oldman9er's first half observations

San Francisco 49ers at 15:00, (1st play from scrimmage 14:57) DEN SFO

1st and 10 at SF 22 (14:57) G.Coffee up the middle to SF 25 for 3 yards (K.Peterson).
decent blocking up front... nothing stands out or fails horribly
2nd and 7 at SF 25 (14:1 S.Hill pass short right to V.Davis to SF 48 for 23 yards (R.Hill). Caught at SF 34.
good enough blocking on this quick pass.... good throw by Hill in the zone... good thing Hill hit the first read, as Rachal wasn't gonna hold off the DL much longer, and an extra blitzer came around Snyder where VD departed from... nice RAC yds by VD
1st and 10 at SF 48 (13:36) G.Coffee right guard to 50 for 2 yards (D.Williams).
Right side of OL just not getting much push for the run... no major failures
2nd and 8 at 50 (12:55) S.Hill sacked at SF 43 for -7 yards (E.Dumervil).
Everyone else but Keasey did a good job of protecting... Keasey had poor positioning and got put on his back badly... horrible... not enough time for Hill
3rd and 15 at SF 43 (12:25) (Shotgun) S.Hill pass deep right to V.Davis to DEN 39 for 18 yards (R.Hill).
Terrific blocking by OL (especially OTs).... very nice pass by Hill to VD on the in-route... good catch away from body by VD
1st and 10 at DEN 39 (11:2 S.Hill scrambles up the middle to DEN 30 for 9 yards (D.Williams).
Everyone else looked fine, but Wragge lunged and missed too much of the DE... Hill was wise in running up the gut or he would've been sacked.
2nd and 1 at DEN 30 (10:44) G.Coffee up the middle to DEN 26 for 4 yards (A.Davis).
excellent drive blocks from Heitmann, Rachal, and Snyder... Staley and VD didn't negatively affect the play much, but could have done better
1st and 10 at DEN 26 (10:00) S.Hill sacked at DEN 34 for -8 yards (M.Haggan).
Hill held the ball for no less than 5.5 seconds on that one... much too long. Keasey blocked best he could, but could not sustain it for that long. An overload blitz strongside should have left some open targets downfield.
2nd and 18 at DEN 34 (9:20) G.Coffee up the middle to DEN 19 for 15 yards (R.Hill).
An outstanding block by Snyder (decent one by Rachal) to open up this big run. Impressive run by Coffee. Great 1-cut to elude the overpursued Fields.
3rd and 3 at DEN 19 (8:39) G.Coffee up the middle to DEN 20 for -1 yards (K.Peterson, A.Davis).
VD failed his block on the strongside... Snyder did well in hitting the second level quickly... Rachal drove his man backwards very well... Heitmann was the problem, as he went backwards a yard or two and Coffee ran into his back. Wragge hit the second level well... Staley didn't fully get his man... Finley (next to Joe) did well enough on the LB. Failure goes to Staley and Heitmann on that.
4th and 4 at DEN 20 (8:11) A.Romero 38 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-B.Jennings, Holder-A.Lee. 0 3
A.Romero kicks 61 yards from SF 30 to DEN 9. A.Smith to DEN 28 for 19 yards (Z.Keasey).
Timeout at 07:48.
DRIVE TOTALS: DEN 0 SF 3, 11 plays, 58 yards, 7:07 drive, 7:07 elapsed

