After deferring to start the game, the 49ers received the second-half kickoff. Bruce Miller gets the first reception of the half, and then Isaac Sopoaga checks in at fullback - Frank Gore gets the first down easily. After that, it's a nine-year completion to Delanie Walker, who bobbles it but eventually comes down with it. Miller gets his first carry, and there's a fumble on the play. After what was probably the longest fumble pile in NFL history, the 49ers ended up with the ball, and a first down.
Then the offensive line broke down once again and Alex Smith was sacked simultaneously by three different Bengals players, including former 49er Manny Lawson. Fortunately, one of them was offsides and the 49ers got the call, but ended up once again with a 3rd down after Frank Gore failed to make anything happen with a couple runs. Michael Crabtree gets a pass right to him on third down and it would have been a first down, but he drops it. It was a great pass right to his hands. 49ers punt, but the Bengals call a fair catch at the five yard line.
Their drive goes nowhere, the Bengals can't get anything going through the air and the 49ers have the ball again. Michael Crabtree catches an eight-yard pass, and then the 49ers pass the 50-yard line for the first time with a 39-yard completion to Vernon Davis, setting the team up with a first and goal. Crabtree makes a huge catch in the end zone for a touchdown, but the officials say he stepped out of bounds, and the 49ers instead get a five-yard penalty.
So naturally, they get called on a false start and have to work from five yards back. Kendall Hunter gets the carry and picks up four yards and the 49ers have a 2nd-and-goal at the six-yard line. A rollout and completion to Bruce Miller goes nowhere, and then Smith tries to run it again, and it goes nowhere. So David Akers comes out to kick a field goal. It's good, and the 49ers tie things up.
Looking at the replay of the Crabtree penalty, it doesn't look like he stepped out of bounds. He actually definitely did not step out of bounds, so the 49ers were robbed on that play. After that, the Bengals got the ball and Dalton once again could not put anything together. Tarell Brown was in on a great pass defense on third down. The 49ers come out, get sacked a couple times, and that's the end of the third quarter.
The game is tied up 3-3.