MNF glog

Based on the statistics, I'm assuming this match up between the Arizona Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers is not going to be close. With Arizona sitting comfortably at the top spot in the NFC West, having home field advantage and with the 49ers having 5 straight losses, most people would agree with me.

Game starts and SF has won the coin toss. They choose to receive the ball. Allen Rossum gets a hold of the ball in SF's own end zone. Wow. So far I'm wrong in saying SF will get beat. Rossum runs for 104 yards for a touchdown, and the kick by Joe Nedney was good. 7-0, 49ers. It sounds like I may have been wrong. There's still almost 60 minutes left of football though, so we'll have to see.

Cardinals get the ball back on their own 25. Now let's watch some magic unfold. Quarterback Kurt Warner's first pass to Steve Breaston is good for 22 yards. Now this is a game. I can feel a touchdown on its way.

A few plays later, the Cardinals make their way to SF's 10 yard line. They definitely have a good chance of scoring. 2nd and 3 at the 11 yard line. 3rd and 2 and the 10, and now it's 4th and 2, no gain. Will they go for it or kick the field goal? Safest bet for now would be the field goal, just so they can at least get on the board. The clock is at 9:50, so of course still a lot of football to play. They're going for the field goal. Good choice. Kicker Neil Rackers will come out for the attempt -- 28 yards and it's good. 7-3 49ers. Oh look and there's a penalty. Unnecessary roughness on 49ers linebacker Jeff Ulbrich.

So now a lot of time has gone by - almost 5 minutes actually - and SF has failed to reach the Cardinals side of the field. Here comes the punt. The Cardinals have their next chance for redemption and to take the lead. Looks like a failed attempt also. They couldn't get the ball further than their own 37 yard line.

The rest of the 1st quarter would look like that, closing with a boring score of 7-3.

Now begins the 2nd quarter and the 49ers have the ball in Arizona territory. Quarterback Shaun Hill passes deep to Josh Morgan for a 31 yard touchdown -- then the kick is good. That puts them up 14-3 in the first minute of the quarter -- once again.

In an attempt to keep the score of the game within single digits, Warner is going to do what he can to keep the score that way. He goes long to Steve Breaston for 46 yards and places the ball at SF's 14 yard line. Can they score on this drive? Nope, we're going to 2nd and 9. Short pass to Anquan Boldin. Touchdown. The Cardinals are inching their way closer. 14-10 with 11:56 until halftime.

49ers get the ball back. Nothing interesting happens and now the Cardinals have the ball back. Here's another opportunity.

They get the ball back with 10:13 to go. Several plays later they make their way to the goal line. A timeout is called by Arizona just after getting the first down with about 6 minutes to go. The timeout must've been good for them because they managed to make their way past the 20 yard line and giving them field goal range. They don't want to risk losing the ball so they're going to settle for the field goal again. It's good and now they're within 1 point of the 49ers, 14-13.

A little over 4 minutes to go in the 2nd and it looks like the 49ers might have one more chance to extend the lead before halftime. Can they do it though is what any skeptical football fan would be thinking at this point. Strangely enough with 36 seconds to go, Hill's pass to Vernon Davis is good. That's about all for the 2nd quarter. They enter halftime with a score of 21-13.

It's halftime and now the Cardinals need to figure out a way to outplay the 49ers in the second half. From what I've been able to notice from the game, the 49ers O-line has done a great job defending the quarterback. He's been able to scout the field for an open player with plenty of time that the line has given him. Although there were a couple plays where nothing came out, the big plays, especially the opening drive touchdown, have given the 49ers a bigger edge in this game. Can they continue to surprise me? I kind of hope so. I love seeing the underdog come out and shock football fans watching the game.

And the second half begins, and Arizona has the ball. Wow. Nedney's kick goes to the Arizona 1 yard line. Can they pull off a great run? Here comes Breaston pushing through to their 39 yard line. They make their way to the 49ers 14 for the 1st and 10. Here comes a big chance to score. They get down to 3rd and 1 at the 5 yard line. No added yards. 4th and 1. Will they go for it or take the field goal? They've settled for field goals earlier, but it's getting later in the game now. Looks like they're going for it. Warner passes to Larry Fitzgerald and he makes his way into the end zone for a touchdown. The score goes within one point again at 21-20, but there's still over 11 minutes left in the quarter. Anything could happen.

49ers have the ball back at their 43 yard line. Great place to start. They make their way into Arizona territory, but when it gets to be 4th and 1 at the 24 yard line, they decide to settle for a field goal. Score goes up 24-20.

Ball goes back to Arizona. Under 7 minutes left in the quarter. They have a chance to take the lead with a touchdown, but we'll have to wait and see. Slowly, but surely, the Cardinals have made their way to the 49ers 36 yard line, but failed to put any points on the board. Ball goes back to the 49ers.

A minute and a half to go, Hill attempts a pass and it's intercepted and taken in for a 30 yard touchdown. But wait, there's a flag. Offsides on the defense and the touchdown is nullified. Adrian Wilson can be blamed for that.

That's all for the 3rd. The 49ers have a 4 point lead, but anything can chance in the last 15 minutes.

Arizona has the ball and they have made their way within 7 yards of the goal line. Penalties are flying. First on SF, then next on Arizona for a false start. It gets to be 4th and 5 and the 5 yard line. The field goal will have to settle for now. The score now sits at 24-23.

Both sides have gained control of the ball through the next two plays, but nothing happens. There are 6:11 minutes left on the clock when the next big play happens. Once again, Hill's pass is intercepted by Wilson - again - and he runs in for a 21 yard touchdown. Interestingly enough, a penalty on the defense being offsides is thrown out again. Touchdown nullified. This is becoming all too familiar.

The 49ers fail to score, and now the Cardinals may have one last shot to take over the game. And they do. With 4:21 left on the clock, Warner passes to Boldin for a touchdown. They now have a 5 point lead so they're going to go for the 2 point conversion for a 7 point lead. It's a failed attempt so there is still time for the 49ers to come back.

Nothing happens and Arizona gets the ball back with 2:24 to go. Nothing happens then either.

A little more than one minute to go. Last chance for the 49ers. They make their way down the field. 3 seconds left and it's 2nd and 1 at the one yard line. Absolutely the last chance for the 49ers to take a one point lead and win the game. The pass is no good.

Final score, 24-29 with the Arizona Cardinals extending their lead in the NFC West. The San Francisco 49ers have now been slapped with a sixth consecutive loss. What a disappointment.