Denver Broncos at 7:53, (1st play from scrimmage 7:4 DEN SFO

1st and 10 at DEN 28 (7:4 (Shotgun) K.Orton pass short right to E.Royal to DEN 35 for 7 yards (M.Roman). Caught at DEN 33 2-3-DEN 35
Manny/Parys with hands down on 4 man line... ILBs show blitz at the LOS... decent (not good enough) pressure on the outsides with Manny and Parys... decent pocket collapse with Justin and Ice... QB liked his first read, lucky for him... Roman on the coverage = ick
(7:20) C.Buckhalter left guard to DEN 40 for 5 yards (N.Clements, D.Goldson). R1
base D... Franklin stood up by OC... chipped by LG heading to second level... Manny gets good push... Justin hits inside gap and gets taken out of rush lane... Clements commits too far in outside gap... Goldson and Nate converge. (tried repeatedly to see the LB in the middle that was the biggest problem on that play... fairly certain it was Ulbrich) He engaged the OL rather than be patient and take out the RB
1st and 10 at DEN 40 (6:45) K.Orton pass short right to B.Stokley to DEN 49 for 9 yards (N.Clements).
base D... Franklin stood up by OG... no impact. Sopoaga gets hit low... gets up quick w/ hands outstretched a yd from QB. Justin gets good push on a double team. quick pass to WR in the flat... Haralson left him alone to help on TKO's man (didn't need to) Caught at DEN 44 2-1-DEN 49 (6:19)
C.Buckhalter left tackle to DEN 49 for no gain (M.Lewis, M.Lawson).
base D... Franklin takes on LG... does a fair job of getting over his right shoulder and getting 1.5 yds in the backfield, but the run is weakside away from him... Manny gets off his TE block well enough... showed good push to hold the LOS... Justin held the LOS well... Bly and TKO did well to converge on blocks... Mike Lewis filled hard to help make the stop.
3rd and 1 at DEN 49 (5:40) C.Buckhalter right tackle to SF 49 for 2 yards (T.Spikes).
they were slow to cut back to the next snap... replays show TKO nicely wrapping up RB after short gain... Franklin was destroyed a lil away from the play... Haralson holding his ground well on a block on the play side... Sopoaga basically dove to the ground in an effort to be a sacrificial speed bump (since it was short yardage)...
1st and 10 at SF 49 (5:0 (Shotgun) K.Orton pass short left to E.Royal to SF 41 for 8 yards (S.Spencer, J.Smith).
very quick WR screen... sniffed out well by Bly, but takes a poor angle missing tackle.... great job by Justin running him down
PENALTY on SF-M.Lawson, Defensive Offside, 5 yards, enforced at SF 49 - No Play.
Timeout #1 by DEN at 04:36.
1st and 5 at SF 44 (4:36)
(Shotgun) K.Orton pass short right to L.Jordan to SF 35 for 9 yards (T.Spikes).
base D... good overall pressure... quick pass due to SOFT coverage (TKO covering RB at Flanker spot)
1st and 10 at SF 35 (4:02) L.Jordan up the middle to SF 33 for 2 yards (J.Smith).
Franklin loses initial ground (2 yds) but finally anchors... Sopoaga got doubled and lost 3 yds as he tried to slide to the play... Justin held well, and helped on the tackle as TKO converged...
2nd and 8 at SF 33 (3:30) K.Orton pass short right to E.Royal to SF 20 for 13 yards (N.Clements).
base D... fair D pressure... Franklin gained a yard, and took a double team... Justin crashed up the A gap and nearly shoved his man into QB... Sopoaga no impact vs RT... Manny beat his man around the edge... would have had a sack had the QB backed up a lil or held it longer... Parys dropped in coverage... TKO blitzed late... Clements playing SO far off that the hitch route was a quick no-brainer for QB.
1st and 10 at SF 20 (2:4 K.Orton pass incomplete short right to J.Gaffney (T.Spikes).
base D... Franklin takes brief double team... goes nowhere... Sopoaga gets 5 yards on the RT... not enough... Justin penetrates 5 yards in... not enough. Manny fights forward for 4 yards... not enough. Parys with decent/good coverage in flat... TKO with excellent coverage on the short curl route... gets his paws in to disrupt. LOTS OF QUICK PASSES from QB.
2nd and 10 at SF 20 (2:43) K.Orton pass short right to C.Jackson ran ob at SF 11 for 9 yards.
Base D... another quick pass to the sideline with Roman on the inner side of receiver... Manny gets nowhere on a stunt... nothing too interesting on the DL... Balmer crashed through pretty well... Haralson cut low on the outside... quick passes making it impossible to make something happen on the rush
3rd and 1 at SF 11 (2:16) (Shotgun) K.Orton pass short right to E.Royal pushed ob at SF 4 for 7 yards (N.Clements). Caught at SF 5.
base D... another quick pass... nice speed on both outside from Manny/Parys... Justin with burst around OG... 5 yd curl with Nate playing SOFT.
1st and 4 at SF 4 (1:45) L.Jordan left guard to SF 3 for 1 yard (M.Lawson).
base D... entire front 9 held LOS well (including single-blocked Franklin)
2nd and 3 at SF 3 (1:07) K.Orton pass short right intended for D.Graham INTERCEPTED by N.Clements at SF -7. Touchback.
base D... Franklin gets upfield about 4 yards... missed swat... Justin tripped up after short gain... Haralson defeated outside FB block and pressured QB... Manny in coverage... Sopoaga unimpressive vs RT... nice footwork and instincts by Nate on the INT.

