The 49ers scored back to back touchdowns in the final quarter to come from behind and hand the St. Louis Rams a 17-16 defeat on their home turf.
Head coach Mike Singletary nearly pulled quarterback Shaun Hill after he threw three interceptions, but his starter convinced him otherwise.
Hill stayed in the game and rallied his troops by scoring on a 3-yard touchdown pass to Isaac Bruce, and a 48-yard touchdown strike to Josh Morgan.
The touchdown pass to Bruce marked his 1,000th career reception. The former Rams receiver also reached another milestone with an 8-yard grab on the following drive to move him ahead of Tim Brown on the all-time receiving list.
After going up a point, the 49ers defense had to prevent the Rams from marching into field goal territory. With 1:22 left and all three timeouts at their disposal, St. Louis just managed to cross into 49ers territory when second-year corner Tarell Brown picked off a Marc Bulger pass to seal the win.
1st Quarter Scoring Summary
The 49ers took a 3-0 edge with two minutes left in the first quarter whenJoe Nedney's 48-yard field goal completed a 7-play, 34-yard drive that was highlighted by a 21-yard catch by Isaac Bruce.
The 49ers had crossed into the redzone earlier in the quarter, but Rams safety OJ Atogwe forced a Vernon Davis fumble that he also recovered at the 18-yardline.
2nd Quarter Scoring Summary
The Rams quickly evened the game in the second quarter with an 8-play, 47-yard drive that was topped by a 43-yard Josh Brown field goal. Torry Holt caught two passes on the drive for 34 yards.
The Rams finished off an 8-play, 80-yard scoring drive with a 30-yard touchdown strike from Marc Bulger to Keenan Burton, who slipped behind Walt Harris and Michael Lewis for the score. The touchdown increased the Rams to a 10-3 lead with 1:19 to go in the quarter.
The 49ers tried to mount a hurry up drive, but Hill was intercepted for the second time of the game, this time by cornerback Ron Bartell.
St. Louis took over and used four plays to get within field goal range for Brown, who hit a 38-yarder to cushion the Rams with a 13-3 edge at the half.
3rd Quarter Scoring Summary
There was no scoring in the third quarter.
4th Quarter Scoring Summary
The Rams put together a 15-play, 60-yard scoring drive that ended in a 22-yard field goal by Brown. The eight minute drive was set up by Ron Bartell's second interception of the game, and gave the Rams a 16-3 fourth quarter edge.
With 4:08 left in the game, Hill found Bruce in the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown to cut the Rams lead to within six. The 11-play drive covered 80 yards.
Following a three and out series by the defense, Hill got the ball back at his own 33 with 2:27 left in the game. He needed just four plays to again score, this time on a 48-yard touchdown pass to Morgan.
