The 49ers (1-1) travel to State Farm Stadium for a 4:05 PT kickoff against the Arizona Cardinals (2-0).
Carson Palmer leads the Cardinals' offense. Bruce Arians coaches Arizona. Andre Ellington at lead back. Colin Kaepernick continues at quarterback for the 49ers. Frank Gore at lead back.
Carson Palmer and the Cardinals come into Sunday at 2-0 with an NFC West start the league is paying attention to. Arians's offense produces 27 per game. Ellington averages 70 rushing. Fitzgerald and Floyd at receiver.
The 49ers, at 1-1 with the Bears Levi's loss fresh, travel to Arizona. Two NFC West teams meet with the Cardinals 2-0 and the 49ers needing a road win.
Underdog by 1.5. The championship-window team's offense gets tested against the conference's hottest team.
Week 3 is the early-October NFC West sort. The Cardinals (2-0) lead the division. The Seahawks (1-1), Rams (1-1), and 49ers (1-1) compete in the middle. Around the NFC the Packers, Eagles, and Saints lead the conference. The AFC's Patriots, Broncos, and Bengals continue at the top. The Sunday road game is the kind of week the championship-window 49ers face the league's hottest divisional team.
Through two games the 49ers are 1-1 with a +3 point differential. The Cardinals are 2-0 with a +21. Carson Palmer 18-of-25 for 304 in Week 2. Larry Fitzgerald 75 receiving per game. Andre Ellington 132 rushing through two games. Kaepernick 449 passing in 2 starts. Vegas opens the Cardinals as 1.5-point home favorites; total 47.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Bills | 2-0 | W2 |
| Miami Dolphins | 1-1 | L1 |
| New England Patriots | 1-1 | W1 |
| New York Jets | 1-1 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Bengals | 2-0 | W2 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 1-1 | W1 |
| Cleveland Browns | 1-1 | W1 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 1-1 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Houston Texans | 2-0 | W2 |
| Tennessee Titans | 1-1 | L1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 0-2 | L2 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 0-2 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | 2-0 | W2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 1-1 | W1 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 0-2 | L2 |
| Oakland Raiders | 0-2 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Arizona Cardinals | 2-0 | -- |
| St. Louis Rams | 1-1 | W1 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 1-1 | L1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 1-1 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Eagles | 2-0 | W2 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 1-1 | W1 |
| Washington Redskins | 1-1 | W1 |
| New York Giants | 0-2 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bears | 1-1 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 1-1 | L1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 1-1 | W1 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 1-1 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Carolina Panthers | 2-0 | W2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 1-1 | L1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 0-2 | L2 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 0-2 | L2 |
Reveal each quarter as you watch, the next quarter stays hidden until you tap it.
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | Chandler Catanzaro 51 yard field goal | 0-3 |
| 49ers | Michael Crabtree 2 yard pass from Colin Kaepernick ( Phil Dawson kick) | 7-3 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | Chandler Catanzaro 32 yard field goal | 7-6 |
| 49ers | Carlos Hyde 6 yard rush ( Phil Dawson kick) | 14-6 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | John Brown 24 yard pass from Drew Stanton ( Chandler Catanzaro kick) | 14-13 |
| Cardinals | John Brown 21 yard pass from Drew Stanton ( Chandler Catanzaro kick) | 14-20 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | Chandler Catanzaro 35 yard field goal | 14-23 |
Carson Palmer threw for 311 yards and a touchdown and the Arizona Cardinals beat the 49ers 23-14 at State Farm Stadium. Andre Ellington ran for 50 yards. John Brown caught the touchdown. Colin Kaepernick threw for 245 yards with three interceptions. Frank Gore ran for 60. Vernon Davis caught a touchdown. The 49ers fell to 1-2.[1][2][3]
Carson Palmer threw for 311 yards Sunday afternoon at State Farm Stadium. The Cardinals beat the 49ers 23-14 in the kind of Sunday-afternoon divisional road loss where the championship-window 49ers' offense produced three interceptions and the defense gave up the kind of yardage the year's preseason had not projected.