San Francisco 49ers at 0:56 DEN SFO

1st and 10 at SF 20 (:56) A. Smith in at QB. G.Coffee up the middle to SF 22 for 2 yards (R.Fields).
VD sustained block but got no push (LB)... Snyder with excellent wash out block to open hole... nice lead block by FB Miller... Heitmann failed to sustain block and DL turned to put Coffee down.
2nd and 8 at SF 22 (:16) A.Smith sacked at SF 15 for -7 yards (R.McBean).
Snyder does well, until Alex rolls out... as Snyder doesn't see him roll out. Rachal was pushed backward by Fields... right into Alex's face. Heitmann also pushed back by #90 inches before hitting Alex. It is understandable as to why Alex rolled out. Wragge was lost on who to block and just sucked. No excuse, Alex... gotta get rid of the ball. He had VD underneath at the sideline, but was no longer looking his way. Ugly start after so long off the field.

END OF 1st QUARTER

3rd and 15 at SF 15 (15:00) (Shotgun)

A.Smith pass short right to J.Morgan to SF 29 for 14 yards (C.Bailey).
All OL did enough to protect... Wragge was looking for someone to block... Alex composed in the pocket... throws a strike on a Morgan hitch route...Morgan stepped into the ball (probably worried about Champ turning sooner for a possible pick)... Morgan ran his route 1 yard shy of the 1st down spot. He hears it from Sullivan on the sideline, and doesn't look pleased.
4th and 1 at SF 29 (14:19) A.Lee punts 61 yards to DEN 10

Denver Broncos at 14:07 DEN SFO

1st and 10 at DEN 37 (14:07) K.Orton pass short right to P.Hillis to 50 for 13 yards (J.Ulbrich). Caught at DEN 36.
base D... Manny commits on the rush, and is deceived by roll out pass to TE... Ulbrich with poor position on the mistackle... lots of RAC yds... Manny runs him down, good effort
1st and 10 at 50 (13:19) (Shotgun) K.Orton pass incomplete short right to B.Stokley.
base D (aggressive call with 4 split WRs)... Sopoaga at NT... gets upfield 4 yds... Manny chopped low by RT... looked like Evans (RDE) with good upfield pressure... Balmer also upfield quickly... tries to bat pass. Haralson almost gets around the LT, but gets cut just enough... so many quick passes... wide open WR in the flat drops the pass.
2nd and 10 at 50 (13:15) (Shotgun) K.Moreno left tackle to SF 41 for 9 yards (A.Brooks).
4 DL now... (Nickel)... Brooks halts his outside rush... cuts it in for RB tackle up gut (good play recognition)... Interior DL (Balmer/Evans) hold LOS well... Ulbrich playing too safe... good thing for Brooks.
3rd and 1 at SF 41 (12:37) K.Moreno right tackle to SF 36 for 5 yards (M.Hudson).
base D... Brooks gets fairly handled off the LOS by RT... Ulbrich gets washed out by TE... McKillop flows to ball well... Balmer holds POA well, but can't shed for a tackle... Sopoaga gets cut low by LG. Nice play by Hudson.
1st and 10 at SF 36 (12:00) K.Moreno left end to SF 32 for 4 yards (I.Sopoaga, M.Hudson).
base D... Manny and Balmer getting tripped up/cut low on opposite side of run... Sopoaga does well to hold LOS and slide to run side... not getting enough help. Evans got pushed backwards and really failed. Stout/decent effort by Brooks goes unrewarded thanks to Evans. McKillop looking lost... Ulbrich initially washed out.
2nd and 6 at SF 32 (11:1 (Shotgun) K.Orton pass incomplete short middle to B.Stokley (M.Hudson).
don't know what D this is... Manny down at LDE... Brooks standing up... Balmer at NT...Evans at RDE... Manny shows great burst sround edge, but can't work it back in quick enough... Balmer fights hard, gains a little up gut on double team... Evans gains a lil ground on single block, not much... Brooks neither blitzes or covers anyone... nice coverage by Hudson (underneath throw on the short drag route)
3rd and 6 at SF 32 (11:12) (Shotgun) K.Orton pass short right intended for B.Stokley INTERCEPTED by D.Bly at SF 26. D.Bly to SF 28 for 2 yards (B.Stokley).
4 down line... Manny gets good jump, and put is nearly on top of QB... Balmer gets serious push upfield... Evans gets very little forward movement... Brooks looks powerful on the rush vs LT... he or Manny would have smoked the QB if he'd have held it another second. Nice inside pick by Bly.

