San Francisco’s return to the postseason could not have been more dramatic and exciting, as they defeated the New Orleans Saints 36-32 to advance to the NFC Championship game for the first time since 1997.

On New Orleans’ first drive of the game it seemed business as usual for the Saints. The offense marched 78 yards downfield, helped by a 23-yard pass interference call on SS Donte Whitner, and had a 3^rd and 6 at San Francisco’s 7-yard line. QB Drew Brees passed to RB Pierre Thomas, when Donte Whitner administered a hard hit to cause a fumble, which was recovered by RILB Patrick Willis. The Niners could not capitalize on this turnover and had to punt eventually.

San Francisco was more successful on their next drive. Starting at their own 46-yard line, it took the Niners two plays and a 49-yard pass to TE Vernon Davis to score the first touchdown of the game.

FS Dashon Goldson intercepted Drew Brees on New Orleans’ following drive and carried the ball to their 4-yard line. After two incompletions QB Alex Smith found WR Michael Crabtree for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

S Madieu Williams tackled WR Courtney Roby on the ensuing kick-off and LB Blake Costanzo recovered the fumble at New Orleans’ 13-yard line. The Saints’ red zone defense made a successful stand and the 49ers had to settle for a 25-yard field goal from David Akers at the start of the second quarter.

New Orleans needed to respond and they needed to do it fast. The Saints were in 49ers territory after a 20-yard catch from WR Marques Colston. 6 plays later Drew Brees found TE Jimmy Graham for a 14-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 10.

The Saints got the ball back after a 49ers three-and-out and scored again. Starting at their own 39-yard line, it took Drew Brees 7 plays to find Marques Colston for a 25-yard touchdown and a score of 17-14.

The Saints couldn’t make it three scores in a row. Instead, CB Tarell Brown intercepted Drew Brees for the MVP-candidate’s second pick of the game.

The final two minutes of the first half saw three changes of possession but no more scores. Alex Smith lost a fumble after a sack from LB Martez Wilson but it didn’t leave the Saints with enough time to score before half time.

Although the Niners had to punt on the opening possession of the second half they basically kept the drive alive. Punter Andy Lee kicked the ball 57 yards and Blake Costanzo forced a fumble, with S Colin Jones recovering the loose ball at New Orleans’ 27-yard line. The Niners could only gain 3 yards and had to settle for a 41-yard field goal from David Akers to extend the lead to 20-14.

It was the only score in the third quarter but the final quarter of the game may have produced one of the greatest shows on grass ever.

The Saints started their drive at their own 34-yard line but it came to a halt at San Francisco’s 29-yard line. John Kasey made the field goal from 48 yards to cut the lead to 20-17.

The 49ers got the ball back after an exchange of threes-and out. The Niners were at New Orleans’ 22-yard line after a magnificent 42-yard run from RB Frank Gore. San Francisco entered the red zone on the next play but this was as far as they got. David Akers' 37-yard field goal made it 23-17 for the Niners.

The New Orleans Saints earned their first lead of the game on the next drive, when Drew Brees connected on a touchdown pass of 44 yards with RB Darren Sproles.

The Niners had a little over 4 minutes left to strike back. Vernon Davis caught a pass for 37 yards to New Orleans’ 30-yard line. San Francisco gained two more yards before Alex Smith took matters in his own hand and rushed for a 28-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion failed but the 49ers were back on top 29-24.

Drew Brees had 2:07 minutes left, but only needed 30 seconds to find Jimmy Graham for a 66-yard touchdown. The Saints successfully went for two points and took a 32-29 lead.

There were 1:32 minutes on the clock when San Francisco’s offense re-entered the field. Vernon Davis made another big play for 47 yards to get the Niners into field goal position. Moments later San Francisco had a 3^rd and 4 on New Orleans’ 14-yard line. Do you remember “The Catch” between Joe Montana and Dwight Clark from 30 years ago? If you watched yesterday’s game you witnessed “The Grab”. With 14 seconds to go Alex Smith found Vernon Davis who caught the pass on the edge of the end zone and fell backwards for the game-winning touchdown. The 49ers secured a 36-32 win over the favored New Orleans Saints.

Game Tidbits

Alex Smith completed 24 of 42 passes for 299 yards, 3 touchdowns and a passer rating of 103.2.

Vernon Davis caught 7 passes for 180 yards and 2 touchdowns. His 180 yards are an NFL record for a tight end in a single postseason game.

San Francisco converted only 27% of third downs.

The 49ers were outsacked 4-3.

The Niners allowed Drew Brees to pass for 462 yards.

San Francisco allowed Marques Colston (136), Darren Sproles 116) and Jimmy Graham (103) 100+ receiving yards.

The 49ers held the Saints to 37 yards on the ground.

The Niners won the turnover battle 5-1.

San Francisco became the first team in NFL history to score two lead-changing touchdowns in the final three minutes of the 4^th quarter in a postseason game.

If you were watching Sunday’s 48-3 rout of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers you probably expected big performances from the usual suspects. RB Frank Gore ran for 125 yards and 1 touchdown, TE Vernon Davis caught 2 touchdown passes, RILB Patrick Willis had 12 tackles and a fumble recovery and DE Justin Smith recorded 1 sack. But the Niners got contributions from a number of players, especially their rookies.         

