Buccaneers at 49ers
THE STORY: A pair of unexpected NFC division leaders will look to extend their winning streaks Sunday when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers visit the San Francisco 49ers. Tampa Bay has rebounded from a season-opening home loss to Detroit to win three straight and gain a share of the top spot in the NFC South. Meanwhile, NFC West-leading San Francisco is coming off its second consecutive victory, a 24-23 triumph at Philadelphia in which it trailed 23-3 in the third quarter. This will be the fourth straight meeting between the teams in San Francisco. Four of their last five matchups have taken place at Candlestick Park, with the 49ers winning three of them.
TV: FOX, 4:05 p.m. ET. LINE: 49ers -3, O/U 41.5
ABOUT THE BUCCANEERS (3-1): Tampa Bay ended an eight-game losing streak at San Francisco last November as Josh Freeman threw two touchdown passes en route to a 21-0 drubbing. Freeman has won five of his last six starts. Earnest Graham ranks third in the NFC among running backs with a team-leading 23 receptions. Tight end Kellen Winslow looks to extend his streak of games with a catch to 81, while Ronde Barber will stretch his own mark of 187 consecutive starts by a cornerback.
ABOUT THE 49ERS (3-1): If Alex Smith is on his game, San Francisco emerges victorious. The 49ers are 7-0 when Smith posts a rating of 100 or better as a starter. RB Frank Gore appears to be rounding into shape. After three straight games of fewer than 60 yards rushing, Gore registered 127 yards in Sunday's win over the Eagles. San Francisco has not allowed an opponent to gain 100 yards on the ground in its last 26 games. Last week, it held Philadelphia's LeSean McCoy to a paltry 18 yards on nine rushes.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. Both clubs have been stingy defensively thus far. The 49ers are second in the NFC with 75 points allowed, while the Buccaneers rank fourth in the conference (77).
2. San Francisco is looking to improve to 4-1 for the first time since 2002. Tampa Bay hasn't started a season at 4-1 since 2005.
3. Vernon Davis of the 49ers leads all NFL tight ends with 21 touchdowns since the start of the 2009 season. His 2,103 receiving yards in that span is second in the league among players at his position.