The 49ers (4-8) travel to Qualcomm Stadium for a 1:05 PT kickoff against the San Diego Chargers (1-11), the third AFC opponent on the schedule. The Chargers come off back-to-back losses and have not won since their Week 1 victory over Oakland. Ryan Leaf is the Chargers' starter; Jim Harbaugh, the former 49ers practice squad player, is the listed backup. Robert Chancey shares the backfield with rookie Terrell Fletcher.[1][2]
The schedule has the 49ers traveling to San Diego after a bye week, against a Chargers team that is 1-11 and has lost ten in a row. The line opens the 49ers at six and a half on the road. The first three games against AFC West opponents this year were Oakland's win at 3Com, the Kansas City win at 3Com, and the Sunday in San Diego. The bye is supposed to produce a clean sixty.
Week 14 has the schedule's clearest blowout candidate plus a slate where the conference's wild-card races are clarifying. The Vikings sit at 11-2. The Buccaneers, Saints and Giants are tied at 8-4 for the NFC's two wild-card spots. The AFC Central has the Titans at 10-2. The Raiders sit at 9-3 atop the AFC West. The 49ers' Sunday at Qualcomm is the league's only sub-2-win opponent on the slate from the AFC West.
Through twelve games the 49ers sit at 4-8 with a minus 46 point differential. Garcia has thrown for 200-plus yards in twelve straight starts and is on pace for the team's single-season passing-yards record. Owens has 76 catches for 1,210 yards across the first 12. Garner averages 91 from scrimmage. San Diego is 1-11 with Leaf averaging 175 passing yards per game and the offense averaging 13 points. The Chargers have not scored more than 20 in any of the last eight games.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Tennessee Titans | 9-3 | L1 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 9-4 | W4 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6-6 | W1 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 5-7 | W2 |
| Cleveland Browns | 3-10 | L2 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 2-10 | L4 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | 9-3 | W1 |
| New York Jets | 8-4 | W2 |
| Buffalo Bills | 7-5 | L1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 7-5 | L2 |
| New England Patriots | 3-9 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Oakland Raiders | 10-2 | W2 |
| Denver Broncos | 8-4 | W4 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 5-7 | L4 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 4-8 | L1 |
| San Diego Chargers | 1-11 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New Orleans Saints | 8-4 | W1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 8-4 | L2 |
| Carolina Panthers | 5-7 | W1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 4-8 | W2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 3-10 | L4 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Vikings | 10-2 | W3 |
| Detroit Lions | 8-4 | W3 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 7-5 | W1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 5-7 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 3-9 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Eagles | 9-4 | W4 |
| New York Giants | 8-4 | W1 |
| Washington Redskins | 7-5 | L1 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 4-8 | L2 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 3-9 | -- |
Reveal each quarter as you watch, the next quarter stays hidden until you tap it.
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chargers | Terrell Fletcher 7 yard rush ( John Carney kick) | 0-7 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 49ers | Wade Richey 22 yard field goal | 3-7 |
| 49ers | Fred Beasley 1 yard rush ( Wade Richey kick) | 10-7 |
| 49ers | Jerry Rice 1 yard pass from Jeff Garcia ( Wade Richey kick) | 17-7 |
| Chargers | John Carney 34 yard field goal | 17-10 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 49ers | Wade Richey 28 yard field goal | 20-10 |
| 49ers | Charlie Garner 4 yard rush ( Wade Richey kick) | 27-10 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chargers | Curtis Conway 17 yard pass from Ryan Leaf ( John Carney kick) | 27-17 |
| 49ers | Wade Richey 38 yard field goal | 30-17 |
| 49ers | Jerry Rice 12 yard pass from Jeff Garcia ( J.J. Stokes pass from Jeff Garcia ) | 38-17 |
| 49ers | Monty Montgomery 46 yard interception return ( Wade Richey kick) | 45-17 |
Jeff Garcia threw for 323 yards and two touchdowns, Charlie Garner ran for 28 and a touchdown, and the 49ers blew out the San Diego Chargers 45-17 at Qualcomm Stadium for the largest road win of the year. Owens caught 4 for 93, Stokes 3 for 74 and Greg Clark 3 for 62. The defense generated five sacks of Ryan Leaf and four takeaways. Lawrence Phillips ran in a touchdown; Fred Beasley ran in a touchdown.[1][2]
Forty-five points in San Diego is the kind of road afternoon that, in a 4-8 season, beat reporters file as the calendar's second-highest single-game output. Jeff Garcia threw for three hundred and twenty-three. The 49ers' defense sacked Ryan Leaf five times. The 49ers walked back to the airport 5-8 with the team's first three-game winning streak of the year.
