The San Francisco 49ers played a tough game against the St. Louis Rams on January 1 and came out with a 34-27 victory. The 49ers were already heading towards the playoffs but that victory locked up the two-seed in the NFC for them, handing them the luxury of a first-round bye and time to rest some players.

As far as Jim Harbaugh is concerned, this probably isn’t going to be a vacation of any sorts. He and his team will watch film on teams they could possibly face and prepare themselves by facing each other during this week at practice, since they don’t know who they are playing yet.

In Harbaugh’s weekly press conference, he made a few important points and answered some questions that reflected exactly how he felt about the win and the playoffs.

Media: Late in the season, your team had been on a three for 20 slump in the red zone. You’re 6-8 in scoring touchdowns in the last three games. Is that encouraging going in to this playoff game?

Jim Harbaugh “It is. We had hit a little bit of a slump there, three or four weeks back. But, I think it’s been improving and that’s encouraging.”

The red zone offense was something that had been lacking prior to the last three games, but Harbaugh knows that teams go through slumps. It’s not something that he was going to lose sleep over, but I’m sure it is something he addressed with his team. There is never a more crucial time to remain efficient in the red zone and that time is drawing near when the 49ers head into their first playoff game in nearly a decade on January 14. Knowing that, Harbaugh will have his team ready for anything they have to face.

M: Any things you guys will do the same (referring to Jim Harbaugh talking to his brother John Harbaugh)?

JH: “Yeah, there will be some similar things. Basically, we’re on a similar schedule. Some things, like I said, we both have a bye this week. Compared notes, some things are the same, some are different.”

As a fan, I have to admit it’s pretty cool to see that Jim is able to reach out to his older brother John despite essentially being in competition. There is a possibility that these two teams meet in the Super Bowl, especially with both teams being two-seeds in their respective leagues and having first-round byes. John has been to the playoffs before with the Ravens and Jim has to feel more confident that he can reach out to his brother for some advice in his first go as an NFL head coach.

M: You always hear about playoff experience. This team kind of reminds me of the 1981 Super Bowl team: 13-3, you’ve got a bye, virtually no experience on the roster in the playoffs. Underrated or overrated, playoff experience?

JH: “I think it’s good to have experience. It’s good to have been there before. I’m not overrating it or underrating it.”

Continuing down the course of having experience and this being Jim Harbaugh’s first year, he knows that experience is important. Talking to his brother can only offer him so much in terms of experience. The 49ers being there and playing in the playoffs is the only way to gain experience and for this group of guys, very, very few of them have playoff experience. Not to mention Jim Harbaugh is in his first year as an NFL coach, meaning that this is new territory for many of the 49ers. Hopefully everything the 49ers have been able to do all year to win games with be amplified in the playoffs—including their bond as a team.

David is co-founder of wrapupp sports blog where they post fresh content daily and present sports blogs and sports opinions – all with a West Coast bias. Growing up in the Bay Area, David is a huge supporter of all the local sports teams; the Giants, Athletics, Warriors, Sharks, 49ers, and Raiders. His one fault, admittedly, as many of his friends and family would say, is his love for the Los Angeles Lakers. Growing up, Magic Johnson was his favorite basketball player and he fell in love with the team. He chalks it up to, “Not knowing any better”. Now his love for sports has turned just as academic as it is intuitive and he follows most all sports all over the nation.

You can follow David on Twitter: @officialwrapupp

Sources:

49ers.com. Coach’s Notebook: Jan. 2. NFL 2011.

More from David Mehrwein and the Yahoo! Contributor Network:

San Francisco 49ers Vs. St. Louis Rams: Fan Preview

Oakland Raiders Vs. San Diego Chargers: Fan Preview

San Francisco 49ers Have Eight Players Selected to Pro Bowl: Fan Reaction

Top 2012 Pro Bowl Snubs: Fan Opinion

49ers Release WR Braylon Edwards: Fan Reaction

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

By James Brady

– Contributor

Follow , and

Like SB Nation Bay Area on Facebook.

Dec 27, 2011 – The San Francisco 49ers of the last eight years have been entering Week 17 either calling it a season, or hoping on an awful lot of things to happen to allow them into the playoffs. Since 2003, Week 17 has marked the point in which 49ers fans turn on the TV, get a little angrier about a lost season, turn it back off again and start studying draft prospects. Now they’ve got a new coaching staff, a few new faces on the roster and they’re sitting at 12-3, with the prospect of finishing seven games ahead of where they were last season.

On top of that, they need only to win Sunday’s game against the lowly St. Louis Rams to secure the No. 2 seed, though it’s not entirely required. The New Orleans Saints moved to 12-3 on Monday Night Football, soundly beating the Atlanta Falcons, and San Francisco holds a tiebreak. If the 49ers don’t beat the Rams and the Saints also lose their game, then San Francisco would still hold the No. 2 seed.