San Francisco’s first-round draft pick OLB Aldon Smith isn’t a starter yet but it only seems to be a matter of time for this to happen. He had 2 second-half sacks against Tampa Bay, which gives him 3.5 sacks in his last two games. He leads the team with 4 sacks. It’s early in the season but I have already seen his name appear in Defensive Rookie of the Year discussions.

QB Colin Kaepernick was drafted in the second round and came late into the game for one drive in the fourth quarter. He lead the offense 90 yards downfield for a 1-yard rushing touchdown from Anthony Dixon and completed each of his 3 pass attempts for a total of 35 yards and a passer rating of 115.3.

CB Chris Culliver, San Francisco’s third-rounder, was only one of three healthy cornerbacks on Sunday, when Tramaine Brock (hand) was ruled out and Shawntae Spencer’s status was questionable due to a toe injury. Culliver had to play a bigger role and he did just that. His first career interception, which he returned for 23 yards, set up Frank Gore’s touchdown for a 21-3 lead.

The 49ers chose RB Kendall Hunter in the fourth round of this year’s draft but nobody could possibly have anticipated back then that he is getting a considerable amount of carries in his first year. On Sunday Hunter ran for 65 yards on 9 carries and helped setting up Anthony Dixon’s touchdown late in the fourth quarter. In 5 games Kendall Hunter has rushed for 133 yards, an average of 4.6 yards per carry, and 1 touchdown.

DB Colin Jones was taken in the sixth round. He was promoted to the 53-man roster last week when the 49ers had to place DE Will Tukuafu on IR. San Francisco is deep at the safety positions but he is part of one of the best special teams units in the NFL.

The only rookie who started on Sunday was seventh-round pick FB Bruce Miller, who replaced the injured Moran Norris. Miller doesn’t have the statistics to show for but Frank Gore will be the first to admit that Miller’s blocking helped him to run for over 100 yards in each of his last two games.

A while ago I predicted that San Francisco’s future looks bright. It seems like the future is already here.

The San Francisco 49ers updated their depth chart and there have been quite a few changes.  

WR Michael Crabtree’s foot injury seems to have healed completely and he reclaims a starting spot next to Josh Morgan. Crabtree is still without a touchdown this season but he caught 5 passes for 68 yards in Sunday’s win over the Philadelphia Eagles. Josh Morgan had 3 receptions for 65 yards and 1 touchdown.

It should become very interesting when Braylon Edwards returns from his knee injury, which will likely be after the bye in week 7. There will be a lot of competition and there is no guarantee that he will move past Michael Crabtree or Josh Morgan on the depth chart. It shows that the Niners have considerable depth at wide receiver.

Adam Snyder replaced Chilo Rachal as the starting right guard on the offensive line. Snyder did an outstanding job against Philadelphia’s DE Jason Babin and wasn’t responsible for any of the 3 sacks.

FB Moran Norris is still ahead of Bruce Miller on the depth chart. Norris suffers from a fibula injury and won’t return to the lineup until after the bye week. Miller’s blocking improved against Philadelphia but it appears that the Niners have more faith in Norris for now.

There were no changes on defense other than Colin Jones is now listed as the third free safety. Jones was promoted to the 53-man roster when the 49ers placed DE Will Tukuafu on IR. Colin Jones is expected to see action on special teams.

The San Francisco 49ers trimmed their roster to the required 53 men. Most moves were expected but some were surprising. In a conference call with the media head coach Jim Harbaugh gives his view on it.

Harbaugh on quarterback situation

By releasing Josh McCown and McLeod Bethel-Thompson the 49ers currently have two quarterbacks on their roster. “We feel confident in Colin [Kaepernick],” Harbaugh said, but it doesn’t preclude the franchise from doing anything that helps the football team, including going after a young quarterback. Asked whether there will be a third quarterback before the regular season starts, Harbaugh replied that he anticipates that there will be one in the building, practice squad or other. The head coach didn’t explain why he cut Josh McCown, but said it’s possible that he’s available if the 49ers need a third quarterback.

Harbaugh on backup running back situation

“I think that’s an ongoing decision, who’s playing better. And there will be a rotation. All three of those backs will play. Right now, Kendall Hunter is ahead on the depth chart.”

Harbaugh on tight ends

It is a possibility to add a third tight end but Jim Harbaugh also acknowledged that Bruce Miller can do some of the things a third tight end can do. “Yes, he can, as well as play on special teams. He’s definitely going to be a swing guy in that regard.”

Harbaugh on keeping seven defensive linemen

“Demarcus Dobbs and Ian Williams, we felt, earned a spot. We feel they have a good upside. That’s a tough position to find in the National Football League, those big bodies. We were pleased.”

Harbaugh on special teams

Jim Harbaugh expects C.J. Spillman, Blake Costanzo and Colin Jones to be on all special teams units. “In the National Football League, you have to win two of three phases to win a game. We want to be strong on special teams. And that’s a sign that we want to be strong on special team.”