Garcia's afternoon was the third straight efficient start. The 49ers' starter completed 18 of 32 with two touchdowns and no interceptions. The receiver room was the cleanest distribution of the year: Owens 4 for 93, Stokes 3 for 74, Clark 3 for 62. No one player had double-digit catches; the staff worked the ball horizontally.
49ers 45, Chargers 17. Margin: plus 28. Record: 5-8, minus 18 differential. • Garcia: 18-of-32 for 323, 2 TDs, 0 INTs (third consecutive 300-yard passing day). • Garner: 13 carries for 28, 1 TD; 4 catches for 14. • Owens: 4 catches for 93. • Stokes: 3 catches for 74. • Clark: 3 catches for 62. • Beasley: 5 carries for 16, 1 TD. • Defense: 5 sacks, 4 takeaways, 17 points allowed. • Leaf: 24-of-47 for 266, 1 TD, 3 INTs. • Quarter scoring: SF 0-17-10-18; SD 7-3-0-7.
A 45-17 road blowout in San Diego. The 49ers improve to 5-8 with the team's first three-game winning streak of the year.
How it unfolded
San Diego opened with a 12-play touchdown drive ending in a Curtis Conway short reception. The 49ers responded with a 14-play second-quarter drive ending in a Garcia 6-yard touchdown to Beasley to tie at 7. A Richey 36-yard field goal pushed the lead to 10-7. Garner ran in a 1-yard touchdown to make it 17-7 at the half. The third quarter opened with a Phillips 4-yard touchdown to push the lead to 24-7. The 49ers added a Richey field goal and a Beasley 3-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, and Garcia closed it with a 17-yard touchdown to Greg Clark to make the final 45-17.
The turning point
The second-quarter Garcia-to-Beasley touchdown. With the 49ers down 7-0 and the offense facing third-and-goal from the 6, the staff called a play-action fade to the fullback. The 7-7 tie became 17-7 within a quarter as the defense added the takeaways the offense needed.
By the numbers
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | |||||
| Jeff Garcia | 18/32 | 323 | 2 | 0 | |
| Tim Rattay | 1/1 | -4 | 0 | 0 | |
| SDG | |||||
| Ryan Leaf | 24/47 | 266 | 1 | 4 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Charlie Garner | 13 | 28 | 1 | 6 |
| Jeff Garcia | 3 | 19 | 0 | 10 |
| Fred Beasley | 5 | 16 | 1 | 8 |
| Paul Smith | 5 | 11 | 0 | 4 |
| Tim Rattay | 2 | -1 | 0 | 0 |
| SDG | ||||
| Terrell Fletcher | 12 | 47 | 1 | 13 |
| Ryan Leaf | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Terrell Owens | 4 | 93 | 0 | 43 |
| J.J. Stokes | 3 | 74 | 0 | 53 |
| Greg Clark | 3 | 62 | 0 | 34 |
| Jerry Rice #80 | 3 | 41 | 2 | 28 |
| Tai Streets | 1 | 39 | 0 | 39 |
| Charlie Garner | 4 | 14 | 0 | 6 |
| Fred Beasley | 1 | -4 | 0 | -4 |
| SDG | ||||
| Curtis Conway | 7 | 88 | 1 | 22 |
| Freddie Jones | 7 | 69 | 0 | 25 |
| Jeff Graham | 4 | 67 | 0 | 36 |
| Trevor Gaylor | 3 | 29 | 0 | 14 |
| Terrell Fletcher | 2 | 13 | 0 | 8 |
| Fred McCrary | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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Find the thread Start the threadCanonical title: [Rewatch Party] 2000 W14 - 49ers at San Diego Chargers - Game Thread
