NFC Divisional: New Orleans Saints at San Francisco 49ers (Candlestick Park), with a Conference Championship spot at stake. Kickoff time: 4:35pm. Winner advances to the Conference Championship. The losing team's season is over.
The divisional round is where the bracket is supposed to take its real shape. New Orleans Saints traveling to San Francisco 49ers at Candlestick Park, with the league watching to see whether the better team or the better matchup wins. Bye-week home favorites carry the weight of expectation; the visiting wild-card winner walks in with no one expecting them and nothing to lose.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Candlestick Park shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
New Orleans Saints versus San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Divisional. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of New Orleans Saints-San Francisco 49ers cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New England Patriots | 13-3 | W8 |
| New York Jets | 8-8 | L3 |
| Buffalo Bills | 6-10 | L1 |
| Miami Dolphins | 6-10 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Baltimore Ravens | 12-4 | W2 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 12-4 | W2 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 9-7 | L1 |
| Cleveland Browns | 4-12 | L6 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Houston Texans | 10-6 | L3 |
| Tennessee Titans | 9-7 | W2 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 5-11 | W1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 2-14 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | 8-8 | L3 |
| Oakland Raiders | 8-8 | L1 |
| San Diego Chargers | 8-8 | W1 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 7-9 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 13-3 | W3 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 8-8 | -- |
| Seattle Seahawks | 7-9 | L2 |
| St. Louis Rams | 2-14 | L7 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New York Giants | 9-7 | W2 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 8-8 | L2 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 8-8 | W4 |
| Washington Redskins | 5-11 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | 15-1 | W2 |
| Detroit Lions | 10-6 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 8-8 | W1 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 3-13 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New Orleans Saints | 13-3 | W8 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 10-6 | W1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 6-10 | L1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4-12 | L10 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Orleans Saints | 0 | 14 | 0 | 18 | 014143232 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 14 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 1417203636 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 49ers | Vernon Davis 49 yard pass from Alex Smith ( David Akers kick) | 0-7 |
| 49ers | Michael Crabtree 4 yard pass from Alex Smith ( David Akers kick) | 0-14 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 49ers | David Akers 25 yard field goal | 0-17 |
| Saints | Jimmy Graham 14 yard pass from Drew Brees ( John Kasay kick) | 7-17 |
| Saints | Marques Colston 25 yard pass from Drew Brees ( John Kasay kick) | 14-17 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 49ers | David Akers 41 yard field goal | 14-20 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Saints | John Kasay 48 yard field goal | 17-20 |
| 49ers | David Akers 37 yard field goal | 17-23 |
| Saints | Darren Sproles 44 yard pass from Drew Brees ( John Kasay kick) | 24-23 |
| 49ers | Alex Smith 28 yard rush (run failed) | 24-29 |
| Saints | Jimmy Graham 66 yard pass from Drew Brees ( Darren Sproles pass from Drew Brees ) | 32-29 |
| 49ers | Vernon Davis 14 yard pass from Alex Smith ( David Akers kick) | 32-36 |
| Saints | 49ers | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 26 | 17 |
| Total Yards | 472 | 407 |
| Turnovers | 5 | 1 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 40/63 | 24/42 |
