The 49ers (2-0) host the Atlanta Falcons (2-1) at 3Com Park for a 1:00 PT kickoff in the first NFC West game of the year. Chris Chandler is the Falcons' starter under Dan Reeves; Jamal Anderson is the back. Terance Mathis and Tony Martin are the receivers.
The 49ers come off the Week 3 bye and the 45-10 road blowout at Washington. Steve Young is the starter; Garrison Hearst is the lead back. Jerry Rice is in his third regular-season game since the ACL.[1][2]
Dan Reeves brings the Falcons to 3Com after his Atlanta debut produced two wins in three games. Chris Chandler is the quarterback Reeves traded for in March. Jamal Anderson is the back; the Falcons' offense already looks like the kind of unit Reeves built in the Denver years.
The 49ers' Sunday issue is whether the bye-week rest reset Young's mobility. The first two weeks asked the 49ers' starter to make more dropbacks than any opener in his career; the bye is the staff's chance to rebuild the legs.
Week 4 has the schedule's first significant NFC West home game plus a slate where the league's tiers are taking shape. The Vikings are 2-0; the Broncos 3-0; the Falcons 2-1; the 49ers 2-0. The AFC East has the Jets at 1-2 in Bill Parcells' second year. The Sunday-night game is Dallas at Denver. Inside the division the Falcons are the immediate test; Atlanta's offense produced 70 points combined across the first two wins.
Through two games the 49ers sit at 2-0 with a plus 41 point differential. Young is on pace for 5,200 passing yards and 48 touchdowns. Hearst averages 9.0 yards per carry across the first two and is on pace for 2,000 rushing. The bye week confirms Rice's progress: full-speed routes Wednesday and Thursday. Atlanta enters at 2-1 with Chandler averaging 245 passing per game and Anderson 4.6 a carry. Vegas opens the 49ers as 5-point home favorites.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 3-0 | W3 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 2-1 | L1 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 1-2 | L1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 1-2 | L1 |
| Tennessee Oilers | 1-2 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | 3-0 | W3 |
| New England Patriots | 2-1 | W2 |
| New York Jets | 1-2 | W1 |
| Buffalo Bills | 0-3 | L3 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 0-3 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | 3-0 | W3 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 3-0 | W3 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 2-1 | W1 |
| San Diego Chargers | 2-1 | L1 |
| Oakland Raiders | 1-2 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Falcons | 2-0 | W2 |
| New Orleans Saints | 2-0 | W2 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 2-0 | W2 |
| St. Louis Rams | 1-2 | W1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 0-2 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | 3-0 | W3 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 3-0 | W3 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 1-2 | W1 |
| Chicago Bears | 0-3 | L3 |
| Detroit Lions | 0-3 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 2-1 | W1 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 1-2 | -- |
| New York Giants | 1-2 | L2 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 0-3 | L3 |
| Washington Redskins | 0-3 | L3 |
Steve Young threw for 387 yards and three touchdowns, Jerry Rice caught 8 for 162 with two scores in his first 100-yard receiving game in 16 months and the 49ers beat the Atlanta Falcons 31-20 at 3Com Park. Garrison Hearst ran for 57 yards and caught 4 for 105 with a 41-yard touchdown reception. Chris Chandler threw for 254 and two touchdowns; Jamal Anderson ran for 123 on 13 carries with a score.[1][2]
Jerry Rice caught eight passes for one hundred and sixty-two yards and two touchdowns at 3Com Park. The future Hall of Famer's first 100-yard receiving day since the ACL came on a Sunday where Young threw for 387 and Hearst added 105 yards as a receiver out of the backfield.
The 49ers led 24-13 at halftime and 31-13 entering the fourth quarter. Atlanta added a closing touchdown that made the final 31-20. Anderson ran for 123 against a front that had not surrendered a 100-yard rushing line through the first two games. The defensive secondary held Mathis under 130 and forced one Chandler turnover.
The 49ers walk away 3-0 with the road trip to Buffalo on Sunday next. The wire copy is going to spend the column on Rice's return to 100-yard form. The film room is going to start with the offensive line on the Hearst 41-yard touchdown reception and work outward to the front rotation's run-stop play against Anderson.
49ers 31, Falcons 20. Margin: plus 11. Record: 3-0.
A 31-20 home win over the Falcons. The 49ers improve to 3-0 with Rice's return to 100-yard receiving form.
How it unfolded
Young opened with a touchdown drive ending in a Rice 16-yard touchdown. Atlanta answered with a Mathis touchdown reception. Hearst's 41-yard touchdown reception made it 14-7. The second quarter produced two more touchdowns: a Rice second score and a Mathis second touchdown to push the lead to 21-13. A Richey field goal made it 24-13 at the half. The third quarter saw an Anderson rushing touchdown to cut it to 24-20 and a Young touchdown to Marc Edwards to push the lead to 31-20. The fourth quarter was scoreless.
The turning point
The second-quarter Rice second touchdown. With the 49ers up 14-7 and the offense facing third-and-12 at the Falcons' 24, Young found Rice on a deep cross over the safety. The 21-7 cushion put the home team in script-the-clock posture against an Atlanta offense that had produced 70 points in three games.
By the numbers
Young 28-of-39 for 387 with three touchdowns and one pick. Rice 8 catches for 162 with two scores; his first 100-yard receiving game since the 1997 opener. Hearst 57 rushing on 18 carries but 105 receiving on 4 catches including the 41-yard touchdown. Defensively the front produced two sacks; Bryant Young registered both. The secondary held Mathis to 130 but did not surrender the kind of deep-ball afternoon the Atlanta offense has been producing.
Personnel watch
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | |||||
| Steve Young #8 | 28/39 | 387 | 3 | 1 | |
| ATL | |||||
| Chris Chandler | 16/38 | 254 | 2 | 3 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Garrison Hearst | 18 | 57 | 0 | 17 |
| Steve Young #8 | 7 | 50 | 0 | 19 |
| Marc Edwards | 3 | 41 | 1 | 32 |
| Chuck Levy | 3 | 13 | 0 | 7 |
| ATL | ||||
| Jamal Anderson | 13 | 123 | 1 | 42 |
| Chris Chandler | 3 | 13 | 0 | 9 |
| Tim Dwight | 3 | 12 | 0 | 7 |
| Ken Oxendine | 1 | -1 | 0 | -1 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Jerry Rice #80 | 8 | 162 | 2 | 66 |
| Garrison Hearst | 4 | 105 | 0 | 65 |
| Irv Smith | 4 | 39 | 0 | 20 |
| Terrell Owens | 2 | 32 | 0 | 22 |
| Chuck Levy | 6 | 21 | 0 | 13 |
| J.J. Stokes | 3 | 21 | 1 | 12 |
| Iheanyi Uwaezuoke | 1 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| ATL | ||||
| Terance Mathis | 7 | 130 | 2 | 49 |
| Tony Martin | 4 | 53 | 0 | 16 |
| Jamal Anderson | 2 | 43 | 0 | 23 |
| Gary Downs | 2 | 20 | 0 | 11 |
| O.J. Santiago | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
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