49ers finally are clicking, deal Jets second loss in row

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — From lineman Joe Staley’s smart fumble recovery in the end zone to Shaun Hill’s final touchdown pass, the San Francisco 49ers showed they’re finally getting it together — even if it’s probably a bit too late to save their season.

Yet the chilly winds at Candlestick Park did nothing to cool down Jets coach Eric Mangini, whose reeling team has only three chances left to stop a promising year from totally falling apart.

Hill passed for 285 yards and two touchdowns against New York’s porous secondary, and the 49ers sent the AFC East-leading Jets to their second straight embarrassing loss, 24-14 on Sunday.

Joe Nedney kicked a 32-yard tiebreaking field goal early in the fourth quarter and Bryant Johnson made a diving 3-yard TD catch with 6:05 left for the suddenly solid 49ers (5-8), who have won three of four. Staley, their 315-pound left tackle, jumped on receiver Jason Hill’s fumble for the 49ers’ first score.

San Francisco beat an AFC East team with a winning record for the second straight week, knocking the Jets (8-5) into a tie atop the division with the Dolphins and Patriots.

“Football is fun again, it really is,” said center Eric Heitmann, who largely shut down fearsome Jets nose tackle Kris Jenkins. “We’re all playing together, offense, defense and special teams. You would have liked to see it happen a little earlier, but this is what it’s supposed to look like. This is how we’re supposed to win games.”

Frank Gore caught a short TD pass and rushed for 52 yards before injuring his left ankle early in the second half for the Niners, who improved to 3-3 under interim coach Mike Singletary.

“I won’t say that it’s my team, because I’m really trying to help it become the players’ team,” Singletary said. “Yes, I want the job, but I’m going to work as hard as I can, as honestly as I can. ... I’m not trying to impress anybody. I’m not trying to prove anything. I’m just being me, and hopefully when it’s said and done, that’s enough.”

Meanwhile, anybody who judged the Jets solely on their trips to the Bay Area would have no idea how they’re still in first place.

Seven weeks after a humiliating overtime loss to the Oakland Raiders, New York struggled against Mike Martz’s offense, which held the ball for nearly 40 minutes in the Niners’ biggest time-of-possession advantage in nine years, and a San Francisco defense that has rarely stopped anybody this season.

“The answers? The answers are in the room. The answers are within each person,” Mangini said.

Brett Favre went 20-of-31 for 137 yards and ran for a score, but didn’t throw a TD pass. Thomas Jones rushed for 56 yards on just 10 carries, though he tied two franchise records with a 17-yard scoring run for his 12th touchdown rushing and 14th total TD this season.