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49ers stumble in desert
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San Francisco head coach Jim Harbaugh grimaces after his offense fails to move the ball as Alex Smith comes off the field during the second quarter of Sunday’s game against Arizona in Glendale, Ariz.
Associated Press
GLENDALE, Ariz.
John Skelton earned redemption in a rematch with San Francisco. The Arizona defense and a spectacular show by Larry Fitzgerald made it possible.
Skelton stepped in for the injured Kevin Kolb and threw for 282 yards and three touchdowns, and the Cardinals rallied to hand the 49ers their third loss of the season, 21-19, on Sunday.
Fitzgerald had seven catches for 149 yards, including a 46-yarder for a touchdown and a 53-yarder to set up the go-ahead score. He also had a vicious block that helped free Early Doucet on a 60-yard touchdown reception.
“That’s Fitz being Fitz,” Skelton said.
Arizona (6-7) has won five of six after a six-game losing streak left them 1-6.
“You guys stuck a fork in us quite a while ago,” coach Ken Whisenhunt told reporters after the game. “I think our guys never let it get to them. How many times during those first weeks did we say that we were going to stay the course and that it was going to turn for us? We believed it.”
Kolb left the game after a blow to the head on Arizona’s third play. Skelton, benched after throwing three interceptions in the Cardinals’ 23-7 loss at San Francisco on Nov. 20, had a 60-yard TD pass to Doucet and a 3-yard toss to Andre Roberts for what proved to be the winning score early in the fourth quarter.
“You’re only as good as your last play, your last game,” Skelton said. “You kind have to live with that until you get another opportunity. You never know when that opportunity is. You’ve just got to be ready and make the most of it.”
Skelton was able to overcome two interceptions and a lost fumble in this one.
Arizona sacked Alex Smith five times after getting five against Dallas in its 19-13 overtime win over the Cowboys a week earlier.
The 49ers (10-3) were at the Cardinals 4-yard line twice and the 6 once in the second quarter and had to settle for short field goals by David Akers each time.
Frank Gore rushed for 72 yards on 10 carries for the NFC West champion 49ers (10-3), including a 37-yard touchdown run that put San Francisco ahead 19-7 early in the second half. He passed 1,000 yards rushing for the fifth time in his career, but didn’t do much damage after that.
Smith completed 18 of 37 for 175 yards and no TDs. He lamented the missed opportunities in the second quarter and the failure to get close enough for a game-winning field goal at the end.
“We have to be honest with ourselves when we look at the film,” Smith said. “It is not something we can just dismiss and move on.”
The 49ers were without standout inside linebacker Patrick Willis, who missed the second game of his career, because of a right hamstring injury.
On Arizona’s possession following Gore’s big run, Fitzgerald went over the middle and outjumped safety Dashon Goldson for the ball, then ran the remaining 20 yards for the score to cut the lead to 19-14 with 9:04 left in the third quarter.
On the play, Fitzgerald passed 1,000 yards for the season for the sixth time in his eight years in the NFL, the last five in a row.