The 49ers defense had something to prove. Mark Sanchez and the Jets never had a chance.
The fearsome San Francisco defensive front was hungry coming into yesterday’s game against the Jets after a disappointing Week 3 loss to Minnesota and showed it in a 34-0 thrashing of Gang Green.
“I think after last game some people kind of questioned us,” 49ers linebacker Aldon Smith said. “We all were amped and ready to play a good game. We know what we’re capable of. Just coming out and playing a good game on both sides of the ball was important.”
Smith sacked Sanchez twice and forced the quarterback to fumble in as dominant a defensive performance as any this season. The 49ers mounted a fearsome and aggressive pass rush against Sanchez, limiting him to just 103 yards on 13-of-29 passing and an interception.
“We were able to get pressure on him and make his throws hard,” Smith said. “When we weren’t making his throws hard, we were getting sacks, so we did a good job with that.”
Coach Rex Ryan and offensive coordinator Tony Sparano could not even catch the 49ers defense off guard when they turned over the reins to Tim Tebow.
“He’s a dual-threat guy, he can throw the ball and he can run the ball,” Smith said. “We had to stop the run, and when he shows the pass, stop that when it came.”
San Francisco held Tebow to just nine total yards on seven offensive snaps (four at quarterback, three as a running back). Tebow’s only completion came on a nine-yard pass to Dedrick Epps, which was fumbled and immediately recovered by the 49ers.
In addition to the three combined turnovers from Sanchez and Epps, cornerback Carlos Rogers also scored a defensive touchdown on a fumble recovery after Jets wideout Santonio Holmes went down with an injury early in the fourth quarter, extending the lead to 24-0.
“We finished plays, got turnovers and got off the field on third down,” Rogers said. “We got some gifts on defense and we got in the end zone.”
Niners quarterback Alex Smith said, “The defense played outstanding. Anytime you can get a shutout, dominate the way they did, that’s great.”
“Our defense, they’re one of the best in the league,” running back Frank Gore said. “We know they are going to do a great job, we just have to keep going.”