Colin Kaepernick threw for 245 yards with three interceptions. Frank Gore ran for 60. Anquan Boldin caught six for 100. Vernon Davis caught a touchdown. The kind of Sunday-afternoon road game where the offense produced 14 points and the defense gave up 23.
John Brown caught the Cardinals' only touchdown. Andre Ellington ran for 50. The Cardinals' defense generated five sacks of Kaepernick. The kind of Sunday-afternoon divisional road loss where the championship-window 49ers' competitive identity, after the Levi's Stadium home loss to the Bears, returned to the kind of mid-conference position the year's preseason had not projected. 1-2 with the Eagles at home next week.
Cardinals 23, 49ers 14. Margin: -9. Three-game record: 1-2, -6 differential.
A 23-14 road loss to the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. The 49ers fall to 1-2.
How it unfolded
The Cardinals built a 16-0 first-half lead behind a Palmer touchdown to John Brown and three Chandler Catanzaro field goals. Kaepernick threw a touchdown to Vernon Davis to make it 16-7 at halftime. The third quarter was a Catanzaro field goal that pushed the lead to 23-7. Kaepernick threw a touchdown to Anquan Boldin to make it 23-14. The 49ers' final possession ended in a third Kaepernick interception.
The turning point
Kaepernick's three interceptions. With the rebuilding 49ers' offense having scored two touchdowns and produced the kind of comeback drives the championship-window team had been built to execute, the giveaways gave the Cardinals' defense the kind of short-field opportunities that defined the game.
By the numbers
Kaepernick 29-of-45 for 245 with one TD and three INTs. Gore 17 carries for 60. Boldin 6 catches for 100. Davis 4 catches for 50 with a TD. Palmer 23-of-37 for 311 with a TD. The Cardinals' five sacks.
Personnel watch
Kaepernick's three interceptions defined the day. Boldin's 100-yard receiving game. The defense, against Carson Palmer, gave up 311 passing yards. The kind of Sunday-afternoon road performance where the championship-window team's competitive identity, in the early-October divisional matchup, did not produce the kind of result the year's preseason had projected.
What it means
1-2 with the Eagles at home next week. The Sunday-afternoon divisional road loss is the kind of result that has the year-four championship-window team in active need of a home win to reset the season's trajectory.
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | |||||
| Colin Kaepernick | 29/37 | 245 | 1 | 0 | |
| ARI | |||||
| Drew Stanton | 18/33 | 244 | 2 | 0 | |
| Ted Ginn Jr. | 1/1 | 10 | 0 | 0 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Colin Kaepernick | 12 | 54 | 0 | 10 |
| Carlos Hyde | 3 | 13 | 1 | 6 |
| Frank Gore | 6 | 10 | 0 | 4 |
| Michael Crabtree | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Bruce Ellington | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| ARI | ||||
| Andre Ellington | 18 | 62 | 0 | 20 |
| Drew Stanton | 6 | 16 | 0 | 13 |
| Ted Ginn Jr. | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Stepfan Taylor | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Jalen Parmele | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Stevie Johnson | 9 | 103 | 0 | 32 |
| Michael Crabtree | 10 | 80 | 1 | 20 |
| Anquan Boldin | 6 | 36 | 0 | 7 |
| Derek Carrier | 1 | 23 | 0 | 23 |
| Brandon Lloyd | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Carlos Hyde | 2 | -2 | 0 | 1 |
| ARI | ||||
| Michael Floyd | 5 | 114 | 0 | 45 |
| John Brown | 4 | 52 | 2 | 24 |
| Larry Fitzgerald | 3 | 34 | 0 | 24 |
| John Carlson | 3 | 33 | 0 | 15 |
| Andre Ellington | 3 | 13 | 0 | 7 |
| Ted Ginn Jr. | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
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