Week 12 Review: Niners continue winning run amid offensive struggles

The 49ers made it three wins in a row with a 17-13 victory over the Washington Redskins on Sunday, here's our review of the action from Levi's Stadium.

Torture. It is a word that has been used regularly by fans of the San Francisco Giants baseball team in recent years to describe their close games. However, the 49ers are proving just as good at putting their supporters through the mill this season.

After squeaking by the New Orleans Saints in overtime and then beating the New York Giants 16-10, San Francisco's offense once again struggled, allowing Washington to keep things close despite a hugely impressive performance from the defense.

Indeed, the 49er offense committed three turnovers in an anaemic showing, but rallied late to seal triumph with a four-yard rushing touchdown from rookie running back Carlos Hyde, a score that marked his fourth of the year.

The success keeps the Niners in the thick of the playoff race at 7-4 with five games remaining in a tight NFC conference.

The Bad

This was not a pretty game for the 49ers by any means but, since I'm more of an optimist, I want to try and focus on the positives. With that being said, we cannot just skip over some pretty poor play from San Francisco, the majority of which came from the offense.

Once again the offense struggled to move the ball consistently after Colin Kaepernick's 30-yard touchdown pass to Anquan Boldin on the Niners' opening drive.

The turnovers, which came courtesy of fumbles from tailbacks Hyde and Frank Gore and a Kaepernick interception on an ill-advised throw in the third quarter, were disappointing. However, it was  the lack of rhythm and the stagnant appearance of Greg Roman's unit that was most worrying.

Gore and Hyde were unable to get anything going on the ground, while a Washington secondary minus starting cornerback David Amerson and depleted further by in-game injuries to Tracy Porter
and E.J. Biggers, frustrated the passing attack until Kaepernick hit form in the fourth quarter to drive the Niners down the field and set up Hyde's winning score.

I could spend all day lamenting the failings of certain players, particularly tight end Vernon Davis and right tackle Jonathan Martin, who played particularly poorly in place of the concussed Anthony Davis. However, as this is an optimistic look back at Sunday's game, it is time to focus on the good.

The Good

While the offense continues to endure difficulties, the 49ers' injury-hit defense goes from strength to strength.

Aside from allowing Washington running back Alfred Morris to rush for over 100 yards and a touchdown, this was another dominant performance from Vic Fangio's group, with the Niner defense consistently pressuring Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III - sacked five times in the game - and keeping a talented group of wide receivers in check.

Outside linebacker and pass-rush specialist Aldon Smith built on his encouraging showing in his return against the Giants by bullying Washington left tackle Morgan Moses, finishing the game with two sacks, two quarterback hits and one hurry.

Smith combined extremely well with rookie edge rusher Aaron Lynch in harrying Griffin. Lynch recorded his fourth sack of his maiden year in the league and would have had another if not for a helmet-to-helmet tackle penalty called on free safety Eric Reid.

Fellow rookies Chris Borland and Dontae Johnson also put up strong performances. Inside linebacker Borland unsurprisingly leading the Niners in tackles and Johnson earning the best Pro Football Focus (subscription required) grade of all the San Francisco defensive backs.

But the game-winning defensive contribution came from the oldest hand on the 49er defense as veteran defensive lineman Justin Smith sacked Griffin, forcing the ball into the arms of outside linebacker Ahmad Brooks and ending any hope the Redskins had of pulling out an upset win.

Although it was the defense that kept the Niners in a position to win the game, there were some positive performances in the other two facets of the game.

On special teams punter Andy Lee had something of a bounce back display after a difficult few weeks. The four-time All-Pro averaged 50.3 yards on his six punts, two of which pinned the Redskins inside their 20-yard line.

Wideout Boldin was responsible for the majority of the offense's output, catching nine passes for 137 yards and his touchdown.

Boldin made a couple of key receptions on the drive that led to Hyde's score, including a 29-yard catch and run on a dart from Kaepernick in which he bounced off a helmet-to-helmet hit from Washington safety Ryan Clark that drew a penalty to put the Niners deep in Redskin territory.

That play was pivotal in deciding the game and it also served as further evidence of the character of Kaepernick. The 49ers signal-caller, who finished 20-29 for 256 yards with a touchdown and an interception, showed no fear in threading the needle to find Boldin in a high-pressure situation, coming through in the clutch once as he has done so many times already in his NFL career.

San Francisco's unity has been called into question on more than one occasion in 2014 but, although their recent wins have been ugly ones, it is clear at this stage of the season that the 49ers have stacks of character on both sides of the ball that should serve them well down the stretch.

Next Up

Up next for the Niners is their biggest game of the season so far as bitter NFC West foes the Seattle Seahawks (7-4) visit Levi's Stadium on Thanksgiving night for a match-up that could well determine whether Jim Harbaugh's men reach the playoffs.

A win will see the 49ers gain separation from the Seahawks in the wildcard race and put further pressure on the Arizona Cardinals atop the West. Defeat, on the other hand, would leave San Francisco in a precarious position at 7-5 ahead of a tough four-game run to finish the regular season .

The Niners have opened as one-point favourites for this huge encounter. It will take all of their resolve to ensure that they emerge victorious and gain a measure of revenge for last season's NFC Championship game loss in Seattle.