| Pass yards | 462 | 299 |
| Pass TD | 4 | 3 |
| Interceptions | 2 | 0 |
| Sacks taken | 3 | 4 |
| Sack yards lost | 27 | 35 |
| Net pass yards | 435 | 264 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 14 | 22 |
| Rush yards | 37 | 143 |
| Rush TD | 0 | 1 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 3 | 3 |
| Fumbles lost | 3 | 1 |
| Penalties | 0 | 3 |
| Penalty yards | 0 | 33 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | |||||
| Alex Smith | 24/42 | 299 | 3 | 0 | |
| NOR | |||||
| Drew Brees | 40/63 | 462 | 4 | 2 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Frank Gore | 13 | 89 | 0 | 42 |
| Alex Smith | 1 | 28 | 1 | 28 |
| Kendall Hunter | 6 | 23 | 0 | 11 |
| Ted Ginn Jr. | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Anthony Dixon | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NOR | ||||
| Chris Ivory | 9 | 23 | 0 | 7 |
| Pierre Thomas | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Drew Brees | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Darren Sproles | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Vernon Davis | 7 | 180 | 2 | 49 |
| Frank Gore | 7 | 38 | 0 | 11 |
| Michael Crabtree | 4 | 25 | 1 | 9 |
| Bruce Miller | 1 | 16 | 0 | 16 |
| Kendall Hunter | 1 | 13 | 0 | 13 |
| Kyle Williams | 2 | 12 | 0 | 6 |
| Ted Ginn Jr. | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| Justin Peelle | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| NOR | ||||
| Marques Colston | 9 | 136 | 1 | 31 |
| Darren Sproles | 15 | 118 | 1 | 44 |
| Jimmy Graham | 5 | 103 | 2 | 66 |
| Devery Henderson | 4 | 49 | 0 | 19 |
| Robert Meachem | 3 | 19 | 0 | 8 |
| Adrian Arrington | 1 | 14 | 0 | 14 |
| Michael Higgins | 1 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Jed Collins | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| Pierre Thomas | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
San Francisco 49ers defeated New Orleans Saints 36-32 at Candlestick Park in the NFC Divisional. The final scoring play was 49ers: Vernon Davis 14 yard pass from Alex Smith ( David Akers kick). Top line of the day: Drew Brees: 462 pass yards on 40-of-63, 4 TD, 2 INT. San Francisco 49ers move on to the conference final.
San Francisco 49ers walked out of Candlestick Park as the team that survived an NFC Divisional New Orleans Saints will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 36-32. A one-score game throughout. The decisive points came on the fewest possible margin, which is how these matchups usually resolve. The final scoring play came from 49ers: Vernon Davis 14 yard pass from Alex Smith ( David Akers kick). Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. San Francisco 49ers move on to a conference championship.
San Francisco 49ers 36, New Orleans Saints 32. Round: NFC Divisional. Attendance: 69732. Q1: 2 scoring plays. Q2: 3 scoring plays. Q3: 1 scoring play. Q4: 6 scoring plays. Top performers: - Drew Brees: 462 pass yards on 40-of-63, 4 TD, 2 INT - Frank Gore: 89 rush yards on 13 carries - Vernon Davis: 7 catches for 180 yards
NFC Divisional, played at Candlestick Park. Final: New Orleans Saints 32, San Francisco 49ers 36, with San Francisco 49ers taking the result by 4. **First quarter**
- 49ers: Vernon Davis 49 yard pass from Alex Smith ( David Akers kick) - 49ers: Michael Crabtree 4 yard pass from Alex Smith ( David Akers kick)
**Second quarter**
- 49ers: David Akers 25 yard field goal - Saints: Jimmy Graham 14 yard pass from Drew Brees ( John Kasay kick) - Saints: Marques Colston 25 yard pass from Drew Brees ( John Kasay kick)
**Third quarter**
- 49ers: David Akers 41 yard field goal
**Fourth quarter**
- Saints: John Kasay 48 yard field goal - 49ers: David Akers 37 yard field goal - Saints: Darren Sproles 44 yard pass from Drew Brees ( John Kasay kick) - 49ers: Alex Smith 28 yard rush (run failed) - Saints: Jimmy Graham 66 yard pass from Drew Brees ( Darren Sproles pass from Drew Brees ) - 49ers: Vernon Davis 14 yard pass from Alex Smith ( David Akers kick)
**Top performers**
- Drew Brees: 462 pass yards on 40-of-63, 4 TD, 2 INT - Frank Gore: 89 rush yards on 13 carries - Vernon Davis: 7 catches for 180 yards