San Francisco 49ers at 11:04 DEN SFO

1st and 10 at SF 28 (11:04) G.Coffee left tackle to SF 30 for 2 yards (A.Davis).
Staley and Wragge do well enough on this run side, but Heitmann got his arse kicked by Fields. Snyder did well, but Rachal didn't get over to help on Fields in time.
2nd and 8 at SF 30 (10:23) A.Smith pass short right to A.Battle to SF 37 for 7 yards (A.Smith).
pretty solid OL protection overall... nice hitch pass to AB for Alex.
3rd and 1 at SF 37 (9:42) G.Coffee up the middle to SF 41 for 4 yards (R.Fields).
good job by Heitmann beating Fields... great job by Rachal getting push... decent efforts from VD, Staley, Snyder... hard run by Coffee. Wragge got beaten badly by #55.
1st and 10 at SF 41 (8:59) A.Smith pass short left to G.Coffee to SF 41 for no gain (R.Fields). Caught at SF 37
quick PA fake to set up a screen... Wragge and Heitmann seriously struggled to get over there to block... that killed the play.
2nd and 10 at SF 41 (8:12) G.Coffee up the middle to SF 44 for 3 yards (E.Dumervil, D.Williams).
Heitmann and Rachal did fairly well in sealing the rush lane... VD blocked OLB well... Snyder did okay, got a lil push... because Wragge pulled for then block, the ROLB was untouched, and came inside to stop the RB with help from an ILB.
3rd and 7 at SF 44 (7:24) (Shotgun) A.Smith pass incomplete short right to M.Price.
Staley did fine protecting... Coffee kinda sucked on the backfield block of #31... unimpressive blocks from Heitmann,Rachal and Snyder on the overloaded side... Alex throws sidelines out of bounds (not sure if throwing it away or poor pass) If he'd looked, he had Battle running a quick underneath in route that he could have caught and ran a few more for the first.
4th and 7 at SF 44 (7:24) A.Lee punts 46 yards to DEN 10, Center-B.Jennings, out of bounds.

Denver Broncos at 7:12 DEN SFO

1st and 10 at DEN 10 (7:12) L.Jordan up the middle to DEN 15 for 5 yards (S.McKillop).
base D... Harris gets pushed out well by #81... Balmer and Sopoaga hold well but get handled enough to keep them from making impact... nice play by McKillop to contain the RB.
2nd and 5 at DEN 15 (6:42) L.Jordan up the middle to DEN 16 for 1 yard (S.McKillop).
base D... front 7 holds the LOS well, particularly Balmer, Sopoaga, and Evans.
3rd and 4 at DEN 16 (6:01) (Shotgun) PENALTY on DEN-R.Harris, False Start, 5 yards, enforced at DEN 16 - No Play.
3rd and 9 at DEN 11 (5:34) (Shotgun) K.Orton pass deep left intended for J.Gaffney INTERCEPTED by R.Smith at DEN 30. R.Smith to DEN 6 for 24 yards (B.Hamilton).
bunch formation... looks like some kind of Nickle D... decent job by Balmer, getting doubled (at moments by 3 OL)... Evans gets a lil penetration, so so... just about 5 seconds to throw... McKillop blitzes, gets chipped low... QB tries to throw over Reggie Smith to an open man waiting... there was a deeper safety (Roman) way out of camera view well behind the target. Smith makes a fantastic leaping INT, and a nice return.
PENALTY on DEN-K.Moreno, Chop Block, 3 yards, enforced between downs.

San Francisco 49ers at 5:21 DEN SFO

1st and 3 at DEN 3 (5:21) A.Smith pass short left to B.Miller for 3 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Caught at DEN 1. 0 9
good overall protection... very nice low block by Coffee... nearly 5 seconds before Alex throws it. Hits the open man underneath (Miller)... would have been risky to throw through traffic to VD in the endzone corner, or Spurlock coming across. Alex smartly hit the right target with 2 defenders about to smoke him, and gets lots of love on the sideline.
A.Romero extra point is No Good, Wide Right, Center-B.Jennings, Holder-A.Lee.
A.Romero kicks 69 yards from SF 30 to DEN 1. A.Smith to DEN 28 for 27 yards (J.Roland, T.Clayton).
Timeout at 05:09.
DRIVE TOTALS: DEN 0 SF 9, 1 plays, 3 yards, 0:05 drive, 9:44 elapsed

