The Arizona Cardinals pulled out an edgy division win at home, topping the San Francisco 49ers 23-14 at University of Phoenix Stadium on Sunday. Our takeaways:
- After last week's ugly meltdown against the Bears, Colin Kaepernick was a clean 7-for-7 passing with a touchdown strike on San Francisco's opening touchdown drive. The 49ers starter accounted for 161 of his team's 182 yards in the first half, but Kaepernick's offense -- which hasn't scored a touchdown in the fourth quarter this season -- fizzled out down the stretch. So did a Niners defense overwhelmed by Arizona's speedy cachet of pass-catchers: Michael Floyd and John Brown made mincemeat of San Francisco's secondary.
- Drew Stanton was the story of the second half. The Cardinals backup absorbed a string of clock-cleaning hits, but kept getting back up. Stanton lit up the 49ers with a pair of third-quarter touchdown darts to Brown, who repeatedly beat coverage before drawing a critical pass interference call on Arizona's game-clinching march. While Stanton missed his share of deep strikes to open targets, Carson Palmer's understudy was all grit.
- Those who love long, slow drives should view this one on Game Rewind. A first-half stretch saw San Francisco score on a 12-play, 80-yard march before Arizona countered with a 17-play, 66-yard series that chewed eight-plus minutes off the clock. The 49ers countered with a 14-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that melted another 8:35 out of the first half.
- If Kaepernick's turnovers killed the 49ers against Chicago, Sunday's implosion was more about the team failing to convert key third downs. We also saw a departure from their time-tested strategy to bleed teams with the run, as San Francisco employed a heavy dosage of five-receiver sets to make up for the loss of tight end Vernon Davis.
- That pass-happy approach betrayed the 49ers but helped Stevie Johnson. The veteran wideout caught three passes on San Francisco's first two drives -- and nine for 103 yards on the day -- after just four grabs over his first two games.
- Arizona's fourth-quarter block of a Phil Dawson field goal deflated the Niners while giving the Cardinals an NFL-leading 17th block since 2008.
- The Niners have been outscored 52-3 in the second half this season.
The latest Around The NFL Podcast recaps the Falcons' lopsided win over the Bucs and previews every other game in Week 3.