That being said, you can’t depend on Drew Brees and New Orleans losing a football game any week of the season. Though San Francisco likely had hoped to rest some starters on Sunday, it’s likely that the usual guys will be in action. Players like Justin Smith, Carlos Rogers, Frank Gore and Patrick Willis could use a break (if Willis is even healthy enough to go), and it’s very possible that Jim Harbaugh wanted to give Colin Kaepernick some playing time in lieu of Alex Smith.

For the Rams, they’d love to play spoiler, and that’s really all this game could be at this point. They’re lined up for one of the top picks in the draft, and there will be players and coaches trying to secure jobs next season, and that could mean beating the 49ers. Not a ton has changed since the last time these two teams met, when the 49ers thoroughly dominated.

Read More: Carlos Rogers (DB – SFX), Drew Brees (QB – NOS), Frank Gore (RB – SFX), Justin Smith (DE – SFX), Patrick Willis (LB – SFX), Colin Kaepernick (QB – SFX), San Francisco 49ers, St. Louis Rams

Follow , and

Like SB Nation Bay Area on Facebook.

Do you like this story?

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS/AP) — Jim Harbaugh delivered exactly what the San Francisco 49ers hired him for back in January: a playoff berth and NFC West title in his first season running the show. So much for the lockout slowing him down.

Left tackle Joe Staley delivered the celebratory Gatordade dousing on Harbaugh’s head in the closing moments of Sunday’s 26-0 win over the St. Louis Rams that wrapped up that long-awaited division title for a once-proud franchise determined to return to the glory days of Jerry Rice and Joe Montana, Steve Young and Roger Craig.

Frank Gore helped run San Francisco (10-2) right into the postseason, becoming the 49ers’ career rushing leader by passing late Hall of Famer Joe Perry and finishing with 73 yards.

Alex Smith threw second-half touchdowns of 52 and 56 yards to Michael Crabtree and Kyle Williams and David Akers kicked four field goals to help Harbaugh join George Seifert (1989) and Steve Mariucci (1997) as the only rookie coaches in franchise history to win the division.

The only downer came when star linebacker Patrick Willis left the game in the first half with a right hamstring injury.

Rams quarterback A.J. Feeley struggled in place of injured starter Sam Bradford for the reeling Rams (2-10), who watched several more key players go down.

San Francisco became the NFL’s second team to secure a playoff berth behind defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay.

The 49ers bounced back from a discouraging 16-6 loss at Baltimore on Thanksgiving night against the Ravens and Harbaugh’s big brother, John, with another methodical victory. Smith was sacked nine times in that game and four more Sunday.

Despite further problems converting in the red zone early, San Francisco shut out an opponent for the first time since a 35-0 home win at Candlestick Park on Oct. 4, 2009. That was also the Rams’ last shutout.

The Niners also avenged a late-season loss from 2010 that was still plenty fresh. They had won five straight before losing at St. Louis in the second-to-last week. It was after that game when coach Mike Singletary was fired. That led to the high-profile hiring of Harbaugh in January. And the 49ers’ transformation began in earnest.

San Francisco’s impressive season might help shed that “NFC Worst” stigma from the West.

Smith, who didn’t start that last game against the Rams, completed 17 of 23 passes for 274 yards with four sacks and no interceptions to finish with a career-high 142.3 quarterback rating. He gave way to rookie backup Colin Kaepernick midway through the fourth.

Gore ran for 2 yards early in the second quarter to give him 7,345 career yards rushing, moving him past Perry (7,344) for most in franchise history.

The 28-year-old Gore, a two-time Pro Bowl selection in his seventh NFL season, has said it was a goal for this season to become the career rushing leader — though getting to the playoffs for the first time has always been the top priority.

Same for Smith, Vernon Davis, Willis and all the others who haven’t played on the NFL’s big stage before.

Gore and his teammates are wearing No. 34 helmet decals this season in honor of Perry, the first player with back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons and nicknamed “The Jet” for his sensational speed. He died in April at age 84.

Willis watched the second half on the sideline in a sweatsuit.

The four-time Pro Bowler landed awkwardly after missing a tackle on fullback Brit Miller, who made an 18-yard completion from A.J. Feeley with 4:28 left in the first quarter. Willis’ body twisted as he fell to the ground at Candlestick Park and he stayed down for a short time as trainers ran out to check on him, then helped him limp off the field.

Akers kicked a 36-yard field goal on San Francisco’s second possession of the game to go up 3-0 with 4:54 left in the first quarter.

Ray McDonald knocked the ball away from Feeley midway through the second quarter to force a fumble and Aldon Smith recovered deep in St. Louis territory. That gave the 49ers first-and-goal on the 6 but they again failed to get in the end zone, settling for Akers’ 19-yard field goal.

Akers booted a 28-yarder 1:41 before halftime for his 31st field goal of the year, topping Jeff Wilkins’ single-season franchise mark of 30 he set in 1996.

That gave the 49ers nine field goals — with only three TDs — in the last 14 trips to the red zone before Crabtree’s TD catch.

