NEW ORLEANS -- A few thoughts on the San Francisco 49ers' 27-24 overtime victory Sunday over the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome:
What it means: Something had to give, right? The 49ers, riding a two-game losing streak, had never lost three in a row under fourth-year coach Jim Harbaugh. And the Saints had won 19 straight regular-season home games under coach Sean Payton and quarterback Drew Brees. The 49ers rediscovered their identity as a power-running team early and got out to a 14-0 lead.
Phil Dawson's 35-yard field goal with 5:14 remaining in overtime gave the Niners the victory after they blew leads of 14-0 and 21-10 and trailed 24-21 late in the fourth quarter.
The game made it to overtime on a 51-yard pass and catch from Colin Kaepernick to Michael Crabtree on fourth-and-10 with about 90 seconds to play, which set up Dawson's tying field goal. Then, Jimmy Graham appeared to give the Saints the victory on the final play of regulation when he caught Brees' 50-plus-yard Hail Mary, but he was called for offensive pass interference.
After both teams traded punts in overtime, Ahmad Brooks sacked Brees, who fumbled, and Chris Borland recovered. One snap later, Dawson kicked the game winner.
Stock watch: Falling: TE Vernon Davis. True, he's dealt with knee, ankle and back injuries this season, and sure, his personal stock has been paying literal dividends for investors, but Davis just does not appear to be the same player or, many critics charge, giving the same effort. Davis was targeted four times and had one catch for 8 yards. In the third quarter, he got open deep but appeared to make only a lackluster effort at catching the ball, which fell for an incompletion.
What red zone issues? The 49ers entered the game with the worst red zone offense in the league, converting on just 40 percent of said trips. They were 3-for-3 Sunday, scoring on a 4-yard touchdown run by Frank Gore -- his first TD run since Week 2 -- a 9-yard run by Carlos Hyde and a 15-yard fade pass to the right side from Kaepernick to a wideout not named Michael Crabtree. Rather, Anquan Boldin's score put the Niners up 21-10 before halftime.
The 49ers did not have a single rushing touchdown in their previous five games but had two in the first quarter.
Game ball: Frank Gore. How many times have we banged on this drum this season? All good things for the Niners' offense seem to spring from Gore's legs. And the Niners rediscovered their workhorse early and often enough to build a big enough lead to hold off the Saints, whose two interceptions by Brees were as important to the Niners' success. Consider: 57 of Gore's 81 rushing yards came on 15 first-half carries. Before his first-quarter rushing score, he had not had a rushing touchdown in six straight games, the longest such stretch of his career.
What's next: The 49ers (5-4) travel to the Meadowlands to take on the New York Giants. The Giants have won five of the past six meetings against the Niners dating to 2005 and the last two in New Jersey, in 2007 and 2008. This will be the Niners' first game at MetLife Stadium, which opened in 2010.
