National Football League

Winning feeling rediscovered

Published Oct. 18, 2010 10:14 a.m. ET

foxsports

From somewhere deep in his memory bank, Frank Gore remembered what to do in case of victory. He swiveled his hips. His feet danced. He grooved to the music in his head.

Gore was still in the 49ers huddle at the time, waiting for the final seconds to run out. But forgive his legs for getting a head start on the celebration.

"I'm just excited that we finally got one," Gore said. "You know how we feel now: It's time to roll."

The 49ers beat the Raiders 17-9 at Candlestick Park on Sunday, breaking out of a funk that lasted five games plus three quarters.

Their first win of the season required dusting off their favorite blueprint, starting with a strong running game. Frank Gore ran for a season-high 149 yards, including a game-turning 64-yarder.

The defense held up its end, too. The Raiders' Jason Campbell managed a 10.7 passer rating, the lowest mark by a 49ers opponent since the Saints' Archie Manning had a 8.7 quarterback rating on Oct. 1, 1972.

Above all, the 49ers committed zero turnovers.

That's how they improved to 1-5.

"I feel like I just took a house off my back," tight end Vernon Davis said. "It was weighing me down, but I believe in my team and I believe in myself. I knew we could go out there and do it."

It was a game only an 0-5 team could love: Quarterback Alex Smith was booed most of the afternoon, the 49ers committed 143 yards worth of penalties and they didn't score a touchdown until late in the third quarter.

By the end, however, the 49ers thought it looked like the Mona Lisa.

"We did an awesome, tremendous job and I take my hat off to all my teammates on all three sides of the ball, and also the coaching staff," defensive tackle Isaac Sopoaga said. "I don't know what else to say. It's an awesome, great feeling."

This was the 49ers' first game since team president Jed York sent a text message to an ESPN reporter insisting his team would win the NFC West. No team has won its division after an 0-5 start and the 49ers spent much of the game looking as if the next text message might say, "Never mind."

But their fortunes swung for good Sunday when Gore got the two blocks he's been waiting for all season. The 49ers were nursing a 10-9 lead when they started a drive at their 20-yard line with 8:21 to play. That's when Gore took a handoff and scooted to the right side, where center David Baas and fullback Moran Norris combined to give Gore the football equivalent of a two-lane highway. Gore accelerated through the hole and hit the gas for a 64-yard gain. It was his longest run of the season by threefold. His previous longest was for 20 yards.

Gore had faith that running room would open up eventually. At halftime, he told his teammates: "You know how in practice we do everything right? Let's just go out and to the same thing. We're just playing against guys in a different jersey."

Gore's big-gainer moved the 49ers to the Raiders' 16-yard line and, after a penalty, Smith and Davis handled the rest. The quarterback rolled to his right and threw to his left, where Davis caught the ball and sprinted the final 10 yards to the end zone. Davis' third touchdown of the season gave the 49ers' a 17-9 lead with 7:14 to play.

Smith, who was booed earlier, trotted off the field to the sound of cheers. He rallied from a tough start to finish with an 87.4 passer rating. Smith completed 16 of 33 passes for 196 yards with two touchdown passes and no interceptions.

"Alex is a fighter," Gore said. "He's had an up-and-down-career. You know, I love that guy. ... The fans were booing, but he stepped in there and he fought."

Smith's other touchdown pass also showed a hint of resiliency. One play after being flagged for a controversial intentional grounding penalty, a call that left the 49ers with a second-and-20, he found Michael Crabtree open in the end zone for a 32-yard score.

That play -- the last one of the third quarter -- gave the 49ers their first lead of the day at 10-6. It also capped the 49ers' longest drive (in terms of plays and time) in a decade. The 13-play, 91-yard march lasted 8:11. The last time they topped that was against the Cowboys on Sept. 24, 2000, when Jeff Garcia's pass to Jerry Rice finished off a 17-play, 98-yard drive over 9:35.

"I was happy for this team. Everyone puts in so much. The guys want it so bad," Smith said. "I was happy for Crab, happy for the guys up front -- everyone."

The 49ers defense did its part, too, at one point holding Campbell without a complete pass for 35 minutes, 21 seconds of game time. (A streak that began with just over a minute to play in the first quarter.)

The Raiders led 6-3 at halftime behind a pair of Sebastian Janikowski field goals. But after that, the 49ers closed up shop. The Raiders converted only 5 of 15 third down chances. Linebackers Takeo Spikes and Manny Lawson each had interceptions.

The 49ers improved to 9-0 under coach Mike Singletary when they win the turnover battle.

"The proof is in the pudding," Spikes said. "People ask, 'Why this? Why that?' We were able to get turnovers and we didn't turn the ball over -- point blank, period. If you don't turn the ball over, you're going to give yourself a chance to win."