Falcons Lose Kicker, Game to 49ers : San Francisco: Atlanta’s only points come on field goal by quarterback Chris Miller in 45-3 loss.

Definition of a bad day in the NFL: When your quarterback scores your only points . . . by kicking a field goal.

That was the fate of the Atlanta Falcons, who were trounced by the San Francisco 49ers, 45-3, Sunday.

An indication of things to come occurred during the pre-game warmups when the Falcons’ kicker, Paul McFadden, pulled a muscle in his right thigh.

Thus Atlanta had to turn to its emergency kicker, quarterback Chris Miller, who made his only attempt from 25 yards in the second quarter.

Otherwise, things didn’t go too well for the Falcons.

Joe Montana, who threw for three scores after getting the 49ers’ first touchdown on a quarterback sneak, said: “It was real weird. It was like the Keystone Kops.”

Offensive tackle Bubba Paris looked at things a little differently.

“Atlanta proved that we could take a team that’s down and keep them down,” he said.

Besides the usual heroes--Montana, Jerry Rice and Roger Craig--linebacker Charles Haley scored on a three-yard fumble return and rookie running back Keith Henderson, playing in his first game, scored on an 11-yard run late in the game.

The victory, combined with the New York Giants’ loss to the Rams, gave the 49ers (9-1) the NFL’s best record. Their lead over the Rams in the NFC West remained at three games.

Rice caught only three passes for 81 yards, but two went for touchdowns on plays of 38 and 11 yards. Craig, who had seven 100-yard games a year ago, went over the century mark for the first time in nine weeks with 109 yards in 17 carries against the NFL’s second-worst rushing defense.

The Falcons (3-7) are winless in six road games, having scored just 80 points. They were outgained 515 yards to 192.

“I wasn’t pleased with anything that went on out there,” Atlanta Coach Marion Campbell said. “It hurts us to go through this.”

San Francisco put the game away in a ragged but dominant first half, going up, 28-3, by halftime. Montana lost two fumbles and threw two passes that should have been intercepted but still had 230 passing yards en route to a total of 270 yards on 16-for-19 passing in under three quarters.

The first quarter ended with the 49ers leading, 7-0, and the Falcons, after tight end Ron Heller dropped a pass in the end zone, closed to within 7-3 on Miller’s field goal.

Then Montana and Rice teamed up on a 38-yard pass play touchdown and the rout was on. Haley scored just 27 seconds later after Miller lost his grip on the ball.

“At the time I was trying to play it down, but that was the greatest feeling I ever had,” Haley said.