Davis dropped a would-be 40-yard touchdown catch in the end zone late in the second quarter on a perfectly thrown pass from Smith. Davis later had a catch and fumble for San Francisco, which hasn’t scored a first-half touchdown since Week 9 at Washington.

Rams DE Chris Long’s second-quarter sack on Smith gave him one in six straight games.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed)

37.713453
-122.385153

Read More: Frank Gore (RB – SFX), Braylon Edwards (WR – SFX), San Francisco 49ers, St. Louis Rams

The San Francisco 49ers suit up on Sunday as they hope to bounce back after last week’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thanksgiving Day, but their offense may not be at full strength when this happens. Running back Frank Gore was limited in practice on Wednesday, while wide receiver Braylon Edwards didn’t participate due to a knee injury.

The full injury report can be found here, but it’s shown below:

Full Participation

- CB Chris Culliver

- OT Anthony Davis

Limited Participation

- RB Frank Gore

- OG Adam Snyder

- FB Bruce Miller

Did Not Participate

- WR Braylon Edwards

Obviously Gore is the big name here. He’s been exceptional for the 49ers this season, rushing for 909 yards and five touchdowns on 203 attempts. He was dominant over a five-game stretch earlier in the season, rushing for 634 yards over the period while scoring in four of the five games, but he’s rushed for just 127 yards on 44 carries over the three games since that run.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more updates on the Rams and all matters St. Louis. For more on Sunday’s game, check out Turf Show Times, SB Nation’s St. Louis Rams blog, and Niners Nation, SB Nation’s San Francisco 49ers blog.

San Francisco 49ers Coach Jim Harbaugh may not be making many friends with his brash style and his postgame antics, but his team is making believers out of naysayers.

The 49ers (6-1) have won five straight games and have the second-best record in the NFL. Their only loss was a 27–24 overtime setback to the Dallas Cowboys. Since then they have been on a roll.

Following their 20-10 victory against the Cleveland Browns, the 49ers have moved to the third spot in the latest NFL power rankings by The Times-Picayune. The Green Bay Packers remain the No. 1 team for the eighth straight week.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are second, followed by the 49ers, New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens.

The New Orleans Saints, who were ranked third before their disappointing 31-21 loss to the previously winless St. Louis Rams, dropped to No. 8.   

Here are the rankings:

Rankings, (last week), team, record,

1.(1) Green Bay Packers 7-0 Have won 13 straight games dating back to last year.

2. (5) Pittsburgh Steelers 6-2 May be the best team in the AFC. 

3. (4) San Francisco 49ers 6-1 Frank Gore has the 49ers off and running.

4. (2) New England Patriots 5-2 Defense struggled on third down vs. Steelers.

5. (7) Baltimore Ravens 5-2 Had a scare against Cardinals.

6. (6) New York Giants 5-2 Have a two-game lead in NFC East.

7. (9) Detroit Lions 6-2 Snapped two-game losing streak.

8. (3) New Orleans Saints 5-3 This is a good, but flawed team. 

9. (13) Buffalo Bills 5-2 Bills defense had a breakout performance.

10. (10) Atlanta Falcons 4-3 Coming off a bye.

11. (11) New York Jets 4-3 Coming off a bye.

12. (12) Chicago Bears 4-3 Coming off a bye.

13. (14) Houston Texans 5-3 Have now outscored their AFC South foes 99-28.

14. (15) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 4-3 Looking to sweep the Saints. 

15. (16) Oakland Raiders 4-3 Is Carson Palmer ready?

16. (8) San Diego Chargers 4-3 Suddenly, the Chargers are losing their way.

17. (18) Cincinnati Bengals 5-2 Have won four-straight games.

18. (21) Philadelphia Eagles 3-4 Finally looked like the Eagles team we expected.

19. (20) Tennessee Titans 4-3 Still waiting for CJ2K to have one of those big games.

20. (23) Kansas City Chiefs 4-3 Scored a nice OT win over Chargers. 

21. (17) Dallas Cowboys 3-4 There is plenty of blame to go around in Dallas.

22. (19) Washington Redskins 3-4 Have lost three straight.

23. (24) Cleveland Browns 3-3 Ranked 28th in scoring.

24. (28) Minnesota Vikings 2-6 DE Jared Allen has a sack in 10 straight games.

25. (24) Carolina Panthers 2-6 Have been in a lot of close games.

26. (25) Jacksonville Jaguars 2-6 Remain the worst scoring team in the NFL.

27. (26) Seattle Seahawks 2-5 Coach Carroll trying to quell frustration.

28. (27) Denver Broncos 2-5 Tim Tebow had his struggles.

29. (30) St. Louis Rams 1-6 Big win for the Rams.

30. (29) Arizona Cardinals 1-6 Have lost six straight games.

31. (31) Miami Dolphins 0-7 Losing continues for Miami.

32. (32) Indianapolis Colts 0-8 Last three losses have come by double-digit margins.