Arizona Cardinals running back LaRod Stephens-Howling is tackled by San Francisco 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis and fumbles the ball in the first quarter of an NFL football game Monday in San Francisco.<br><I>Associated Press
Arizona Cardinals running back LaRod Stephens-Howling is tackled by San Francisco 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis and fumbles the ball in the first quarter of an NFL football game Monday in San Francisco.<br><I>Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO - The Arizona Cardinals lost their discipline and a chance to clinch a second straight NFC West crown. They threw the ball away, and they fumbled it even more.
Alex Smith threw touchdown passes after two of Arizona's seven turnovers, Frank Gore ran for 167 yards and another score and the San Francisco 49ers kept their slim playoff hopes alive with a dominanting 24-9 victory Monday night.
"I don't think it's anything they did," Arizona tackle Darnell Dockett said. "We lost this game ourselves."
With a relentless defensive attack, San Francisco forced the sloppy Cardinals into five first-half turnovers and kept Kurt Warner from finding a groove. Warner threw two interceptions in the opening half after going 130 passes without a pick.
Arizona (8-5) still can clinch the division by winning two of its final three games.
"Getting a win against a team playing great ball that had a chance to clinch the division, we came out and dominated," Gore said. "They let me get in the zone. Any back who gets in that zone, it's hard to stop them."
Gore had his most productive game since Week 2, running over a defense that held Adrian Peterson to 19 yards in a win over Minnesota last week. Gore was certainly motivated for a big night after getting only 30 yards on 22 carries in a season-opening victory at Arizona on Sept. 13.
Smith, coming off a loss at Seattle last week in which he threw for a career-high 310 yards, connected on TD passes to Vernon Davis and Michael Crabtree and finished 19 of 35 for 144 yards. The 49ers (6-7) answered coach Mike Singletary's challenge to make a statement on the national stage against the reigning NFC champions.
The Cardinals matched the NFL high for turnovers this season with their second game with six or more in 2009, much to the delight of the sellout crowd at Candlestick Park. They had seven last season against the Jets in a 56-35 loss.
The 49ers forced seven turnovers for the first time since getting eight against New Orleans on Sept. 14, 1997. They had a franchise-record five forced fumbles, two by safety Dashon Goldson.
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