A long second-half slide contributed to sense of uneasiness along the sideline Sunday afternoon as the
But it was a familiar frustrating story for the Redskins, who watched as the 49ers celebrated place-kicker Joe Nedney's game-winning 39-yard field goal as time expired in their 27-24 victory in front of 67,519.
"You kind of get tired of thinking about what you could have done," Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss said. "You just have to let it all boil down to what's happened. If you got it done, you got it done. If you didn't, you've got to kind of move forward. You can't sit back and dwell on what you could have done, because you didn't do it. And that's the situation we've been in and we're ending in."
After Campbell's 2-yard touchdown run, San Francisco quarterback Shaun Hill made timely plays to put his team in position for the game-winning field goal. Hill, a former Maryland standout, and the 49ers began work at their 27-yard line with 1 minute, 2 seconds on the game clock. He completed three passes for gains of 9-, 19- and 24 yards as San Francisco reached Washington's 21-yard line.
With a first down and only 16 seconds to play, Hill spiked the ball to stop the clock and then took a knee. Interim head coach
"There was no doubt at all," Hill (21 of 30, 245 yards, one touchdown) said of the winning drive. "I don't think any of us had any doubt. We practice that all the time. We feel we are a good offense, and this is what good offenses do."
Washington (8-8) squandered a 10-point halftime lead Sunday and its surprising 6-2 start in the 2008 season, going 2-6 after the midpoint of its schedule. Despite playing its starters in an effort to finish with a winning record instead of using the game as an opportunity to evaluate many rookies, Washington, which officially was eliminated from the hunt for an
Vinny Cerrato, Washington's executive vice president of football operations, last week reaffirmed rookie head coach and play-caller Jim Zorn will lead the team in the 2009 season, saying Zorn has made progress during his first season. An awful second half is not what Zorn envisioned or wanted, but his optimism and confidence has not waned, he said.
"We have a lot to think about for our group," Zorn said. "And my hope, and I believe this, is that our group stays a group and learns to fight again next football season."
It could be helpful for the 2009 Redskins if the defense figured out how to finish better. Although they were ranked fourth overall entering the game, the Redskins defense often struggled in the final quarter late this season. Too often, opponents made plays to extend drives.
The failure of the defense to deliver down the stretch was among the glaring problems in losses to Baltimore and Cincinnati and San Francisco. "Why does it keep happening? That's a good question," defensive end
Trailing 24-17, Campbell led the Redskins on a 55-yard drive in the final five minutes to tie it. On fourth down and goal from the 2-yard line, Campbell dropped back and quickly surveyed the defense, trying to locate one of three receivers in the pattern. With everyone well covered, Campbell took off for the end zone and got in with 1:15 to go.
"He stayed in there mentally," Zorn said of Campbell. "I was on him to stay in there, and he did. He stayed in there mentally, he threw the ball accurately (and) he read well. Just a great effort on some of the runs he made."
But for Campbell, it was just another wasted opportunity in a once-promising season that fell apart quickly. "It's just tough," said Campbell, who completed 18 of 30 passes for 156 yards and a touchdown. "It's tough when you think about everything, from how we started and what we thought we could do. But I know I'm going to take this and learn from it. I'm just going to keep working to be the best quarterback I can be."
49ERS 27, REDSKINS 24
| Washington 01707—24 |
| San Francisco 70713—27 |
| Was | SF | |
| First downs | 19 | 19 |
| Total Net Yards | 268 | 359 |
| Rushes-yards | 34-125 | 26-121 |
| Passing | 143 | 238 |
| Punt Returns | 2-6 | 2-43 |
| Kickoff Returns | 5-143 | 4-84 |
| Interceptions Ret. | 1-31 | 0-0 |
| Comp-Att-Int | 18-30-0 | 21-30-1 |
| Sacked-Yards Lost | 1-13 | 1-7 |
| Punts | 5-45.6 | 3-49.7 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 1-1 | 3-0 |
| Penalties-Yards | 2-10 | 3-15 |
| Time of Possession | 32:00 | 28:00 |
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING—Washington, Portis 29-80, J.Campbell 4-39, Betts 1-6. San Francisco, Gore 11-58, Foster 9-44, J.Hill 1-9, S.Hill 4-8, Robinson 1-2.PASSING—Washington, J.Campbell 18-30-0-156. San Francisco, S.Hill 21-30-1-245.
RECEIVING—Washington, Moss 6-68, Cooley 6-57, Randle El 3-16, Betts 2-7, Thrash 1-8. San Francisco, J.Hill 4-28, Morgan 3-50, Foster 3-20, Davis 3-18, Johnson 2-43, Robinson 2-43, Bruce 2-8, Bajema 1-29, Gore 1-6.
MISSED FIELD GOAL—San Francisco, Nedney 48 (WR).
On Page D3
Philadelphia crushes Dallas to end the Cowboys' season.
Green Bay finishes off Detroit's 0-16 nightmare.
San Diego rolls by Denver to earn the last playoff spot.