Giants at 49ers
THE STORY: Depending upon one's definition of the word, a pair of "elite" quarterbacks will take the field for Sunday's game pitting the visiting New York Giants against the San Francisco 49ers. While Hall of Famer Joe Montana certainly isn't suiting up for the 49ers, first-year coach Jim Harbaugh heaped considerable praise on current quarterback Alex Smith for his showing thus far this season. Harbaugh said the top overall pick of the 2005 draft is “every bit the elite quarterback as there is playing in the game right now.” Now, San Francisco has won seven of its eight games this season, although Smith has tossed a grand total of 10 touchdowns in that span. On the flip side, Giants quarterback Eli Manning said last summer that he felt he belonged in the same “elite” class with New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Last week, Manning did his best to substantiate that claim at Brady's expense by tossing a touchdown pass with 15 seconds remaining to lift the Giants to a 24-20 win over the Patriots.
TV: FOX, 4:15 p.m. ET. LINE: 49ers -3.5, O/U 42.5
ABOUT THE GIANTS (6-2): With Ahmad Bradshaw likely to miss his second straight game with a cracked bone in his foot, Brandon Jacobs will test the mettle of the NFL's No. 1 rush defense (70.8 yards per contest). Jacobs did rush for his third touchdown of the season against the Patriots. WR Hakeem Nicks also missed last week's game with a hamstring injury, although he returned to practice on Thursday and is expected to face the 49ers. Giants WR Victor Cruz has recorded 90-plus yards in five of his last six games.
ABOUT THE 49ERS (7-1): San Francisco is riding high with a six-game winning streak and a comfortable five-game cushion in the moribund NFC West. All is not rosy, however, as stud running back Frank Gore is being plagued by a left ankle injury. Gore sits 148 yards shy of Joe "The Jet" Perry for the franchise rushing record. Last week, Gore ran his total to five straight 100-plus yards games with 107 in San Francisco's 19-11 win over the Washington Redskins. On the other side of the ball, the 49ers' defense has not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 30 consecutive games.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. New York has won the last three meetings between the teams, although the last victory came on Oct. 19, 2008. San Francisco's last triumph was memorable, however, as it overcame a 24-point deficit to post a 39-38 win in a playoff game.
2. Niners TE Vernon Davis has recorded an NFL-best 23 touchdowns since the start of the 2009 season.
3. Giants LB Mathias Kiwanuka was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week after notching a team-leading 12 tackles against the Patriots.