Alex Smith had his best game of the season for the San Francisco 49ers (5-6), leading them to the win over the Jacksonville Jaguars (6-5) on Sunday.  Smith went his first game without throwing an interception and finished the day with 2 touchdowns and 232 yards on 27/41 passes.  Smith was smart with the ball and didn’t try and force the issue too much, something he needs to continue to do.  Smith didn’t get much help from Frank Gore and the running game, with Gore only getting 33 yards on 16 carries and the team finishing with 52 total rushing yards.  They played turnover free football though and they got great support from their defense.

The 49ers’ defense kept the Jaguars out of the endzone and did a great job forcing some turnovers.  Jags’ quarterback David Garrard was being pretty careful with his passes and the Niners were not able to get any picks, but they laid some big hits on him and recovered 2 of his fumbles.  They also kept the very talented Maurice Jones Drew out of the endzone and under 100 yards rushing.  This was a great game by the 49ers defense, and if they can get more turnover free games from their offense they could have a lot more success.

The San Francisco 49ers (4-6) have been in a lot of close games in the past few weeks and have been coming out of them on the losing end more often than not.  They will be looking to end that trend as they host the Jacksonville Jaguars (6-4) Sunday.  Alex Smith needs to stop throwing interceptions, and if he can do that the 49ers will probably win.  The only problem is that Smith has thrown a pick in every game he has started this season, so it’s safe to say he will probably turn the ball over in this contest too.  Frank Gore will need to have one of his big games to negate Smith’s poor play, but it may not be enough as the Jaguars have been sticking to a successful conservative, turnover free game-plan of ball control.

The 49ers’ defense has not been very good against the pass, giving up 256 passing yards per game.  Jaguars’ quarterback David Garrard doesn’t put up a ton of yards, but he has been taking care of the ball and has been very accurate lately.  He also has Maurice Jones-Drew to rely on, who has been averaging 4.8 yards per carry this season.  Jones-Drew has a knee injury though, and it may very well limit what he can do.  Reports say he should be okay though, so I am going to pick the Jaguars in a close win.

FINAL SCORE PREDICITON:  San Francisco 49ers 21, Jacksonville Jaguars 24

 The San Francisco 49ers (4-6) let the Green Bay Packers (6-4) jump out to a big lead in the first half and they were not able to recover.  The 49ers defense could not keep Packers’ quarterback Aaron Rodgers in check.  Rodgers had a huge 2nd quarter, throwing for 178 yards and two touchdowns on 15-21 attempts.  That big quarter for the Packers helped them take a 23-3 lead at halftime.  The defense did a bad job stopping the run too, with Packers’ running back Ryan Grant getting a touchdown and 129 rushing yards on 21 carries.

Alex Smith played poorly until about the middle of the second half.  He helped the 49ers make a very strong comeback effort, but they fell short.  Smith had 3 touchdowns, all in the second half, and finished with 227 yards on 16/33 passes.  Vernon Davis had a huge day for the niners, catching 6 passes for 108 yards and a score.  Frank Gore had a very productive 7 carries, getting 59 yards.  The 49ers were down most of the game so they were throwing the ball more, so that is why Gore didn’t get more carries.  He had one run for 42 yards, so I think the 49ers should have given him the ball more because of his big run abilities.  The 49ers can’t get themselves into such big holes, but the effort they showed in the second half was impressive.

Patrick Willis is quite simply the best inside linebacker in the NFL right now, case closed!  The 24-year old Willis is a heat seeking missile for the Niners.  He has played in all 10 games for the 49ers this season and he has 96 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 6 passes defensed and 2 interceptions (1 returned for a TD).  In three years with the Niners, Willis has played in 42 games in which he has made 411 tackles, defensed 21 passes, has 7.5 sacks, forced 5 fumbles and he has 3 interceptions (2 returned for TDs).  Willis just blows up running backs at the point of attack and the 49ers love to have him in the middle of the D.

The San Francisco 49ers (4-5) are clinging to life in the NFC playoff picture and will need a great effort on the road against the Green Bay Packers (5-4) Sunday.  Both teams are coming very strong defensive performances, but the 49ers were basically handed the game last week against the Bears where Jay Cutler threw 5 interceptions.  The Packers nearly shut out a very good offensive team in the Dallas Cowboys, so the 49ers offense better have a good game-plan ready against an aggressive Packers defense.  I don’t see Alex Smith having that a strong of a game in this one, as he has struggled the past three weeks and the Packers pass defense is ranked 6th in the league.  What Smith needs to do is not turn the ball over and let the running game attack.  If Smith can provide enough production without turning the ball over, it will open things up for Frank Gore and the 49ers will have a chance at winning.

Don’t expect another defensive game like last week, as the Bears offense played horrible.  The Packers are led by Aaron Rodgers who has proven he is one the top quarterbacks in the game.  Rodgers has already thrown for over 2,400 yards this season and has 17 touchdowns compared to only 5 interceptions.  Rodgers gets very little protection though, so the 49ers will be able to get some sacks on him.  If that can lead to some turnovers for the 49ers, they will have a great opportunity to win the game.  The 49ers need to be ready for Packers’ running back Ryan Grant too.  Grant hasn’t been great this year, but he is a strong and effective runner who is averaging 4.2 yards per carry.  The 49ers will have a chance but I think Rodgers is too good, and the 49ers don’t get enough out of Smith at quarterback, so I’m taking the Packers in this one.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION:  Green Bay Packers 31, San Francisco 49ers 21