
–David Baas with holding. It’s first and 20 from the 35. Hill did not throw quickly enough for Jason Hill. It’s incomplete.
–Now, it’s second and 20 with 3:15 remaining . . . Dominique Zeigler is on the field. False start on Wragge. Now it’s second and 25.
–Ziggy with a huge reception for 23 yards.
–Hill, trying to make something happen, tries a shovel pass to Gore. But it’s intercepted by Wilson. That’s a heart-breaker. The Cardinals take over at the 11 with 2:24 left. The 49ers have one timeout and the two-minute warning to stop the clock.
–The Cardinals have a third-and-2 play awaiting them after the two-minute warning. Niners need a stop here to have any chance.
–Great penetration to stop Hightower for a 2-yard loss. The 49ers will get the ball back around midfield with a little more than one minute remaining and no timeouts.
–Rossum returns it to the Cardinals’ 42 with 1:06. Plenty of time left for the 49ers.
–Zeigler, Bruce, Hill, Johnson and Gore are on the field. Jason Hill comes all the way across the field to get out of bounds after an 11-yard gain.
–Gore is injured on the play. Robinson is on the field. Hill to Hill for 14 yards to the 15.
–Jason Hill again. He’s down to the 1-yard line.
–There’s a lot of confusion. Hill spikes the ball with :20 remaining. It’s second down.
–Rachal is on the field as an eligible receiver. The 49ers line up in the I-formation. Gore is behind Robinson. The Cardinals call a timeout before the play.
–Man, this is exciting.
–Gore is down at the 1. The 49ers scramble to get to the line of scrimmage to spike the ball. Hill spikes the ball with :02 remaining. The 49ers will have one more chance.
–Now, the previous play is under review. Was Gore touched down? The replay shows that Okeafor touched Gore in the back. Gore wasn’t quite able to stay on his feet. Corrente is watching the play.
–Michael Robinson is stopped up the middle on the final play of the game.
–It’s over.
CARDINALS 29, 49ERS 24
That call will be second-guessed, as Robinson got the call from the 2 1/2-yard line.
What a great effort by the 49ers, but they were unable to finish the job.