Denver Broncos at 5:16, (1st play from scrimmage 5:09) DEN SFO

1st and 10 at DEN 28 (5:09) C.Buckhalter right end to DEN 25 for -3 yards (M.Harris).
base D... fantastic job of M. Harris to fight off his blocker (#81) to make the solo tackle outside.
2nd and 13 at DEN 25 (4:29) (Shotgun) K.Orton pass short right to E.Royal to DEN 44 for 19 yards (M.Roman).
Nickle 4 DL... Harris runs the arc, but can't get inside on RT... Brooks also can't beat his man (LT). Balmer and Evans stunt, but get picked up well... quick in route pass is well thrown... McKillop on Royal is a horrific match up for the rookie LB.
1st and 10 at DEN 44 (3:54) L.Jordan right end to DEN 47 for 3 yards (A.Brooks).
camera is slow and we miss the snap... great effort by Sopoaga and Brooks to chase down the run opposite to them. McKillop overpursued the rush lane... Balmer a bit washed out as well.
2nd and 7 at DEN 47 (3:14) (Shotgun) L.Jordan left guard to SF 45 for 8 yards (D.Evans).
another poor camera job... Balmer gets very quickly upfield, but the RB is just passed him... Brooks can't disengage for a tackle... McKillop got taken down from the back by an OL (missed penalty)... great pursuit from behind by Evans on the tackle...
1st and 10 at SF 45 (2:32) (Shotgun) K.Orton pass incomplete short right to E.Royal.
free rush by Harris and QB put up the INC quickly... probably a miscommunication as well.
2nd and 10 at SF 45 (2:29) L.Jordan up the middle to SF 45 for no gain (D.Bly, R.Smith).
Base D... front 7 did well to hold LOS... outstanding blitz and RB tackle from Bly
Two-Minute Warning
3rd and 10 at SF 45 (2:00) (Shotgun) K.Orton pass short left to C.Jackson to SF 42 for 3 yards (R.Smith, A.Brooks).
only 2 DL... good job getting upfield by Balmer, but can't swing himself inside to make impact... Sopoaga takes constant double team (partial triple), and still fights to get close to QB... easily 6 seconds to throw the ball... disappointing rush from Brooks, as #78 keeps a whoopin on him.
Penalty on DEN-C.Buckhalter, Offensive Pass Interference, declined.
4th and 7 at SF 42 (1:51) B.Kern punts 31 yards to SF 11, Center-L.Paxton, downed by DEN-M.Haggan.

San Francisco 49ers at 1:37 DEN SFO

1st and 10 at SF 11 (1:37) (Shotgun) A.Smith pass incomplete short left to G.Coffee.
Staley should have given better protection on #92... Wragge momentarily blocked, then ran out for the screen block... the right side did fine protecting... the 2 ILBs were full speed free rushing Alex... short-hopped the screen to Coffee. Gotta do better than that, Alex.
2nd and 10 at SF 11 (1:33) (Shotgun) G.Coffee up the middle to SF 18 for 7 yards (K.Peterson).
nice inside blocking by everyone (even VD) on the RB draw and made easier by the DL's intended rush path...
3rd and 3 at SF 18 (1:11) (Shotgun) A.Smith pass short left to J.Morgan ran ob at SF 27 for 9 yards.
Poor job by Staley, who momentarily feels the need to block in on Wragge's man... effectively allowing his man #92 to get to Alex. Nice throw and catch to Morgan regardless. (guessing it was a deep out route)
1st and 10 at SF 27 (1:04) (Shotgun) PENALTY on SF-A.Battle, False Start, 5 yards, enforced at SF 27 - No Play.
**** it, Battle!!! (this probably made up coach's mind on playing careful)
1st and 15 at SF 22 (1:04) (Shotgun) G.Coffee right guard to SF 24 for 2 yards (K.Peterson).
poor run block from Wragge shuts this draw down quickly
2nd and 13 at SF 24 (:22) G.Coffee right tackle to SF 32 for 8 yards (W.Woodyard).
combo of excellent blocking from Rachal and Snyder + excellent RB vision from Coffee
Timeout #2 by DEN at 00:15.
3rd and 5 at SF 32 (:15) (Shotgun) G.Coffee right tackle to SF 44 for 12 yards (D.McBath).
more good vision on this run by Coffee, plus excellent blocks from Heitmann and Rachal
1st and 10 at SF 44 (:09) G.Coffee up the middle to SF 48 for 4 yards (D.McBath).
All OL did well on their blocks for this play... Heitman, only so-so...

END OF SECOND QUARTER