This is the live blog for preseason game No. 1.
I’ll be updating this with comments as the game goes on and I invite you to do the same.
12:24 Left in the first quarter: It was good to see Ahmad brooks beat the right tackle and put pressure on Brees. He’s been doing just that in practice when he plays. It was bad to see Joe Staley get beaten. It was also bad to see Alex Smith under throw the first pass of the game.
2nd timeout, first quarter: The Niners’ offensive line is going to get Alex Smith killed. The shot he took from Roman Harper made his neck snap. I asked Mike Solari for a one-on-one interview and he declined. Maybe this is why.
3rd timeout, first quarter. Praise the defense. Whitner made a diving, textbook pass deflection, and Justin Smith looks unblockable. Defense ahead of offense.
4th timeout, first quarter: Passing game is in shambles. They can’t block. Anthony Davis false started and still got beat by Will Smith. Alex Smith can’t show if he’s any good. Hasn’t completed a pass. Didn’t expect perfection, but never expected this chaos.
End of the first quarter: Alex Smith finally completed a pass – a strike to Braylon Edwards on a quick slant for 12 yards. The offense was horrible, but it wasn’t Smith’s fault. The Offensive line got abused.
14:03 left in the 2nd quarter: Special teams allows Joe Morgan to return a punt for a touchdown. At least the defense has looked decent so far.
First timeout, 2nd quarter: Anthony Dixon has not played well so far, in camp or in this game. He’s not getting upfield.
2nd timeout, 2nd quarter: Kendall with the play of the night so far, a sweep off the left tackle for a first down. He looks better than Dixon.
10:00 left in the 2nd quarter: Kaepernick throws a bullet to Lance Long over the middle. Beautiful throw.
8:32 left in the 2nd quarter: Adam Snyder gets pushed back like he has all training camp, and Kaepernick fumbles. Next play, Chilo Rachal gets beaten and Kaepernick gets sacked. The offensive line looks like the team’s biggest weakness right now.
5:15 left in the 2nd quarter: Ahmad Brooks and Aldon Smith are getting into the backfield frequently. It looks like Fangio is going to blitz the linebackers a lot. He said he wants to blitz Willis and Bowman, too.
5:12 left in the 2nd quarter: Kaepernick delay of game. Harbaugh visibly angry on the sideline. Kaepernick has struggled to call the plays on time all game.
1:06 left in the 2nd quarter: C.J. Spillman whiffs on Mark Ingram, who scores a touchdown. Spillman allowed two completions on the drive as well. Not a good series for Spillman.
44 seconds left in the half: Kaepernick breaks a tackle and scrambles for 28 yards. He’s stronger and tougher to take down than I expected.
First timeout, third quarter. Phillip Adams made a nice play to break up a Chase Daniel pass. Adams has gotten beat a lot in practice, but that was terrific.
10:20 left in the third quarter: Colin Kaepernick just faked a hand off to nobody and got his pass knocked down.
8:30 left in the third quarter. Kyle Williams catches a short slant from Kaepernick, breaks a few tackles and picks up a first down. He’s what the Niners wish Ginn could be.
Timeout late third quarter: Key difference between Harbaugh and Singletary. Harbaugh listens and talks into the headset. Singletary rarely did that.
23 seconds left in the third quarter: Kaepernick is still playing quarterback. He’s gotten a ton of work today, which is the biggest positive so far for the 49ers.
12:16 left in the 4th quarter. Kaepernick under throws another ball down field and this time he gets picked off. His quarterback rating on the night is 35.4.
8:29 left in the 4th quarter: Chris Taylor runs right through the 49ers third-string defense and scores a touchdown. 24-3 Saints. The Niners third-string defense looks tired and ineffective.
5:00 left in the fourth quarter. Kaepernick throws his second interception of the night a few plays after mishandling a low snap. His quarterback rating is down to 27.6, and his performance has been definitely worse than Alex Smith’s.
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