Although it wasn't a pretty win today I'm certainly going to enjoy the 49ers 17-9 victory over the Oakland Raiders for at least the rest of the evening. The 49ers have plenty of concerns that need to be addressed, but a win is a win is a win.
A lot of the talk is about the defenses solid effort in containing the Raiders. The Raiders started things off rather well on their first two drives, slashing through the 49ers defense to the tune of 164 yards on 25 plays over 14 minutes and 20 seconds of clock. At one point the Raiders were up in the TOP battle 14:20 to 4:02.
And then the wheels fell off for the Raiders. Over the rest of the game the Raiders ran 31 plays for a total of 61 yards, with 55 of those yards coming on one drive. The Raiders could not do anything on offense. The 49ers defense had a lot to say about that, but the Raiders had just as many problems getting in their own way and not taking advantage of the 49ers weaknesses on defense.
Jason Campbell
I watched today's game with a friend of mine who happens to be a knowledgeable Raiders fan. As I listened to him over the course of the game, it sounded exactly like I sometimes sound. And really this was a fitting matchup. Everybody makes a big deal about the Alex Smith-Aaron Rodgers matchups and comparisons, but the QB we really can compare with Alex Smith is Jason Campbell.
Campbell was the 25th pick of the 2005 draft and while his overall numbers are better than Smith, he's had a lot of similar issues. Watching him today, the number of passes that sailed on him or were otherwise off target reminded me of Smith. There are certainly some differences between the two, particularly in that the Redskins cut bait a lot quicker than the 49ers have been willing to do.
OC Hue Jackson
There was one thing that absolutely amazed me today. I don't think the Raiders ran a single screen pass against the 49ers. Even without McFadden, the Raiders have a solid receiving back in Michael Bush, and could have probably mixed in some tight end screens with Zach Miller. And yet the Raiders didn't run any such plays. The 49ers defense has shown they can struggle mightily against screen plays. I would have thought the Raiders did some scouting of the 49ers defense but their selection of plays would seem to indicate otherwise.
And speaking of Zach Miller, it amazes me that Jackson either didn't call more plays for Miller or Jason Campbell wasn't looking his way all that frequently. Of course, Manny Lawson showed that maybe it was just some really good coverage. That diving interception was an incredibly impressive athletic feat for a linebacker.