Hey, I've got an idea. Run the ball as much as possible with a couple throws here and there in the first three quarters. Then let Alex Smith go to work. The man, despite all his shortcomings, has an uncanny knack for stepping it up at the end of the game. Smith was 8-for-20 in the first half. He proceeded to go 8-for-13 in the second half, including a 32-yard TD to Michael Crabtree to end the third quarter (the Niners were down 6-3 before that play). He then connected with Vernon Davis on a 17-yard TD in the fourth quarter. Hey, if he wasn't so horrible in these first halves we might actually have a legit NFL quarterback.
Helping Smith out was Frank Gore, who had a monster game, rushing for 149 yards on 25 carries, including a 64-yard scamper in the fourth that set up Smith's pass to Davis.
On the other side of the ball, the Raiders' vaunted running game never did get off the ground. With Darren McFadden out, Michael Bush rushed for only 47 yards on 20 carries, a 2.4-yard average.
The Raiders' secret weapon, tight end Zach Miller, didn't do much damage, with 48 yards on two catches.
And Jason Campbell, well, let's just say he's not the answer the Raiders were looking for: 8-for-21, 83 yards passing, no touchdowns, and two interceptions. His QB rating of 10.7 (yeah, you heard that right) was laughable.
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